Run From Me: A standalone snarky dark romance (Barbed Wire Hearts Book 2), page 1
run from me
CHELLE WOLFE
introduction
In her world, love and danger are two sides of the same coin, and she doesn’t know which side he’s on.
Calliope, the coroner's assistant, is skilled at navigating the twisted world of the dead. Thanks to her past, she's mastered the art of survival, armed with her razor-sharp tongue and an even sharper scalpel. But when gruesome murders flood her morgue and rival gangs cast their gaze her way, only one can cause the carefully constructed walls around her heart to crumble.
As a deadly game begins, she finds herself unsure where the lines between predator and prey begin. Now, Calliope is left with more than just dead bodies; she’s also fighting her attraction to Xander, a man whose danger draws her in. Despite warnings from Rylee, her only friend, Calliope finds herself drawn deeper into a web of lies, where every body holds secrets that someone is willing to kill to protect.
How did the stakes get so high in her quiet world? Calliope must confront her own demons and decide who to trust. In a world where even the dead have secrets worth killing for, Calliope's survival may depend on choosing the right side—and the right heart to trust
Copyright © 2024 Chelle Wolfe
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical method, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial users permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher addressed “Attention: Permission coordinator,” at the address below.
chellewolfeauthor@gmail.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, character, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living, or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
For my friends who have zero idea what I write and for my child who can’t read anything I write until they’re 18. Someday they will find references that sound familiar…
trigger warnings
Gore/Violence
References to abuse
Drugs/Alcohol
Gang Violence
Weapons
Foul language
Stalking
Stabbing
Choking
And if I missed any reach out and let me know.
acknowledgments
Thanks to my husband for the support to get this book done. Also he never asks questions, and maybe that’s a good thing?
Thank you ArtsCanDare Designs - Maria Christine Pagtalunan for the cover <3 and Chrisandra’s Corrections for editing!
And thank you readers! Thank you for giving me a chance and escaping into my world of darkness where the villains are morally gray and need love too.
Come join me on the journey in between the pages. Join my Newsletter!
https://www.subscribepage.com/chellewolfe
playlist
Some music to get into the mood for Xander and Calliope
Hushh- Aviva
Hellgirl - Ari Abduel
Fuck You - Silent child
Castle - Halsey
She Got Me - Kode
Break Me - Maggie Lindemann
welcome to the spectors
Welcome to the world that’s owned by the Spectors, the gang that runs the city. With the bad comes found family and bonds that can’t be broken.
Cas, Xander, and Zeiden have risen to power. Cas the grandson to Winnie and Taven and his two friends that have become like brothers. Together they transformed the Spectors into what they are today.
A force that no one can screw with.
Cas and Rylee got their happily ever after in Hide From Me, but what about Cali? Her eyes are set on Xander and we all know he’s good with weapons and words, but love?
Haven’t read the prequel, Promised to Me? Sign up for my newsletter at www.chellewolf.com to get it for free.
contents
1. Xander
2. Calliope
3. Xander
4. Calliope
5. Xander
6. Calliope
7. Xander
8. Calliope
9. Xander
10. Calliope
11. Xander
12. Calliope
13. Xander
14. Calliope
15. Xander
16. Calliope
17. Xander
18. Calliope
19. Xander
20. Calliope
21. Xander
22. Calliope
23. Xander
24. Calliope
25. Xander
26. Calliope
27. Xander
28. Calliope
29. Xander
30. Calliope
31. Xander
32. Epilogue
Coming Soon
Also by Chelle Wolfe
About the Author
ONE
xander
Rylee and Cas looked so sweet my fucking teeth hurt. Winnie dabbed at her eyes as Cas kissed his bride.
Courthouse wedding, check. Low-profile enough not to get any of us shot, check.
The party later? Security would be tight, and for once, I wasn’t the one at the door.
A healthy dose of paranoia had Zeid and me glancing at all doors all the time. If this weren’t Rylee standing up with Cas, I’d probably have talked him out of this shit. I did better with funerals. And thinking of the dead, I checked my watch.
How long had it been since I’d talked to Cali? What a request. Take her to the reception. Sure. Okay. Then nothing, no messages about when to get her for the reception. And nothing about the mayor, either.
I’d have to assume he wasn’t on her agenda for the night. It was fine. I hadn’t exactly expected him to end up on ice today either. Winnie stood on Rylee’s side, looking ever the matriarch of this band of violent fucks. One big happy disaster of a family. I wasn’t going to get all the feels. I refused. I really needed to go beat something.
Rylee and Cas kissed again before sealing the deal with a piece of paper. Back to reality. This mayor shit was really cramping our style. I should force Cali to get him on the table sooner rather than later. We needed answers. Enough of this wild goose chase shit. We lived for the chase, but enough was enough.
I sighed as Cas and Rylee smiled at each other.
Huh. I guess his face didn’t crack. Good to know.
What about my little promise? Was that going to make me crack? I wouldn’t think much about that request of hers. A date to the reception. I asked for a favor, and she asked for one back. Maybe it was the idea of walking into a nest of Spectors? The girl had balls doing what she did all day. All those long-since-dead bodies gave me the creeps. I really preferred them fresh and less bloated.
Thank god this was quick. Too bad I still couldn’t keep my mind on my best friend and his girl. My mind just kept going back to a little spitfire of a thing. Cali could hold her own, that was for sure. I’d never underestimate Cali in a fight.
“Put that away,” Zeid said from behind me.
I’d absentmindedly been flipping my butterfly knife open and closed to deal with the energy I couldn’t blow off at the ring tonight.
“Yeah. Sorry.”
With the knife away, I was still in this holding pattern. I guess I could just swing by the county morgue and check in on her.
Focus. I needed to focus on the wedding.
I scratched at the smooth skin of my chin. I’d even shaved for this shit. Yeah, I was a real best friend.
I smiled at Cas as he looked over his shoulder.
“Ready?”
I nodded toward the doors that were still working their way back to closed.
“Zeid’s got the Escalade waiting for you two lovebirds.”
Rylee giggled as Cas picked her up in his arms, kissing her again.
“Look, I’m glad you two finally got your shit together, but you need to tone down this PDA when she moves in. I’ll meet you two at the reception as soon as I get Cali.”
Rylee shot me a look over Cas’s shoulder.
“Why are you getting her?”
I shrugged as I hooked my thumbs in my pockets.
“She asked, and I accepted.”
I wanted to pretend like I could read her look, but shit.
“Rylee, take that look and bury it real deep. No more matchmaking. I asked for a favor and she asked for one back. Who am I to judge that she doesn’t want to show up to a reception all alone and whatever?”
She was about to open that adorable little mouth of hers, the one that seemed to have Cas so fucking whipped, but then he did something I couldn’t see and it had her nearly jumping out of his arms.
“Right, short stuff. You take care of my boy, and I’ll deal with biz.” I winked at her and headed in the direction of the Escalade. Winnie followed them. Good. Anyone important to me was safe for now.
Cas was off tonight, and that meant I would make sure he didn’t need to worry about a damn thing. How many damn years in the making had this been? Too many. Zeid and I had known from the start Rylee was his kryptonite. Who the fuck knew who ours would be? Probably for the best, and, a little, I hoped we never found out.
I did have a thing for hazel eyes right now, though.
Zeid’s hand landed on my shoulder.
“Any word on the mayor?”
I turned back and shook my head. I was so distracted I hadn’t even heard Zeid come up behind me.
He didn’t say much, but the muscle in his cheek twitched as he turned back to where Cas was helping Rylee in the SUV.
“Lucky SOB, isn’t he?” I said, pulling out a toothpick and putting it in my mouth. I had my own addictions and none of them would ever be drugs. I would never fall prey to that shit. For now, the toothpick kept my mouth busy from running it or trying to smoke something.
Zeid was quiet, but then again, when wasn’t he?
“Yeah. It’s going to be strange having a girl at the apartment. Thank god we sprang for that noise proofing insulation between floors.” I chuckled at my own joke that really wasn’t funny. We didn’t exactly welcome change, not when it came to our inner circle.
The silence was deafening, and that said a lot in the city.
“Yeah. Well, I’m going to grab Rylee’s friend Cali. See you in ten.”
“I’ll take them to Enigma, and then I should go check for any night drops before the party. I’d hate to let evidence just chill where we sleep.”
He gave me a nod and headed back toward them. I took a step back toward my car.
“Xander, wait for me.”
I stopped and watched as Winnie ran her little old lady ass toward me.
“Xander, be a dear. Will you take me back to the Dove on your way home? I’d like to pretend the years aren’t catching up to me, but, well, one never knows how long they really have. Trip used to have a car like yours, and I’d love a good drive down memory lane.”
She held my hand as I helped her into the classic Mustang. The one thing I’d kept through the years, and the one thing I refused to get rid of. She—the Mustang—reminded me of just how bad shit could get.
“Anything for you, Miss Winnie. We owe you more than can be paid back in a lifetime.”
She smiled up at me and patted my face as she got in.
“If you boys can all look as happy as my Caspian, I think that would be thanks enough. Now, get me home before I turn into a pumpkin.”
I ran to the other side and started the engine.
“You aren’t coming to the reception?” I asked her as I settled into the driver’s seat.
She shook her head, and it was the first time I noticed just how tired she looked.
“You feeling okay, Miss Winnie?”
She sighed. “I’m fine. I’m just too old for parties that the Spectors put on. You go and enjoy and celebrate for me. I got to see the part that matters.”
I headed back toward our territory, still not loving city hall sitting far too close to anyone but us, really. It had been over an hour, and Cali still hadn’t sent me her address. Maybe she just lived at the morgue. I imagine with anyone crazy enough to enjoy putting hearts in jars, anything was possible. I guess I could just head back over there.
I got lost in my head as Winnie let the breeze from the open windows fill the car. If only life were always this simple.
I really shouldn’t give this whole Calliope thing any more thought. It was her request, not mine. I just wanted the deets on a dead guy.
Hot as she was, I wasn’t even sure I wanted that brand of crazy. I wasn’t sure her brand was the kind I’d be walking away from unscathed.
“Xander? Slow down a bit, dear. You’ve been awfully quiet. Whatever is going on in that head of yours, you better always stop by and keep me updated. Without Rylee next door, I’m afraid no one will be stalking me for a bit.”
I laughed.
“Ah, come on, Winnie. You know we always stalk you for food. Fuck, if I have to cook breakfast—” She slapped me. “Ouch. I swear you never grow old. That was quite the punch.”
“You watch your mouth. I didn’t raise you three with words like that. Go kill someone, but don’t you dare swear in front of me,” she said and chuckled.
I came to a stop outside her building and got out. Cas would kill me if I let her walk herself to her door. The security around here had been increased and improved. There were two guards placed inside the shop now too, just in case. Maybe Winnie wasn’t exactly in danger anymore, but it would still break us if we lost her.
“Well, I hope whoever you are waiting for gets back to you soon. Enjoy your night, Xander. I love you like a grandson. Don’t ever forget that,” Winnie said before, hugging me like no one had ever done except her. I suppose if I didn’t get a good family, at least I got her and the Spectors.
“Thanks, Miss Winnie. Love you too.”
Once her door was securely locked, and I knew it was because I yanked on it myself, I headed back to my car. All this shit with Rylee was really starting to dig up some shit memories from back then, and I didn’t like it. I needed to focus on the here and now.
Problem was, the Spectors weren’t really the only shadows in my present or my past. I had demons, and I’d spent years trying to drown them.
My phone beeped.
Zeid.
I needed to get to the reception before he started to think I’d been picked off. But first? I had a rainbow-haired coroner to go check in on. I always kept my promises.
TWO
calliope
The music blaring in my headphones helped me ignore the quiet of the morgue. I spent more time here alone than I was legally supposed to, I’m sure. Oh well. What else did I have to do?
This was just another double shift. Anything to keep me distracted from my own life by seeing how others ended.
I shook my head and tried to focus. Poor asshole on the table had a heart attack. Really, nothing exciting. But at least he didn’t have to worry about how much worse life could get. And it could get so much worse. Maybe that was the allure to this job? Someone else was having a much worse day than I was having. Which really said something.
My lungs ached for a deep breath, but I’d have to wait when the scent of bleach overpowered the scent of death.
“Alright.” I looked down at his paperwork. “Mr. Johnson. I rule you a natural death. I’m not sure that’s how you wanted to go out.”
The last stitch was in place, so now I could just push his ass back into the fridge and wait for the mortuary to come get him.
“At least it was peaceful. Bye, Mr. Johnson, see you on the other side.”
The door clicked shut with a small coax of my hand.
Now I had to send a damn text. What the hell made me think asking Xander would be a good idea? I’d been to several Spector run clubs and nothing had ever happened. Rylee wouldn’t allow it. It was all the damn fumes going straight to my last few brain cells.
First things first. I needed to wash my hands. Latex gloves were fine, but it was the only other smell that could make me vomit anymore. I hated the odor they left on my skin, even if it was supposed to be better than dead guy smell.
The water splashed in the metal sink, sprinkling over my lab coat as I poured on the soap and scrubbed like I could rid myself of the smell any more than I could rid myself of the Vipers that stalked my every move.
There. That was why I’d asked Xander. I wanted to be free to make at least one damn choice they couldn’t do a damn thing about.
My heart jumped at the squeak of the morgue door. Xander. It had to be. I threw on a smile, but actually, it wasn’t all that hard to smile for him. Big, scary man with the most unreal green eyes. I’d tried not to notice over the trash and dead bodies a few weeks back, but he was impossible to ignore.
“Hey—”
The rest of my words were cut off by two familiar and unwanted arms wrapping around me. Fucking hell.
“Hey there, beautiful.”
I swallowed back the vomit his presence always seemed to elicit.
“Ripple, what are you doing here? I checked in already.”
