Dane’s deep exhalation reveals he heard the sentiment in my tone. “That’s not the promise I’m talking about.”
“I know.” My knee bobs up and down as I struggle to leash my anger. “But I’ll still keep it.”
Dane exhales again, this time more in annoyance than trouble. “You’ve got to let this go, Alex. It’s eating you alive.”
I shake my head, expressing my lie without words. It kills me seeing him in his wheelchair, his legs withered, his once six-foot-two frame half its size. That’s why I rarely visit him. I can’t see him like that and not feel responsible for what happened. Dane was in the prime of his life, and in an instant, it was pulled from beneath him. Neither of us have been the same since.
Regrettably, Dane doesn’t need words to catch me in a lie. “You don’t even know if it was him. You’re working off half-truths.”
I laugh. It isn’t a pleasant, happy-filled chuckle. “He might not have pulled the trigger, but I guarantee you, he knows who did. That makes him just as responsible.”
“There are two sides to every story—”
“Yeah, there is,” I interrupt, nodding. “But you only get to pick one side. The right side of the law. He didn’t. . .”
My words trail off when the creak of a door steals my attention. My mom’s dynamic has flipped The Manor from a cold, rarely booked establishment to one that goes months with the no vacancy sign lit, but it’s unusual for anyone to come back here. It’s why I chose this area to take my call. I wanted privacy.
“Can I call you back?”
Although I’m asking Dane a question, I don’t give him a chance to respond. The click of the ancient phone onto the receiver almost drowns out the scurrying of feet. It’s for the best, then the person sneaking up on me unaware won’t hear the unclicking of my holster as I remove my gun from my hip.
With my pistol held high and my heart rate out of control, I exit the office at the speed of a rocket. I only make it three steps before a horrifying image blitzes me with guilt.
A gun is pointed at Regan’s head.
It’s mine.
19
“Jesus Christ, Regan. I could have shot you.” Alex holsters his gun before stepping closer to me. “What are you doing back here?”
“I was. . . uh. . .”Come on, Regan. You don’t have air for brains!“Looking for you.”
The anger reddening Alex’s cheeks whitens from my reply. He seems genuinely happy about my response, like he isn’t associating with me solely to crack a half-decade-old case.
He’s a damn good actor.
I don’t know how I didn’t put the pieces of the puzzle together earlier. The large scar on his knee should have been my first clue, but I brushed it off, conscious men as physically fit as him have many issues with their knees. Then I spotted the faint scar running from his right temple to his left ear. If I hadn’t spotted it within seconds of absorbing his familiar scent, I probably wouldn’t have paid it much attention. But when you add those three facts with the warning Jay gave before Grayson knocked him out, the evidence seems damning.
I wanted to give Alex the benefit of the doubt, to believe the absolute horror in his eyes when he searched my body for a bullet wound was genuine, but I’ve learned many hard lessons in my short life. The most imperative is to always trust my gut.
That’s why I slipped away from Grayson’s watch to follow Alex down here. I had planned to confront him, to call him out as a liar and a fraud, but the remorse in his words when he took his call stopped me. His pain was genuine, and although I’m feeling like a right royal fucking idiot, I didn’t want to add to his pain.
It was for the best. If I hadn’t held back my desire to gut him as badly as he is gutting me, I would have missed the final piece of the puzzle. Those last words Alex spoke, the ones about choosing the right side of the law, I’ve heard them before. It was the night I fled Substanz with Isaac. It was one of the very first things the agent who let me flee without shooting me said.
I step closer to Alex so I can run my fingers through his beard as I did earlier. My heart breaks a little when he leans into my embrace, as if he can’t breathe without my touch. I wouldn’t be touching him if I wasn’t seeking a way to stop me from feeling like such an idiot. I missed all the signs—every single one of them!
It’s quite pathetic when you think about it. A bit of facial hair and a few inches of growth, and poof, you’ve got me fooled. God—I thought I was smart. This proves that book smarts have nothing on common sense.
I guess that’s why I’m so confused as to why Alex is doing this? Is bringing someone to justice for evading a crime really worth all this effort? I know undercover agents don’t follow the norm, but this is taking it too far. I introduced him to my family. I slept with him. I nearly even said three little words I swore I’d never say again, and for what? For it all to be doctored in a case file that will never reach the courts?
The statute of limitation ensures criminal charges can no longer be filed for an offense once five years has passed. That means even if I confess to my sins right now, I’m in the clear. Neither Isaac nor I will face a single second in jail, so there has to be something I’m missing. Even the world’s most heartless man wouldn’t do this for nothing.
I take a step back when a horrifying thought enters my mind.What if he isn’t after me? What if he wants someone closer to me, someone more powerful and harder to take down?
The room spins around me as the dots keep connecting. This isn’t about me at all. I’m just the pawn he used to reach the king.
Oh god, I’m going to be sick.
