She turned back to him, hearing the shakiness in her voice. “Yeah, but I put him there. If I stayed away from him, none of this would have happened.”
“Oh, stop, Lottie,” Nessa said. “None of this is your fault. Your brothers put him in this situation.”
Lottie couldn’t see it that way. She had never felt so helpless in her life. To Elise, she asked, “Did you discover what provoked him?”
Elise hesitated and chose her words carefully. “It appears from the report of Hunt’s account of the matter, your brother threatened to kill you.”
“God, Lottie,” Nessa breathed, fear vibrating in her voice. She immediately jumped up and came to Lottie’s side, taking her hand.
Lottie gripped her back, tight, trying to draw on Nessa’s warmth. “Leo threatened to kill me?”
Elise nodded, pity in her expression. “If you ask me, something like that would make Hunt snap.”
Tears welled in Lottie’s eyes before she lifted her chin, refusing to let them fall.
“You need to think,” Archer said, breaking the silence. “They are here for a reason. Threatening you for a reason.”
“I have thought about this,” Lottie said, squeezing Nessa’s hand tighter. “Over and over again. I have no idea what they want from me. I havenothingthat could do them any harm. The only thing I can think of is the box my father sent me, but I’ve checked it over and over, and so has Hunt, there is nothing there. It’s an empty memory box with a note from my father. Nothing else.”
“Does the box have any meaning to you?” Archer asked.
Lottie wracked her mind for anything that could help Hunt. “I…I just honestly can’t think of anything.”
Elise asked, “What did you take with you when you left Chicago?”
“Clothes, shoes and makeup,” Lottie said, trying to recall if she’d taken anything of value. “But I’m pretty sure I don’t even have any of that any longer. My style has change since then. The makeup would have gotten old. Maybe I have a worn T-shirt or an old pair of shoes, but that’s it.”
Archer asked, “Did you take a laptop, cell phone, anything?”
“No. Nothing,” she said with a firm shake of her head. “I didn’t want to give them a way to trace me.”
Elise and Archer shared an equal look of frustration.
Lottie felt the helplessness burn through her too. “What can I do to help him?”
Elise set her cell phone on the coffee table and sighed. “We need to get your brother to drop those charges.”
Lottie knew he never would, but she also had no other choice than to try. “Where is Leo?”
“New York–Presbyterian,” Archer said, and obviously reading her mind, he added, “Come on. I’ll take you.”
She followed him, back out the house, and they got into his truck waiting at the curb. She never looked back. Hell no, she was going to make this better. Shehadto make this better. Nessa tried talking on the drive to the hospital, bringing Lottie out of her thoughts, but she barely heard a word, anger brimming in her gut.
How fucking dare her brothers?
Nessa’s voice only filtered through when they arrived at the hospital and got out of the truck, and she said softly, “Do you want me to go in with you?”
Lottie shook her head, gesturing across the street. “Go to the coffee shop. I’ll come meet you there when I’m done.”
“You’ll be okay?” Nessa asked, squeezing Lottie’s arm.
“I’ll be fine. I’ve got Archer with me.” Lottie gathered Nessa and hugged her tight. “Promise.”
Nessa hesitantly released her and began crossing the street.
Lottie spun on her heels toward the hospital. Archer stayed right at her side, silently scouring the area. With every step, more anger burned within. She had a new life here. She’d done well for herself. She wanted no part of her brothers’ crimes.
When she reached the receptionist, she plastered on a worried expression, clutching her hands to her chest. “Hi. I’m Leo Ricci’s sister. Could I possibly get his room number?”
