Page 26 of Clever Deceit

“No wonder they've been turning a blind eye to the hijinks of the McCarthy boys,” Warren said quietly.

“And probably helping them with whatever they need,” Richard added. “Anything that comes up on any of their developments probably gets swept under the rug or handled by a local cop. The McCarthy men themselves won't be charged with anything, either. DUIs, drug possession, you name it.” His eyes turned to me and turned several notches warmer. “Assault. Domestic violence.”

I gulped. Right. That was why the doctors had been more interested in what had happened to me than the cops. And if Madison was right, I wasn't the only one who'd experienced that.

“There's more,” Richard said, drawing out one paper in particular. “A restraining order against Tony McCarthy.”

“Restraining order?” Warren asked, reaching for the paper. “For what? From when?”

“Couldn't find what he did, but it's from six years ago.”

That shocked me into speaking. “Six years? So it happened a year before he ran me out of town. Must have been the girl he was dating before me.”

Richard and Warren both turned to me.

“Do you happen to know who that was?”

I shook my head. I'd known about Tony McCarthy for a long time, of course, but I'd never paid attention to who he was dating. But in a small town, anything was possible.

“No. But I don't think it'd be hard to find out. You couldn't find anything on her?”

Richard shook his head. “No. She's a ghost. Took out the restraining order and then disappeared herself. I tell you, I make my living finding people, but her? She's gone.”

Gone.

I wondered if Tony had made that happen. Because he'd already threatened me with something a whole lot like it. And if he found out we were investigating him, if he heard that I was asking around town about the girl he'd dated before me...

I was already in a whole lot of danger, just meeting with Richard.

But if I could find that girl, find out what he'd done to her and why she took out the restraining order, and then find a way to pin it on him in a court outside of my small town, where the judge might actually believe in the law...

I could be free again.

Free to actually live.

CHAPTER 13

LILY

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“COME OUT WITH ME TONIGHT.”

I looked up from the book I'd been trying and failing to read and found Warren frowning down at me. We'd been stuck in the house all day, each of us glancing out the windows every time we passed them, and I was feeling edgy and cooped up. I thought he probably had it even worse than I did. After all, he was used to being out in the world doing things rather than stuck in a house.

But without even talking about it, I thought we both felt the same way: that being out there in the world right now was dangerous. We didn't know what Tony and Mark had planned next, but we knew that they were gunning for us. And out there, we might not see them coming.

At least if we were in the house, we'd have the home field advantage. So to speak.

“Do you think that's a good idea?” I asked. “I mean, don't you think that makes us sitting ducks?”

Warren's face darkened, but then he shook himself, looking like he was intentionally forcing the thought down. “Maybe. But that doesn't mean I'm going to accept it. I don't like hiding in the house just waiting for them to make their move, and I'm guessing you don't like it any better than I do.”

I shut the book and set it to the side. “I don't.”

He reached out and took my hand, pulling me out of the chair and into his arms. “Then let's go out tonight,” he said quietly, staring deeply into my eyes. “Let's go out there and show Tony McCarthy that he doesn't scare us and that he's not going to keep us from doing what we want.”

I stifled a grin. “Honestly, I'd say we also need to show Mark McCarthy.”