Page 41 of Deadly Forever

“We don’t play games.” Jake was affronted. “Our relationship is strong and mature. I love your sister more than anything. We don’t play games, though.”

“Oh, really?” James cocked a challenging eyebrow. “Didn’t you start a fight about what color you were going to paint the kitchen? I believe three days ago Ally wanted berry red and you wanted maroon red. You fought about the color and gave in when she stripped naked and let you try out the colors on her skin while she rested on the drop cloth in the middle of the kitchen.”

Jake’s mouth dropped open. “How could you possibly know that?”

“Our hens cluck to one another all of the time,” James answered. “They do it on speaker phone, too.”

“But … that was private.” Jake was mortified.

“Yes, and if you weren’t due to marry my sister in a few days, I would kill you,” James said, his lips quirking. “Since you are about to take the plunge and make an honest woman of her, though, I’ve decided to let it slide. I figure you’re almost married so you’re kind of married. That’s one of the games I play in my head to keep you alive despite the absolutely filthy things you do with my baby sister.”

“To be fair, that wasn’t really a game,” Jake clarified. “I really didn’t like the color red she picked.”

“And yet you let her keep that color. Why is that?”

“Because … it made her happy.”

“And that’s why Mandy and I manufacture little things to fight about,” James offered. “It allows us the chance to vent before anything turns into a big disagreement. Sure, we still have the occasional big blowout, but they’re rare. We fight about the little stuff and enjoy making up. It keeps our marriage strong.”

“I guess I’m not sure what you’re getting at,” Jake said after a beat. “How did we even get on this topic?”

“We were talking about high school students and dreams,” James answered. “I didn’t know what I wanted when I was in high school. I thought the life I’m living now would be the worst possible outcome. I was wrong.

“The kids we’re about to talk to are probably going to give us an earful regarding entitlement and what happened to Darcy,” he continued. “They’re going to be wrong. We have to find a way to communicate with them without killing them.”

“That’s not what we were talking about,” Jake scoffed. “That’s not even remotely what we were talking about. You just wanted to talk about Mandy because she’s your favorite subject.”

James shrugged. “So? Ally is your favorite subject.”

“Point taken,” Jake conceded. “Seriously, though, this was one meandering conversation.”

“Welcome to married life,” James said, clapping Jake on the shoulder. “All of your conversations are going to turn into meandering ones from here on out. Not only that, but you’ll find you like it. You’ll like sharing conversations you thought only women could hold.”

“I think you’re exaggerating.”

“I guess we’ll see,” James said, reaching for the door and sobering. “As for this, well, I have no idea what we’re going to find here. Be on the lookout and keep your ear to the ground. We might find nothing … and we might find that one little gem that will lead us to a motive for what amounts to multiple counts of public suicide.”

“Is that what you think the siege on the mall was?” Jake asked, legitimately curious. “Do you think they knew they were going to die?”

“Either they were deluded or desperate,” James replied. “I’m not sure which is it, but I’m bound and determined to find out. I need to do it for Mandy’s sake … as well as my own.”

“Mandy? Is she upset by what happened?”

“She’s more upset by what happened to Darcy,” James explained. “She wants answers because she’s convinced the two things have something to do with each other.”

“What do you think?”

“I think my wife is a genius and it’s never a good idea to bet against her.”

“Then let’s do it,” Jake said. “Let’s see what we can find out.”

“HI!”

James was taken aback when the bouncy blonde stopped in front of him. She tilted her head to the side as her blue eyes looked him up and down. For some reason – and it made him feel guilty thinking it – but the girl reminded him of Mandy.

“Hi,” James said, being careful to keep his distance. “Are you a student here?”

“I guess that depends,” the girl answered. “Do you want to take me to prom?”