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I’d hoped Davos was bold enough to do something stupid like walk into my house with his arms out so that I could flip the script on him. A man like Davos is so well insulated that the only mistakes he makes are because of his ego, but apparently even he isn’t arrogant enough to come to me when I’ve promised him an agonizing death.
The wake was performative, more of a formality that needed crossed off a list than a step toward closure for Rhea or me. I knew long ago there was no redemption for the Boudreaux’s, and now I know there is no closure for us either. If there was, it surely would have come when my father took his last breath. And yet here I am, no closer to walking away from any of this than the day I was dragged into it. My father’s death should have been the end of it, but I know too much for them to watch me walk into the sunset. Even if I could, I don’t think I have the capacity to leave.
It's fucked and it’s complicated. It’s dark and it’s depressing sometimes, but this is my life. If I turn my back on the world my father helped create, I’m turning my back on every future victim, every single person who could potentially be saved from their fates. Falling asleep next to a woman lulled me into complacency, but I didn’t tell her specifically that last night was a one-night-only thing because I worried about her not being able to walk away. I needed to say it out loud so that I could convince myself that the pain of losing whatever we created would be worth the pleasure of having her temporarily.
Waking up to an empty bed makes me unsure of that anymore. I don’t regret anything we did, but I was dumb enough to think I could fuck someone like Claire Monroe out of my system. Instead, she settled under my skin.
I reach for my phone, hoping to find something to take my thoughts off of the woman who’s taken possession of my mind.
My mood only sours when I see the text from Dimitri.
BIG PROBLEM. GUEST HOUSE. COME ASAP.
I’m not in the mood to deal with anything today, let alone Wes and his stupid fucking problems. I need to go to the bar and get a drink and let the music drown out the rest of my thoughts, not go play warden with the guy I probably should have just killed. It’s clear that he doesn’t mean anything to his father. And why would he? My father wouldn’t have ever risked himself to come to my rescue, his pride be damned. He and Davos were two peas in a pod, sharing the same bad attitude, the same bad habits, and the same taste in women—or, I suppose, even sharing the same woman.
I don’t bother sending a text back to Dimitri, tugging a black shirt over my head and slipping into a pair of board shorts. Once I’ve got everything squared away at the guest house, I think I’ll take the boat out for a bit and let the open sea soothe my frustrations. That sounds far better than going to the bar and having to deal with people.
I’m not even all the way across the lawn before I see that Dimitri really undersold himself.
‘A big problem’ may just be the understatement of the fucking century, judging by all the blood splashed across my guest house door.
Doubling my pace, I sprint the rest of the way and throw the door open. “Where is he?” I demand, before I even see Dimitri standing with his arms crossed in the corner.
“I guess Wes got the jump on him.” Dimitri says, nodding toward the kitchen, where the trail of blood ends abruptly beneath a body.
The man we hired to run point on our extra security for last night’s event is dead as a doornail, his neck slashed from side to side. Wes literally went for the jugular, ending this man in a matter of moments.
But how did he get ahold of a weapon?
I’m opening my mouth to ask when this happened, but I can tell it’s been a while. I’ve seen plenty of fresh corpses, and this isn’t one of them. I am prepared to curse the dead man on my floor, but I snap my mouth shut instead, grinding my jaw shut and biting back the tension in me.
Words don’t serve the moment, and they won’t help right now, so I spin fast as a flash and bury my fist in the wall behind me. The drywall cracks around my fist, dust floating out from around the hole I just put in it. There’s no satisfaction to be found here; It’s like putting my fist through paper which gives easily under my wrath.
Wes is gone. And the truth is, someone had to have helped him escape. I simply can’t see Wes managing to sneak a blade out of my home full of people without anyone noticing. He also clearly attacked when the security guard had his back to him, unlocking the guest house door. Why would he have turned his back on Wes knowing what I told them about him?
The tension pulls on every vein, every string of muscle in my body, until I feel wound so tight, I may snap. I almost do, as realization slams into me, panic riding the wave right along with it. “Claire!”
I’m not typically a heavy sleeper, but I slept through her leaving my room. Did she do so of her own volition or was she pulled out? Lured out? And Rhea. I told Dimitri to protect her last night, but when did he leave her? Is he certain that Wes left without trying to make a move against one of the girls?
“Claire’s fine.” Dimitri says quickly. “I saw her this morning.”
“When?” I demand, turning to take him in. I’ve trusted Dimitri because I forged him, but the truth of it is, someone helped my stupid half-brother gain his freedom. I’d have said Dimitri wasn’t capable of betrayal—he’s proven himself a hundred times over—but I never would have suspected Jovich of doing what he did.
“Twenty minutes ago?” He guesses, eyes running over me like he’s sensing my suspicion. “She was on her way out of her room alone, and she was perfectly fine.”
“And Rhea?”
“Same. She was still sleeping when I left her room twenty minutes ago, which is when I saw Claire.” His jaw ticks, and I watch his throat bob as he swallows, nervous.
I pause a minute as his words sink in. “You spent the entire night in my sister’s room?”
“You told me not to leave her alone.” Dimitri defends himself.
“So why did you?” I narrow my eyes on him, letting him feel the weight of my suspicion for a minute.
“I… I didn’t want her to be embarrassed when she woke up, so I left this morning and locked the door. I came straight here to check on everything and that’s when I found this…”
It won’t be hard to corroborate his story once I check in with Claire. I’ll casually ask her if she saw Dimitri this morning and go from there. It won’t answer whether or not he truly spent the whole night in my sister’s room, but if Claire backs him up on this, at least it will help alleviate some of the distrust I feel right now.
