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ONE
Cassius navigated through the street, barely any wider than the width of his SUV. His eyes narrowed in concentration, the high stone walls on either side bearing down on us. I grasped my phone so tightly I thought it would shatter in my grip, reading the message over and over.
Snowflake: It might not be Arlo Davis. I think it could be ARGO NAVIS. A boat at the docks. I’m going there to check it out now. Will let you know what I find.
Fear for Winter’s safety mixed with the anger and betrayal already coursing through me, fizzing through my veins.
Concentrating on my anger was easiest right now.
I’d never let anyone get close enough to have the power to hurt me, not after Christine Clifford had fucked up my world, tearing my family apart. Winter had somehow managed to get through my defences, and it fucking hurt that she’d done this to me. I couldn’t bring myself to watch the video again, but it was burned into my mind, Granville’s lips on my girl’s…
Fuck. I lashed out, punching the back of the seat in front of me, Weston jerking forwards in his seat as my fist connected with the leather.
“What the fuck, Cade?” he shouted, turning to glare at me. He took in my face and his eyes widened, and he turned around without another word. Guess I looked as bad as I felt.
“I can’t track her phone,” he muttered to Cassius, his finger scrolling through the app we all had that allowed us to locate each other. “Something must’ve happened to it.”
My stomach tightened, and my throat clenched.
“Mate, show me the video.” Zayde leaned over to me, speaking in a low voice, holding his hand out. I opened the message thread and handed him my phone wordlessly, then slumped back, closing my eyes.
Silence.
“I don’t think you should jump to conclusions,” he said finally, handing my phone back. “Yeah, it looks incriminating as fuck, but…” His voice trailed off, defeated. “Shit. I can’t lie. Mate, I’d be fucking livid if that was my girl.”
“Yeah.” I threw my phone onto the seat between us. “Hard to ignore the evidence when it’s right in front of you.”
He tapped the screen. “You’ve got a voicemail.”
I hadn’t noticed, with all the other shit that was going on. I retrieved my phone from where I’d thrown it, dragging my thumb across it to unlock the screen. There was a text from her, too. I’d ignored it when I was reading her latest message, but now I took it in.
Snowflake: We need to talk. NOTHING HAPPENED. Check your voicemail. Phone me as soon as you get this, PLEASE.
I dialled my inbox.
“Cade, it’s me. Well, I guess you already know that. That video isn’t how it looks.” Her voice cracked, and it fucking hurt. “James cornered me in the library, and he had a black eye. What you saw in the video was me showing concern and trying to comfort him, and then—” I heard a muffled cry. “—and then, he tried to kiss me, and I froze. As soon as I realised what was going on, I stamped on his foot as hard as I could to make him stop. Cade, you have to believe me…I would never…I only want you.”
I threw the phone. Hearing her that upset killed me, but the way she’d looked at him on the video, like she cared… They had history. They’d fucked. Before me. Before she was mine.
I didn’t know when I’d started thinking of her as mine, rather than a girl I liked to fuck, but it happened, and now she was in my head. Fucking with me.
Blinding jealousy raged through my body, and I clenched my fists, gritting my teeth, attempting rationality. I needed to step back, to calm the fuck down, but there was no being rational when it came to her.
“Mate.” Zayde looked over at me, concern flashing in his eyes. So unusual for him to show any emotion, it took me aback. He reached down and swiped my phone from where it landed on the floor. “Mind if I listen to the voicemail?”
I shook my head.
He adopted his usual blank expression as he listened to the message, then turned to me. “Maybe she’s putting on an act, but she sounds genuine to me.”
“Why didn’t she tell me, though? Why wait?”
“You need to talk.”
Yeah.
I locked the anger and hurt away and switched my focus to the immedi
ate situation—finding Winter and getting her away from any danger. The only thing that mattered, right now, was her safety. Fuck, I’d rather she ended up with Granville than in danger or hurt. I was furious with her for being so reckless, but at the same time, I understood. If I’d been in her situation? I’d have done exactly the same.
Finally away from Alstone town and out on the open road, Cass put his foot down, increasing our speed, navigating with one hand on the wheel, the other clenched tightly around the gearstick. The atmosphere in the car was thick with tension, only slightly easing up once we were flying down the familiar coastal road, the ocean on our left, past Alstone Castle, towards the docks.
As we drew closer, Cassius slowed down, the SUV’s headlights cutting through the darkness. The only light came from the stars that occasionally appeared between the clouds that covered the night sky.
“Cass!” my brother hissed urgently. “Stop!”
My eyes followed the direction of his outstretched arm, his finger jabbing against the windscreen.
Winter’s car.
Tucked away, off the side of the road, the matte-black paint blending into the shadows.
Cassius pulled to a stop just behind the Fiat 500, sending a shower of dust and gravel flying up around the wheels, and I jumped out, not bothering to wait for him to turn the engine off. Jogging over to the front of her car, I placed my hand on the smooth metal surface.
It was ice-cold.
Fuck.
I jogged back to the SUV, leaning into Weston’s open window. “The engine’s stone cold. She must’ve been here a while, and the fact she hasn’t come back—” I cut my words off abruptly, scrubbing my hand across my face, unable to articulate my worst fears.
“Shit,” Cass swore softly, his eyes darkened with worry. “I’ll park here. Eyes and ears open, all of you. Let’s go get our girl.”
TWO
