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Rhett leaned back against the door, keeping his own piece clutched in his right hand as he crossed his arms. “You gonna shoot me Nova?” His tone was flat, his face void of any emotion.
I grit my teeth and widened my stance. “Last time I’m asking. Why the fuck do you have this?”
Silence.
Silence so loud you could hear a pin drop from a mile away. He wasn’t going to answer me. His head tilted slightly to the side, and he continued to regard me with an air of indifference.
“Are you sure you know how to use one of those?”
This asshole. I glared, checked the safety, and then pulled the trigger.
The wall imploded to the right of him--my left, the bullet missing his face by a few mere inches. My ear canal restricted protectively, but the sound was still painfully loud. Not even Rhett remained unaffected. Ignoring the ringing now echoing inside my head, I went for the door, keeping the gun pointed in the direction Rhett had moved.
The necklace in my hand carried a million implications. The box in his closet proved he wasn’t who he claimed to be. My heart was turning to dust. But I didn’t want him dead….
I just needed to get the hell out of here, and as far away from him as possible so I could think properly. Logically and not emotionally.
I threw open the bedroom door and stepped out into the hall, keeping my back to the wall as I moved towards the room Emery should have been in. Rhett didn’t speak or attempt to stop me. Or maybe he did, but I couldn’t hear anything clearly right then.
A split second before I reached the adjacent door, Emery emerged into the hall with Callum right behind her. He stopped to take in the scene while she came towards me with an air of caution. Ridiculous. As if I would ever hurt her. I clutched the necklace so tightly; I felt its thin chain imprinting onto the flesh of my palm.
When we were within reaching distance of one another, Emery’s entire demeanor changed. She moved so that we were side by side, mouthing the words, “let’s go.”
After a quick perusal of our audience to make sure they weren’t going to do anything stupid, I grabbed hold of her hand and did precisely that.
Callum called after her as we descended the stairs, taking them two at a time. She didn’t so much as glance back, not even when we breezed past a set of confused faces lingering near the bottom.
Outside, the air had a heavy moistness to it while the woodland surrounding the lodge was ominously silent. Not even our footsteps registered. A touch of paranoia had me abruptly glancing behind us, but no one was giving chase. I faced forward again, tossing a glance over my shoulder every other step.
I was a little surprised to see my car right where I had left it the night before. Then again, what would Rhett have done with it?
“You drive,” I told Em, hoping my keys were still in the ignition.
I went to the passenger side and opened the door, not getting in until I heard the Camaro’s engine roar to life, just in case.
Even during those few seconds, no one came outside. No faces peered from windows. There had to be a reason why we weren’t being pursued. I didn’t know what it was. Right then, I couldn’t say I cared all that much.
Perhaps I should have.
Maybe it would have changed the outcome of my entire story.
CHAPTER THREE
RHETT
I eyed my bedroom wall, laughing softly to myself. My question had been rhetorical. I should have known Nova would respond by pulling the trigger.
“Either you two fight super dirty, or she found your box of dirty secrets.” Angel mused, walking into my room. She eyed the bullet-hole, then turned to face me. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. I wanted her to find it.”
“Why?” Evie questioned, following right behind my sister. She glanced from the wall to me, shock washing over her face.
“That psychotic bitch seriously just tried to shoot you? What the hell is going on? And why’d you let her leave?”
“That psychotic bitch is going to be family soon,” Angel reminded her. “And she’s my friend,” she added sweetly.
With no snarky response, Evie made a point to stare at the hole that had put a decent crack in my drywall, trying not to let on how much that still got under her skin. I couldn’t fault her for the way she felt. We would all feel the same way if it were us in her position.
