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“Why would Carter do this?” Maddox asked. “There has to be a reason.”
Exhaling, I turned away, trying to process what little we knew about Carter. He’d taken the death of his brother hard, had likely blamed his father. Was it possible that he’d killed Sophia? “The fact he purposely sought Megan out is the key here. But why?”
“Maybe he kept track of Raven and when he realized she was pledging, he swooped in.”
“Farfetched. Why now?”
“Thomas has to be involved with this somehow.”
While Francois had hit him twice more, I was finished with playing games. I pulled out my weapon, pressing it under Ramsey’s chin. “You have thirty seconds to confess your sins. What prompted your son to suddenly develop a plan that included luring Raven into my world?”
Ramsey’s one eye was swollen shut, his mouth bloody, but tears were streaming down his cheeks and it had nothing to do with agony. “Because… we had an argument two months ago. He was angry that Thomas decided he wasn’t good enough for Raven. I hadn’t known until that point that she’d already dumped him. He was already acting crazy, bragging that he would kill Thomas and take Raven for himself just like he’d done to Sophia. He was waving a gun around. I told him to get the fuck out, that he was disowned. He accused me of taking sides with Thomas, forsaking his only living son. I was far too angry to realize he needed help.”
“Why didn’t his admittance make you happy? He told you that he’d gotten justified revenge destroying my life.” It was still unfathomable, the ugliness of everything that had occurred. Kyle had wanted to please his father so badly.
Ramsey seemed suddenly like a broken man. “You don’t understand. Thomas and I stopped being friends a long time ago. Part of the reason why was that when Carter applied for the FBI, Thomas turned him down. My buddy told me then that Carter failed his psychological test. I was incensed, certain I could count on the man.”
“That ended your friendship?”
“That was the last straw. I told him that maybe Carter could actually bring you down for the crime you committed. We got into a fist fight. You see, I might have been the person responsible for encouraging him to leave aside his life of crime, but he had no intentions of ever allowing anything to happen to you or any member of your family. He made certain I knew at that moment that he’d come after me and my family personally if I attempted find a way to destroy you.”
Even though it sounded farfetched, I could tell he wasn’t lying. “You didn’t have a change of heart about Kyle’s death from the warehouse fire. You never dropped your need for revenge. You simply didn’t want to lose everything you’d worked for.”
“I wanted to save my family but you’re right. I didn’t want to lose what I’d built over the years, the new ventures I’d undertaken. Tell me what you’d do.”
I lowered the weapon, sliding it into my holster. “Much worse, Ramsey. Then what? This argument with Carter. What happened?”
“Then I told my son that he was forbidden to touch you or anyone inside your family and why. He stormed out of my house and I thought that was the end of it. I was wrong.”
“Why were you at that charity event?”
“You were right in that I’ve been working with Devin Carlos for years. We grew up in the same neighborhood and kept in touch. He made me an offer and when it had to do with destroying your empire in an entirely different way, I couldn’t pass it up.”
“Carter found that out. He was the one who tipped off the DEA. Not you.”
He laughed and closed his one eye. “That’s what I’ve suspected. I tried to talk to him, but he refused. I also wanted to warn Devin of what was going on and to lay low for a little while. You don’t know this, but he torched one of Devin’s buildings, killing several horses. My son will kill your fiancée and daughter. He’s not the little boy I raised.”
The puzzle was ugly, but it fit together. Except for what Carter intended on doing. He might be obsessed with the woman I loved, but the desire to exact revenge held even more appeal. I glanced from Francois to Maddox. Suddenly, I knew in my gut what he had planned. “He’s going to kill them in a fire. That will complete the circle of revenge. But he will come after you.”
“I know,” Ramsey said.
“He needs an opportune place. Does he own a warehouse or have access to one?”
“I have no idea.”
I cocked my head, trying to keep my patience. He was as much a victim as anyone else. “Yes, you do. Think, Ramsey. Fuckin’ think.”
He shook his head several times. “I own a warehouse still. It’s a piece of property I held onto with plans of having it renovated. I even talked to Devin about it since it’s in New Orleans. I knew he wouldn’t mind stepping foot into your territory.”
“Where. Is. It?”
“It’s on Fordham Street. It’s the perfect place. There’s no one else around.”
“You better hope we’re not too late. Or you’ll beg me to die.”
CHAPTER26
Raven
