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Everyone is quiet for a second. I look at Hawk, who looks as sick as I feel.
“This is the part I find interesting. Avery told me she was recruited for an internship in some sort of mentoring program right out of the group home she was living in. This was the same day she turned eighteen. They offered her a job, health insurance, and a small apartment, free and clear, as long as she stayed with the company for a minimum of four years. As she doesn’t get her inheritance from her parents until she turns thirty, she agreed.”
“I don’t blame her. Most kids in the system are usually forgotten about when they turn eighteen, which is scary as hell. I would’ve taken the deal too,” Greg admits.
“Except what are the odds that a gifted girl ends up right in the hands of the government chasing them?” Ev asks.
“I thought you said she worked in the missing persons and trafficking department.”
“She did.” Ev looks at me. “Tell them what happened the day she left.”
I look down at the table. “Apparently, she heard me and Hawk arguing. We didn’t know she was there, and we sure as shit didn’t know she could hear lies, not that it’s an excuse.” I rub the back of my neck. “She found out that I married her to secure my green card and that Hawk didn’t actually love her.”
“I didn’t know I did at the time, but I do love her,” Hawk amends quickly, but if the looks we’re getting are anything to go by, it’s not making much difference.
“What a clusterfuck,” Oz groans. “No wonder she left.”
“She didn’t, though. She took her keys and drove around while she was upset, but she had decided to come back.” I choke on the next part, so I clear my throat before carrying on. “She decided that she’d rather be with us than be without us, even if it was an act,” I whisper, looking up and expecting judgment but only finding sadness. “And then Cooper found her.”
“Explain his involvement here. I know he cared for her, so asking to give her space makes sense. What doesn’t make sense is why he never mentioned seeing her again afterward? He and Kay were like adoptive parents to her. I never understood how he just let her walk away any more than I understood you two doing it,” Jagger admits.
I look at him, but he just shrugs. “I’d move heaven and earth for Astrid. She ran, and I was right behind her. It wouldn’t matter to me how many times she took off. I’d hunt her down each and every time. You guys just let Avery go.”
“We were hurt. It’s not an excuse, but with the money gone, we figured she got what she wanted. The problem is, she never took the money. She pointed out that she never had access to our bank accounts.”
“Wait, wouldn’t immigration have looked into things like that? Joint accounts and the same address, shit like that?” Crew frowns.
I look at Hawk, who takes over. “We do have a joint account. We added Avery to it to sell the story, but she didn’t have access to it. She never even asked about it. It’s irrelevant anyway, because if we’d used our brains, we would’ve realized the money was taken from my personal account, not the joint one.”
“So, who took it?”
“Cooper,” Ev answers. “I looked into it last night. The money was withdrawn from Hawk’s account in cash, but a few months later, regular large cash amounts were deposited into Kay’s bank account. She didn’t work, and the money didn’t come from Cooper’s account.”
“Why, though? What the fuck was Cooper thinking?”
“Avery told him what she could do, and a week later, she woke up in a hospital. She was told she had had a mental break, and when she went back to work, she was offered a new job in a different department.”
“But Cooper sold us out to save Kay. If this were true, he would’ve already known about gifted people. I don’t understand. Wait, you said she was recruited, so they already knew what she could do, right?” Slade jumps from one thing to another.
Ev rubs his hand over his face. “No. They thought she was skilled at reading people. They paid for her degree to study human behavior, but they didn’t know she was gifted, not until Cooper told them.”
Chapter Nineteen
Avery
I took Ev’s advice and soaked in the tub. It went a long way toward working out some of the stress I’d been feeling since the second I heard the banging on the door.
After climbing out and drying off, I rummage through Evander’s drawers and pull out a pair of black boxers and a white T-shirt. Another day, another T-shirt. But this one doesn’t piss me off like the others did, and it smells like E, which is a bonus.
I find a comb, which I use to brush my hair before braiding it, and an unopened toothbrush under the counter in the bathroom that I claim. I don’t think Ev would mind, and if he did, I’d replace it.
Once done, I wander around the main part of the house, which is light and welcoming now that the grumpy thunderclouds from before are gone. Light oak floors, warm cream walls, and huge windows with white shutters give the place a Mediterranean vibe. With the sun pouring in, I could shut my eyes and almost picture myself sitting in some Greek villa rather than coming back home to the scene of my heartbreak. Of course, these houses weren’t here last time I was. Ev had mentioned that Apex had added homes to the sprawling property, which meant most of the guys lived onsite—except Nash and Hendrix, who, as far as I knew, were still stationed abroad somewhere.
The kitchen is glossy white and minimalistic, but I don’t take much of it in when I spot the fancy coffee machine.
“Ah, my precious.” I search the cupboards until I find the mugs and coffee and make myself a cup.
As it brews, I walk over to the island, pulling out one of the stools to sit, when I spot a note.
