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I had to go. Right now, before any other dark thoughts entered my head. “I’ll be seeing you around. Good luck.” I didn’t say anything more, turning around and leaving, heading back the way I came, with nothing but the chilly night air as my company.
I didn’t return to the reception after that. I left, thinking that was that.
It wasn’t, of course.
I’d resigned myself to knowing Brianna would meet whatever fate she would meet at the hands of Gareth when my station got an emergency call, talking about a body in the Montgomery pool house. A prank, I said, from the girl who didn’t want to live there with her new stepdad and stepbrother. I took care of it, because it had to be me. Anytime Gareth was in the picture, anytime fingers might point at the Montgomery family, it had to be me.
So I went to Montgomery Manor that night. I didn’t know if Alistair would be there or if he would be gone on his honeymoon. A part of me thought that, since the marriage was an obvious sham, he wouldn’t bother with a honeymoon, but after I pulled up the long driveway and got out of the car, I found I was wrong.
Gareth answered the door, and the look on his face told me he was just as thrilled to see me as I was to see him. His mouth curled into a sneer, his green eyes narrowed in the darkness of the night, shadows dancing across his features, making him appear even more sinister.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Gareth asked, his voice hard, cold, and cruel, just like always. I was torn then, part of me wishing it would’ve been Brianna who answered the door and not him; if it had been Brianna, I could’ve elaborated on my warning, but since it was Gareth, I had to play the part.
My fingers hooked through my utility belt, and I frowned back at him. “We got a call about a body in the pool house.”
It appeared as though that was the last thing Gareth expected me to say, because it took him a long time to ask, “I assume you’ve handled it?” His hand gripped the door handle harder after that, and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out he was pissed.
“Yeah, but if I were you, I’d keep that girl on a short leash. I can’t cover up everything.” It was true enough. One day, something would get out of hand. One day I’d miss something, and it’d be too late. Sooner or later, the shit would hit the fan, so it was best to be careful.
Gareth snickered. “I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll have Alistair send you your fee when he gets back.”
My fee. The bit of money Alistair sent my way anytime I did something for him or Gareth. It wasn’t like I needed it, but it came in handy when I had to grease some wheels myself… when I had to pay for silence.
I didn’t say anything else. I turned and left, listening to Gareth shut the door behind me as I went. Getting into my car, I tossed a lingering look at the imposing house as I wondered what Brianna was thinking. If she hadn’t learned that the Montgomery family owned this town by now, she never would.
Was there really a body in the pool house? Probably. Gareth was a fucking psychopath, in every sense of the word. He did whatever he wanted when he wanted, consequences be damned. It’s why Alistair had such a need for me in local law enforcement; he must’ve sensed something was wrong with the boy when he was a child.
I drove away after that, and I didn’t once look back at the house again. If I did, if I happened to see Brianna standing in the window, watching me go with a forlorn look on her face, I might be tempted to turn this car around and go get her.
But Alistair would never stand for that, and I suspected neither would Gareth. I didn’t know if she’d survive the night after trying to tattle on Gareth. Truthfully, it was none of my business. Yet, I still hoped, for her sake.
And that brought us to today.
Chapter One – Rick
I stood in the hallway of the hospital, bright, fluorescent lights above my head. I was in uniform, all brown and tan, a badge on my chest. My gaze was on the window near me, and through the glass, I could see the unconscious girl resting in the hospital bed. She had her own room, numerous doctors and nurses frantically taking care of her as if their lives depended on it.
In a way, I supposed their lives did. Losing Brianna would surely anger Alistair, who could find some loophole and sue the shit out of the hospital for negligence or something. He had the money and the cold heart to put a damn hospital out of business.
Gareth was in the room with her, sitting beside the hospital bed, his knees spread apart. His back was hunched, shoulders slumped. His green eyes were glued to her motionless face, as if his glaring could bring her back to him. He looked like he wanted to kill her himself for doing what she did.
And what did she do? She cut herself. Some would label it a suicide attempt, but I knew better.
“Rick,” Alistair’s voice cut through my thoughts, and I turned away from the window, watching Alistair and his new wife approach. They both wore fancy clothes, like they’d been in the middle of some event. If there was one thing rich people were good at, it was finding ways to pass the time with other boring, rich people.
Nicole paid no attention to me, heading straight into the room, while Alistair stopped beside me, the blueness of his eyes just as cold and calculated as always. His black hair was slicked back, his tie a bit too loose, like he’d yanked on it on his way here.
He shifted his stare to the window, spotting Brianna in the room. His voice came out low as he said, “Is what you said true?” He didn’t sound pissed that he was here, that his evening with his new wife had gotten interrupted by his stepdaughter hurting herself. On the contrary, he almost sounded intrigued.
Yeah, Alistair, the aloof man who hardly ever showed a speck of emotion, appeared interested in Brianna and what she’d done to herself. I didn’t know how to take that.
I glanced around us, making sure there were no doctors or nurses scurrying by before saying, “Yeah. Looks like she cut herself. The doctors wanted to admit her to the psych ward for observation, but Gareth insisted it was an accident and not a suicide attempt.”
“Is that what you think happened?” Alistair asked quietly, focused on the room, on Brianna, almost oddly so. If I didn’t know any better—and I sure as shit knew better when it came to Alistair Montgomery—I’d say he cared about her.
But that was just impossible, because this man cared for no one.
“I don’t think she tried to hurt herself, and I don’t think it was an accident,” I muttered, and that made Alistair whip his head in my direction, his brows coming together as he wordlessly questioned me on what I meant.
