Drawing in a breath, I choked. Something in the air was wrong. Acrid, heavy, rising from the floor. Smoke. Dropping to my knees, I pressed my hands to the bottom of the door, my heart sinking as heat spread through my palms.
Of course. Locking me in here wouldn't kill me. Smoke inhalation absolutely would. And it wouldn't take long. Tyler had bought himself enough time to get away, but the fire on the other side of the door would devour the attic as soon as it hit critical mass. Backing up in horror, I watched as the smoke trickling beneath the door thickened, rising into the air, gradually filling the room.
Diving for the trunk of fabric, I yanked yards of velvet off the first bolt I came to, packing it into the crack beneath the door, temporarily blocking the smoke. That done, I threw myself at the door, shoving the scissors at the lock, knowing I only had this one chance, and then it would be over.
If I couldn't get the door open, I was going to die, and I'd take Sterling and Len with me.
ChapterForty
NASH
"Idon't see a way around this," Griffen said, his eyes grim as he stared past me to the barren gardens outside. "I don't want Parker to leave, for all the reasons she doesn't want to go, but she can't live as a prisoner. And as long as Tyler's in the house, as long as he has access to her, we can't keep her safe. This isn't any kind of life for her."
"Hawk is going to have the wine glass tested?" I asked.
"The glass, the place setting, the silverware–all of it."
"Even if he finds something, we can't prove it was Tyler," I said.
Griffen shook his head. "No, we can't. I wouldn't have guessed he'd be smart enough to cause this much trouble and not get caught."
"Me either," I agreed. "He's my brother. I should have known what he was capable of, but he spent so many years doing nothing but drinking and playing and fucking around on Parker, I just assumed that was all he had in him."
Griffen let out a long breath. "It's kind of fucked up that I wish she'd run off with you at her wedding. It would have caused a shit storm, but she would have been happier in the end."
"Happier," I agreed, "and a hell of a lot safer."
"Want a drink?" Griffen asked, pushing back his chair and striding over to the crystal decanter and matching glasses on the sideboard.
"Why not?" I said. "I could use a drink. I'm not looking forward to the conversation I have to have with Parker when I go upstairs."
Griffen returned with a crystal glass filled with two fingers of whiskey. I took a sip, letting the smoky burn of the liquor distract me for a minute.
"Look," I said, "I know this is inconvenient and asking a lot, but I need you to figure out a way to bring her family to her after we go. I can't talk her into leaving Heartstone Manor unless I know she'll still have all of you. I figure we can set up a base in Asheville, so I'm close enough to be at the new offices and she isn't isolated."
"That's a good idea. Easy to visit and Brax is there most of the time, so she won't feel completely exiled."
"I feel like a real asshole, pushing her to leave," I confessed. "Do you know what it means to her to have a family again?"
Griffen took a long sip of his whiskey. "I can guess. I know what it means to me. For most of our lives, we were family, but we weren't. Prentice was always getting in the middle. Ford and I were best friends until Prentice drove us apart. He did the same with the rest, finding reasons to pit us against each other. Bribing and tempting and lying until none of us trusted anyone, least of all our own family. Now he's gone, and finally, we're building something here. Something real. I gotta tell you, man–Taking Parker away? It's going to gut me. I want her here–when Hope has the baby–" Griffen trailed off. "I just want her here. With her family."
Griffen took another slug of the whiskey. "I know this asshole is your brother, but I've had a few fantasies about teaming up with Hawk and luring him into the woods." Griffen gestured at the mountains beyond Heartstone's formal gardens. "There's a lot of acres of forest out there. Pretty sure we could lose a body."
I laughed, the sound bitter but tinged with genuine amusement. "I don't give a shit that he's my brother. If you need any help, I'm your man."
Griffen's mouth curved in a smile that faded as quickly as it arrived. "Don't joke. I may knock on your door in the middle of the night–"
"I'm not joking," I interrupted, completely serious. "If your police chief wasn't such a goddamn boy scout, I might have done it already."
Griffen gave a slow nod. "I'm with you on that one. West was my best friend growing up, aside from Ford. He was Ford's best friend, too, and he still put my brother in jail for killing our father, even though he doesn't believe Ford did it. But his job is to follow the evidence, and everything he has points straight at Ford."
Griffen drained his glass. "If anyone could get rid of Tyler and not get caught, it's me and Hawk, but–"
I took another slug of whiskey, welcoming the burn, and finished for him. "–but you've got a wife and a baby on the way and a family that needs you. And as good as you two are, you can't guarantee you won't leave something behind."
"Exactly," Griffen agreed. "I don't know how Parker lasted six years married to your brother. He's only been here a few weeks, and he has me casually talking about murder."
"Believe me," I said, "no one understands like I do. I've been holding back for years. I think–" I leaned forward, planning to suggest we go up and talk to Parker.
