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Ryland’s voice from the backseat is a low growl, but it doesn’t sound like a condemnation of my words. If anything, he sounds proud.
Theo’s fingers drum over the steering wheel as he ducks his head, gazing out the window at the wreckage of the building that was once my shoddy home.
“You’re right.” He rests a hand on my knee, grounding me with his touch. “Carson’s gone. And we can’t touch Dominic until Luca starts the next game. But there’s someone else who had a hand in this. Someone else who played a part, and she still needs to pay for what she fucking did.”
I drag my gaze away from the charred apartment building and glance over at him. His gaze is serious, his lips set in a hard line, and I know exactly who he’s talking about before he even utters the name.
Natalie.
Chapter 7
We decide to track down Natalie on the University of Halston campus.
It’s not exactly a small school, so I’m not sure how easy our search will be. But beyond having an assload of money, Theo can also be charming as fuck when he wants to be. We make a quick stop at the registrar’s office, where he manages to flirt his way into getting a complete list of Natalie’s classes this semester.
The middle-aged woman behind the desk lets out an audible sigh as he gives her one last crooked smile and heads back toward me and Ryland where we hover in the doorway.
“I think she just came,” I remark dryly as we make our way out of the office. “She’s probably sitting in a fucking puddle right now.”
Theo shoots me a look that brings back a rush of memories from this morning, and a small shiver works its way down my spine. I guess I shouldn’t make fun of that poor woman. She’s not the only one who’s a
ffected by this man.
Using her schedule as our guide, we find the building where her third class of the day is being held and stand in a tight knot as we wait outside. I can feel tension gathering in the men standing on either side of me as we wait—and in myself too. By the time Natalie emerges from the building about ten minutes later, it feels like all three of us are spring-loaded.
Ryland steps forward the second he sees her, and his movement draws her attention. Her green eyes widen slightly, a hint of fear appearing in their depths. Then she pivots on her heel and begins to walk quickly in the other direction.
That’s a fucking mistake.
You don’t run from a predator. It only feeds their hunter’s instinct.
Ryland doesn’t even break stride. He picks up his pace, and Theo and I hurry to join him as he bears down on Natalie like a fucking runaway train.
She glances over her shoulder as she feels us approach, and I can see the bluster she’s trying to put on over her fear. Finally, she stops and whirls around to face us, lifting her chin defiantly.
“What do you wa—”
The words aren’t even all the way out of her mouth when Ryland reaches her. He still doesn’t stop, grabbing her arm in a vise-like grip and dragging her around the corner of a building. There’s no pathway that cuts between this building and the one beside it, so there’s no foot traffic coming through. He pulls her along for several more yards until we’re well away from any populated areas. Then he shoves her against the wall.
I don’t believe in violence.
Or, I didn’t.
But a lot has changed in my life since I met these men, and I can’t work up even a single ounce of dismay over Ryland’s rough treatment of Natalie.
She lets out a soft grunt as her back hits the side of the building, and when Ryland releases her, she straightens quickly, glaring at all three of us.
“What the fuck do you want?” She tosses her strawberry-blonde hair over her shoulder, her round face a mask of angry disdain. “If you mess with me, Carson—”
“Carson’s dead,” Theo says flatly.
Natalie blanches. In less than a second, the air of haughty annoyance drains from her, and her throat works as she swallows. “What?”
“You havin’ a hard time hearing?” Ryland narrows his eyes. “Your little sugar-daddy boyfriend is dead. So whatever protection you think he would’ve given you, don’t fucking count on it.”
Natalie’s jaw falls open a little. She licks her lips, her gaze shifting around between the three of us uneasily, as if she’s just now realized the kind of shit she got herself involved in when she hooked up with Carson.
I guess helping them drug and kidnap a girl wasn’t enough of a fucking hint for her.
