“We’ve been best friends since kindergarten,” Alex explains. “It’s always been the two of us.”
Subtle as it is, my gaydar doesn’t miss the way they look at each other. And that confuses me like hell, because aren’t Luca and Effy together?
Another twist follows as Luca pulls Alex against his chest.
“We only grew closer after that day.”
“That day?” Probably not my place, but they gave me an A, so now I’m curious about the B.
Alex looks away for a moment, unsure whether he should open up, or if he’s even allowed to. Luca takes his hand, giving him a small nod.
“The therapist signed the NDA, we can dump our stuff on him.”
Excuse me?
I’m about to say I’m definitely not here for family therapy, but Alex is already talking.
“I was taken into foster care when I was a kid. My foster dad wasn’t a good man. One time he beat me so badly I was terrified to go back, so Luca brought me to Heatherfell and hid me in the tree house for almost a week. Effy ran her mouth, and the next thing I knew Jay was climbing up the ladder. I wouldn’t come down at first because I was afraid he’d send me back, but he promised that wouldn’t happen. Jay protected me. He even got into legal trouble for keeping me inside Heatherfell. A few weeks later, my foster dad died in a workplace accident, and everything moved fast after that. The day Jay and Janice adopted me was the happiest day of my life.”
Workplace accident. Just like that, huh?
This smells a lot like a McKenna cleanup.
I force a smile. Inside, my thoughts are racing. Not just about the whole make-it-look-like-an-accident thing. What unsettles me is how Jay wears two faces.
One where he’s the savior, and one where he’s the oppressor.
Saving Alex. Breaking Tom. Controlling everyone.
I take a good look at the outsiders who somehow made it inside: Alex, Eli, Luca, Janice, Mary, Calvin, Sergei.
I can’t help but think each of them has a story where Jay stepped in, 'saved’ them, and took care of them. Maybe they believe they owe him for that. It’s a classic cult strategy—there’s nothing tighter than loyalty built on gratitude.
I want to know everything, so maybe it’s not a bad idea to play along, to check on things with Jay’s approval. I turn to Luca.
“Luca, you’re Jay’s son?” I already know the answer—Tom told me, I heard it from Stella too—but I want to hear what he says.
“Jay’s actually my stepfather, he adopted me as his son. My biological father abandoned us when my mom was pregnant. Never met the guy, he just disappeared.”
All those people who got in the way just…gone.
A little manic laugh rattles around in my head. This is going to blow up so fucking badly for me once people find out Tom’s planning to leave.
Chapter forty-eight
Yosh
Another bottle of whiskey disappears into the recycling bin, and the room seems to grow louder with every clink of glass. Heat from the fireplace burns against my cheeks, but it does nothing to loosen the tension locked in my body. I can’t relax here. My nerves stay wired, tracking every movement, every shift in the room. I need to get out before the noise in my head drowns everything else out.
I find Tom and place my hand on his shoulder.
“Hey, I’m going to take our luggage to the West House.”
His face tightens with concern. “You okay?”
“Yeah. It’s just…a lot. Loud people.” I’m not going to sugarcoat it. He made me promise not to. “I just need a minute. Stay with your family, I’ll be back soon.”
“Okay. If anything—”
