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“It’s just gone nine.”
“I’m guessing the reception didn’t happen.”
“It did. We tried to keep it light for Bex’s sake, but she sat there the whole time looking like she wanted the earth to swallow her up.”
“She thinks I killed Oswald. Where is she now?”
“With Alicia when I left. They were reading together. It was kind of sweet to see.”
“Don’t go getting all soppy on me now. We’ve got shit to sort out.”
“Hey, I can do both. Where do you want to go?”
“Back to the house.”
My cell phone rings in my pocket. I pull it out and press it to my ear. “You’re going to have to work harder than that,” I say down the line.
“This isn’t over,” Ernesto says, spitting with rage. “I don’t know how you walked out of there, but your lucky days are over.”
“Why’d you do it?”
“Do what? Oh, you’re trying to record a call where I tell you I killed Oswald. That is not going to happen. I would say that whoever did kill him did you a favor, and maybe you should be more grateful, bow out and let your brother win. He’s older, wiser, better than you in many ways.”
“This is you fighting fair, is it? You want war, Ernesto? You can have it. I will see you inherit over my dead body.”
“It might just come to that if you don’t back down. I want it all, Hunter. I deserve it all. I’m the oldest. I was always supposed to inherit, not you.”
“When did you and Brody become such good friends?”
“Oh, I just chatted to him when he came to see me one day. He wanted to talk about you and Sofia, and I happened to mention that maybe me and him could coordinate on this thing, work together to bring you down.”
“And you’re happy to admit this?”
“Because I’m going to make you a most generous offer. I’ll even give you a month to think about it. You bang her all you like in that time. You get rid of her at the end of a month. You do not get her pregnant. You let me win.”
“Sounds more than a little one-sided. What do I get out of this?”
“Besides the heartwarming sensation of doing the right thing? Letting go of a woman you don’t love so she can live her life like a decent, wholesome civilian?” He laughs down the line. “I let you keep the house. I’ll let you keep the cars. I’ll even give you twenty percent. That’s more than enough to keep you going. In return, you give up your claim to the empire and agree to work for me.”
“Why would I agree to that pitiful deal?”
“Because today was a warning shot. Thought you might have taken the hint and given me a call. But no, you just kept on trucking. Well, what if the guys who investigated Oswald’s death find a new piece of evidence that ties you to the scene? What if I find some witnesses you can’t get rid of? What if I know the right people inside, so you don’t survive a day once you’ve been convicted?
“Don’t answer me now. Take your time. Call it a honeymoon period. Seems kind of appropriate, right? Take a month, then make your decision. Either you back down, or I take this all the way. You see, you’ve got the brawns, but I’ve got the brains. I will win, one way or another. Imagine Bex’s face when I give her proof you killed Oswald. How will she feel about her wonderful husband then?”
The line goes dead. I shove my phone back into my pocket, turning and punching the window. The glass cracks in a spider web pattern. I hit it again. And again. Then I turn to face Toby.
“You’ve got a month to find a way to take my brother down,” I tell him. “Don’t fail me.”
34
Hunter
* * *
“Goodnight.”
I kiss Alicia’s forehead as her eyes close.
