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Braden huffed and turned to me, his expression feral. “We have to get away from here.”
“That’s a good idea,” Seth agreed. “Let things cool down while I find out what happened tonight. I’ll let you know as soon as I do.” We both looked at him and nodded. I already knew what he was going to find. It was Annika; I was sure of it.
I squeezed Braden’s hand, and he focused on me. “I’m supposed to leave with Emma tomorrow for our girls’ weekend. And you’re going with Carter to wherever it is you planned with him. What are we going to do?”
Braden sighed and closed his eyes. “Don’t worry. You won’t be going alone.”
Brows furrowed, I stared at him until he opened his eyes. “What do you mean?”
His lips pulled up into a small smile, but fell quickly. “It was going to be a surprise. Carter and I are going to Vermont too.”
I couldn’t begin to describe the sense of relief that washed over my body. Yes, it was supposed to be a girls’ weekend, but after that happened, it was better to be together than separated. Emma would be happy to know that Carter wasn’t spending his weekend surrounded by strippers.
All I knew was that Braden and I had to get away.
CHAPTER28
BRADEN
FOUR DAYS LATER
It was a hot August afternoon in Vermont, but the river and smooth rocks were cool against my feet. I cast out my fishing line and slowly reeled it back in since I wasn’t getting any bites. On the outside, I wanted to appear calm, but my mind raced just like the current of the river.
“Are you sure you don’t want us to stay longer?” Carter asked. “My dad’s taking care of the gym.”
“No, we’ll be fine.”Hopefully.“I’m sure you’re needed at Fightanium.”
It just so happened that everyone was home from vacation, minus my parents; they were still with Peyton in Charleston. So the gym would be well taken care of with Ryley and Camden back in the mix. After we contacted Ethan and Ripp and told them what happened with Reagan and the fight, they booked their flights back to California. They were set to arrive today.
Everyone knew Reagan was on her girls’ weekend with Emma, and I was with Carter. Unfortunately, Reagan and I had no plans of going home anytime soon. We still needed to find an excuse for why we weren’t.
I glanced up the riverbank at Reagan and Emma, sitting in lounge chairs and talking away. Just a few days ago, Reagan would’ve died if she didn’t see that piece of shit at the hotel put poison in her drink. I’d never been so terrified and furious all at the same time. When I watched Devon die right before my eyes, I felt no remorse. It even felt great to finally get a good hit on Finn. Regrettably, I was paying the price for it now. Reagan and I were in more danger than I ever could’ve imagined.
Seth hadn’t been able to get concrete evidence on who ordered the hit on Reagan, but Reagan and I knew it was Annika. Seth warned us not to go to the police because many of them did the mafia’s bidding; they couldn’t be trusted. So, that left us on our own.
I cast out my fishing line one more time, and when I didn’t get a bite, I reeled it in and walked out of the river. Carter stayed put, determined to catch something.
“I wish we could get in touch with Brooks,” I called out.
Carter glanced over at me, squinting his eyes against the sun. “I know. We could really use his help right now.”
Brooks Jameson was Reagan’s cousin and happened to be an FBI agent. He’d left for a few weeks for a special training camp and returned an entirely different person. He was stronger, or better yet … lethal. I was happy he found where he belonged. He’d always wanted to do more than just fight. All we knew was that he was part of a secret FBI organization that worked on an undercover basis. None of us knew what it entailed or how dangerous it was. Right now, he was on a covert mission somewhere in the world; I hadn’t spoken to him in over a month.
My phone rang, and I pulled it out of my pocket to see Seth’s name on the screen. Immediately, my body tensed and I answered it with a both dread and anger pooling in my stomach. “What’s going on?”
Seth sighed. “A lot, actually. I found out some important information this morning.”
“Tell me.”
He cleared his throat. “So, I’ve had my people watch the Sellingers. Apparently, after the incident on Wednesday night, Finn was arguing with Annika. If I had to guess, I’d say he found out she was the one responsible for Reagan’s drink. He doesn’t want Reagan dead.”
“No. He just wants her,” I snapped.
“Exactly. But there’s something else you should know. My guy on the inside working for my brother overheard Nikolai talking to Finn.”
My stomach clenched in knots; I didn’t like where that was going. “And?” I pressed.
The line went silent for a few agonizing seconds. “And it wasn’t Nikolai who ordered the hit on you; it was Finn. Nikolai took the blame to show Finn he could be trusted.”
