Free Dying To Be Heard (Book 1): Outcry by Jennifer Michiels

look at the glass half-full?" he said, turning away from Matius. He moved to stand between the two chairs, his hands folded neatly behind his back,  once again entranced by the flames.
    "Tonight may be our only chance to grab her. No doubt she has at least one escort. The death of Martin more than likely has thrown them off their game." He thought for a moment. "Do not kill her. Bring her straight to me. Do you understand?"
    Matius nodded and bowed before turning and heading to the large wooden doors. Before he crossed the threshold, the deep voice stopped him.
    "Oh, and Matius?" the voice said almost nonchalantly. "If you mess this up again, I will rip you to shreds and scatter the pieces to the dogs."
    He nodded again and continued out the door.
     
    Rayne laid face-down on the soft down comforter of the king-size bed in the hotel suite. She didn't think he ever would quit complaining about the situation. Shouldn't she be the one whining?
    The ride from Alexandria International Airport was barely twenty minutes to the front door of the hotel. After the initial shock of finding out her grandfather had been killed...again, she spent the rest of the ride in silence, wondering what Camden and the driver, Connor, were whispering about. Camden had made it very clear that he was not at all thrilled with the arrangements he had to make. Something about the lack of security and being unprepared. She wasn’t sure. What she did know was that she was tired, had a headache, and just wanted to be left alone.
    Which is exactly what she did. Immediately after checking into the Walker Hotel in downtown Alexandria, the three of them, Camden, Rayne, and Connor, rode the elevator to their fourth-floor suite. The way the concierge acted toward Camden, giggling, flipping her hair around, smiling playfully, she’d been expecting he'd weaseled his way into the penthouse, with in-house masseurs and trays of food everywhere.
    However, that's not what they had. Of course, it was still nice, with a moderate-size kitchen, large common area with a bar, and a full bathroom. Just off to the left of the kitchen were two double doors that led into a master bedroom, with a king-size bed and huge master bath. Everything was updated and modern, with white walls and cream carpet. The sofa was black leather with a stainless steel, glass-topped coffee table and stainless appliances. There were a few paintings on the walls, mostly black and white skylines, but it fit. Overall, she was impressed.
    She questioned why there was only one bedroom and one bed, to which Camden responded no one else but her would be sleeping. There were too many precautions to be taken, and they didn't have time to rest. She didn't argue. She immediately went into the bedroom and locked the door behind her. She fell onto the bed and hadn't moved since.
    She hadn't wanted to think about any of it. Part of her felt bad for not being distraught over the death of her grandfather, but how was she supposed to feel about something like that, when to her, it happened more than twenty years ago? She inhaled deeply and tried to blow away all the stress and confusion surrounding her. However, the fact that he was murdered would not leave her mind.
    Even with everything in the open about the situation, she still had no idea what to do. All the pieces were there, she just couldn't quite get them to fit together. There was still something that they weren't telling her, and she couldn't put her finger on it. She still stood by her choice to follow through with it. It was the only way to get her life back to some semblance of normal, maybe even her only chance at survival.
    Rayne flipped over to stare up at the ceiling. This had to be a dream, right? Things like this didn't actually happen to people, much less someone like her. Ordinary waitresses from Ridgeton, Washington didn't lead exciting lives.
    Her hair, previously in a ponytail, was now down and splayed around her like an auburn fan. The