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Ransom
Dark Secrets
Watching the color drop out of her face ramped up the anger clawing my chest. I knew she’d been holding something back, but I figured it would be something inconsequential. The embarrassment young women dealt with on the internet.
Not this.
She lifted her chin, even if it wobbled a bit. “That was a long time ago.”
“It’s a detail we should have known about, so we could discount it. Now we wasted time combing through records from when you were nineteen.”
I turned my attention to Aidan. “You’re discounting it?”
Aidan’s gaze drifted to Poe. “Want to show them?”
Poe’s fingers flew over her keys and something on the screen bounced in my periphery. I twisted to take in the screen.
“Jason Grafton, twenty-eight, twenty at the time of offense, UC Berkley graduate, CFO of Grafton Enterprises in California. Your typical dirtbag rich boy. I dug up a series of accusations from women through his college years, but nothing ever stuck. Things got a little quieter once he graduated. Pretty sure because Daddy got him a better lawyer. I did some digging and found a few payoffs.”
Chaos’s head lowered and her fingers spread on the table, the tips whitening as she pressed them harder into the surface.
I listened to Poe stream off all his offenses, particularly women who came forward and then abruptly dropped charges. My blood pressure spiked with each new bit of information.
Her shoulders hunched as another list of women hit the screen. She didn’t look up, but I did. Twenty names—all females.
A small sniffle dragged my attention back to Chaos. I shifted as she delicately dabbed at her nose.
“It’s not your fault, Willow.” Aidan’s voice dragged me out of the redlining anger.
“I could have done more,” she said quietly. “I just ran.”
“You were nineteen.” Poe’s voice was a gunshot. Sharp enough that Chaos looked up at her.
“I should have done more,” she whispered.
“Tell us in your words so we can tie it up.” Aidan’s tone was quietly firm.
“I went out with Jason a few times. He was charming and boy, did he come for me as if I had a bullseye on my forehead. And maybe I did.” She shook back her hair, the mix of gold and amber making her face seem even paler.
I fisted my hand on my thigh under the table.
“It was my first year. I got in on a partial scholarship and was so excited to get out of New York. I saw him on campus a few times—parties, a coffee shop, movie nights, that kind of thing. He was really good.” She laughed but it was a brittle sound. “He was flirty with all the compliments, then he started to press for a date.”
Poe pushed a box of tissues across the table.
“Thanks.” She plucked one out and wiped her eyes then her nose. “I only went out with him a few times before I got a bad feeling. He was hitting me pretty hard with the love deal. We went out twice before he began telling me he thought I was the one.”
I clenched my jaw so hard my head started to throb.
“Most women wouldn’t have figured it out so fast,” Aidan said quietly.
“I didn’t,” Poe added.
Chaos looked up.
Poe’s face was devoid of emotion.
Chaos gave her a sad smile. “I’m sorry.”
