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“Then we wouldn’t have been able to control Eriksen.” My father’s tone was reprimanding. “We needed her as leverage, but now that has come to an end. Eriksen and the Iron Horsemen will be wiped out just like the Vixens, and we won’t have to worry about Bailey any longer.”
Sarah released a long sigh.
“All right.”
“Good.” Feet shuffled outside the door, and I clutched the items in my hand tighter as tears streamed down my face. The sound of the safe opening filled the room. Please don’t be taking the laptop. Please don’t be taking the laptop.
The safe beeped, the locking mechanism engaging.
“Let’s go.” My father’s voice was tense. “Make sure you dress Bailey in something eye-catching. Don’t embarrass me because of your dislike for her.”
Sarah made a disgruntled noise but ultimately agreed.
Three steps, and the sound of the door opening and closing. It felt as if I could finally breathe.
What the hell had I just overheard?
Shaking it off, I focused on the task at hand. Getting the information from the safe. I slipped out of the closet, closing it quietly behind me in case anyone was still in the vicinity. Quickly, I placed the small electronic device on the safe’s interface and pressed twice to activate it. There was a small hum, then the interface glitched, and then the locking mechanism disengaged.
That was easy.
I turned the knob of the safe and opened the heavy door. The inside of the safe was nearly empty, aside from a few accounting ledgers. I pushed those aside and pushed on the black velvet wall at the back. It tipped downward, revealing exactly what I had come for.
The laptop.
Snatching it up, I placed it on the desk and got to work starting it up and inserting the decryption key. Okay, that was settled. Now to do some digging of my own. I turned back to the safe and peered inside. There was a small stack of manilla envelopes nestled to one side of where the laptop had been.
Pulling them out, I held them in my shaking hands, afraid of what I would see if I opened them. The truth, no matter how freeing it could be, was a deadly weapon. Knowing the truth meant I had an edge, a weapon of my own, but did I want to know the truth that I now suspected? Going my whole life believing in one thing, only to have it ripped from beneath me would be a devastating blow.
Could my soul take it?
With trembling fingers, I peeled back the front of the first manilla envelope. The tears I had been shedding before while huddled in the closet began again in earnest. What I had overheard and begun to suspect was laid bare before me.
There was no escaping reality now that I knew the truth.
Two truths, in fact. And one lie.
A lie they would come to regret.
28
Islid out of the back seat of the Escalade, holding my hand out for Dani to take. She easily slid out of the car, her burgundy cowl-neck satin A-line gown gracefully curving around her body. There was a bright smile painted on her face as she posed for the cameras, the paparazzi eating us up. It wasn’t often that I was photographed. Not unless I wanted to be.
Most people identified me as Kiernan Kavanaugh, next in line to inherit the Kavanaugh crime family, but to the rest of the world and the paparazzi, I was a business mogul. A billionaire club and restaurant owner who rarely liked to be seen in public.
Reporters lined either side of the red-carpeted entrance to the building, calling out my name as we began our walk toward the ornate double doors that led into the hotel. I never stopped to pose for any of them. I rarely did, and there was no way in hell I was going to put Dani in an awkward position. Instead, I kept my gaze forward, ignoring the flashing lights around us.
“Your tickets, sir.” The man at the door smiled at me before his greedy eyes fell on Dani. My cousin barely batted an eye at his obvious perusal. Good. I’d brought her because she knew how to play the game we needed played. Father had refused to allow Dani to be entered for sale, but he’d agreed to let her accompany me tonight. Her father was a prominent doctor, and she knew many of the people in this social circle well.
“Have a good night.” The man’s face fell a bit when he realized I was only wearing a bidder pin. I didn’t bother to acknowledge him any further as I led Dani into the spacious ballroom. The hotel was grand and historic. The room was cast in dark tones—aged wood with walls painted a dark mauve. A string quartet sat on a recessed stage playing a melancholic tune that set the mood perfectly.
Waitstaff circled the room, carrying silver trays of champagne and hors d’oeuvres to those who allowed themselves to indulge. My gaze searched the room, first finding Ava on one side with one of Matthias’s men. The Italian—Leon or something like that. They both held a glass of champagne in their hands, but the moment Ava’s eyes landed on Matthias, she downed that sucker faster than a shot of whiskey and reached for another one.
I wasn’t going to get into that. Not tonight.
My gaze slid from my sister, searching the room for one last person. I moved us around the room, nodding and smiling at the other guests as if it didn’t pain me to be here. A few of them stopped me for some mild conversation, which I reluctantly engaged in until finding some excuse to slip away.
“Where is—” A loud, obnoxious laugh drew my attention toward one side of the room. My gaze caught on her immediately. She stood awkwardly with her hands at her sides, looking forward as the man at her side prattled on with another guest. He had one arm around her shoulder. From the pained look on her face, his grip was no doubt tight. Drew the douchebag.
