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“I can imagine,” he chuckled like we were just having an everyday kind of conversation. “So, you changed your last name to your mother’s maiden name?”
“Yes.” There was no hiding that fact.
“But you still had contact with your brother after you made that change, so it wasn’t to hide from him.” He glanced down at his gloved hands, and then back up at me, like I was supposed to confirm that.
“Uh… Something like that, I guess.”
“Why?”
“Why, what?”
“Why’d you change your last name if you weren’t trying to hide from him.”
Ugh. Nosy assholes.
“Because at the time, I was running from the life I had lived, and while I hated everything about it and wanted better for myself, Chaz was the only family member that I had left. I lost my parents when I was sixteen—but I’m sure you already know that,” I added, rolling my eyes.
“You are feisty,” he laughed. “But yeah, we know who your parents are. Surprising that you chose a life on the other side of the law.”
Is it, though?
“Much less stressful on this side,” I quipped, taking a deep breath before adding. “Well, right now it’s pretty stressful, actually—and I’m hungry.” My stomach growled as I said the words, not having eaten since breakfast.
Bad day to skip lunch.
“You’re not going to have any comfort until you start talking about your brother,” he grunted, losing some of the kindness in his voice. “There’s no way he’ll let you.”
“He? As in the guy who chased me in the woods?” I held back from using my nickname. That was mine, and I had no clue what they’d try to take from me, so I was keeping it.
“Yeah, he’s your keeper,” the guy said with a sigh. “And as much I’d like to help you out—because I don’t think you deserve this—he’s got his own agenda. No one believes your bullshit story about not talking to your brother.”
Frustration built in my chest, tightening my throat as I shook my head. “Ihaven’tspoken to him. That’s not a fucking lie. I don’twantto talk to my brother.”
He didn’t react. “Why was your partner digging into him so hard then?”
“Well, have you ever thought that maybe it was because Idon’ttalk to him?” I countered, spitting fire in my tone. “I don’t want any part of that life. And even if I did, it would ruin my career. I walk a straight line.”
The last few words got a reaction out of him, his head tilting. “Are you sure about that?”
My brows furrowed. “Yeah…,” I mean, sure, there were some gray territories we waded into, but we always stayed on the right side of the law.
“Maybe you should talk to your partner about that,” he said, rising to his feet. “You’re going to make your life harder by lying about your brother, andifyou happen to actually be telling the truth, then you have some rough nights ahead of you.”
“Wait,” I called after him, causing him to stop at the bottom of the stairs. “Can’t you at least loosen these? I can’t feel my hands or feet.”
“Nah, I don’t think so. He’ll decide that.”
“What about the ransom?” I asked, not wanting him to leave. He was more open than Ghost Eyes, and I might actually be able to get something from him.
His eyes widened. “How do you know about that?”
I swallowed the fear, carefully choosing my words. I didn’t want them to stop having conversations above me. “It’s a good guess, considering I’ve been kidnapped, but not killed yet.”
“Touché. What about it?”
I held back a smile, hewasgoing to be useful. “How much is it? There’s a chance I might have enough money to pay to get myself out of here.”
A flash of intrigue invaded his expression. “I highly doubt you have the money to cover the ransom.”
