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Russo looks to be getting bored of our conversation and leans back into his chair. “I can’t speak for your friend. That's a conversation you will have to have with him. I’m not about to pretend to know about the conversations Rinaldi has with his son. Now, tell me why you’re sitting in my office.”
“I …” I shake my head, still struggling to wrap my head around everything that’s gone down over the last few minutes, but I have no choice. After all, there is a reason I’m here, and it’s a shitload more important than Russo having a few of his watchdogs on me.
I meet his eye and swallow back fear, showing him that I deserve to know every last fucking detail he has. “I need to know what’s going down with the Widows, and I won’t be taking no for an answer.”
Russo watches me a little while longer, studying the sharp lines of my clenched jaw. His eyes narrow in consideration, and as he relaxes back into his chair and laces his fingers, the most unexpected words come out of his mouth. “Alright,” he finally says. “Here’s what you need to know.”Chapter 16The Audi flies through the streets of Blaxlands Grove and into Breakers Flats. I’m doing anything and everything to try and be okay with what just happened. I drive on auto-pilot, not even sure where I’m going until I'm pulling up at the shitty little lake where I used to come with the boys.
I’d called Colton the second I got out of there but told him that I needed some space to breathe. He didn’t object but seeing as though I was out of the Den, he really had no reason to argue. I could tell he wanted me home, but that’s going to have to wait until I can begin to wrap my head around everything I just learned. I mean, Laurelle Carrington was screwing Mikhail Russo, and then on top of that, Milo might have been put into my life. Is our friendship even real, or is he being forced to remain by my side? I think I’d break if I discovered it wasn’t real.
After pushing the seat back and swinging the door open wide, I prop my feet up onto the dash, and look out over the water. The breeze sails through the open door and watching the lake before me is so soothing and refreshing. I’d give anything to have the life of still water—drama free. The only thing it has to worry about is drying out in the middle of summer, but even then, when the kids come to play, all it ever sees is joy and happiness.
I just want it to be over. I’m sick of walking around every corner, only to be smacked in the face with someone else’s bullshit on top of all the bullshit already circulating my life.
Ten minutes turn into twenty, and before I know it, a familiar car is pulling in beside me. That’s my cue, telling me that it's time to go, only I can’t find the strength to turn the car back on and get out of here.
I just sit, staring at the water and letting the breeze blow away my problems as Kai, Sebastian, and Eli come and lean up against Eli’s car and watch me through the open door.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, not taking my eyes off the lake.
“We could ask you the same thing,” Sebastian says. “I saw you flying past my street and figured that you’d be hanging out here.”
I shrug my shoulders, too out of it to bother searching for the sarcasm that his comment requires. “Good job. You caught me.”
“What’s going on, O?” Kai murmurs, his voice filled with concern. “You look like shit.”
I let out a sigh and climb out of the Audi before walking down to the lake and kicking off my shoes. I roll up the bottom of my sweat pants and step into the cool water. “It’s just been an interesting morning,” I tell them as all three of them follow me down to the water’s edge, standing behind me, so they don’t get their precious sneakers wet.
“Were you planning on elaborating on that?” Sebastian murmurs, his voice low as he tries to hide his curiosity, trying really hard to be mad at me.
I shake my head, breathing in the fresh air. “Can’t,” I grumble. “Wolf business.”
Eli grunts. “Are you going to keep pretending that we don’t see those bruises?”
I scoff, glancing back over my shoulder and glaring. “Are you going to keep pretending like you didn’t already know? I’m not a fucking idiot. I know you have guys hidden deep in the Wolves. You knew they were planning on jumping me in, and I can guarantee that you knew exactly when it was going to happen. You showed up after school on Friday to stop it, didn’t you? You had no intention of trying to clear the air. None of you did. You were there long enough to show the Wolves that they weren’t about to touch me, and then you left.”
