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“Mama Irene, mostly,” smiled Abe. “She and Matthew believe in a personal touch, but everyone has the right to change anything they want in the cottages. Is there something you want to change?”
“Oh, no! Nothing. It’s all beautiful. I mean, the antiques are so amazing.”
“Antiques?” frowned Abe.
“Abe, you didn’t notice that the bed we slept in was an American Late Classical four-poster? It’s probably worth ten grand. I’ve never seen such fine pieces of furniture all in one place.”
“You’ve got a good eye,” said the handsome older man. Matthew smiled at Lyra, and she graced him with a big, beautiful smile. “My wife and I love to antique shop. I mean, why not? We’re antiques ourselves.” He laughed, and Lyra grinned at him.
“Everything is just exquisite,” she said, complimenting him.
“After the boys get this mess settled for you, let’s talk about some things I have in mind for you. I think we can keep you very busy here.”
“Oh,” she gasped. “Really? I’d love that!”
“Lyra? Are you ready?” asked Luke.
“Yes. Yes, I’m ready. Thank you so much!” she said, hugging Matthew. He kissed her cheek, touching the soft skin.
“Be brave, child. The boys will have the courage to back you up.” Matthew walked away, and Lyra looked up at Abe and Luke. They both shrugged, smiling.
Seeing everyone in the cafeteria was one thing, but here in the auditorium was something else. Dozens of faces, all attached to gorgeous, rock-hard bodies. The women, mostly sitting in the second row, were stunningly beautiful and had the bodies of swimsuit models.
“What’s wrong?” asked Abe.
“I’m suddenly wishing I hadn’t skipped those cycling classes,” she whispered. Abe just laughed, shaking his head.
“You’re fucking perfect,” he whispered in a sexy voice. “Just be you.”
She turned back to Luke, who was standing next to a high stool. He pointed at it, taking her hand as she took a seat.
“Ready?”
CHAPTER NINE
Was she ready? Could she do this? Could she talk about all the heinous things she saw? All the things that gave her nightmares, which terrified her. Could she truly follow through with all of it?
“Honey?” Turning, she saw Abe’s concern and knew the answer.
“Yes. I’m ready.”
“You said you had evidence, Lyra. We’d sure like to see what we’re dealing with,” said Cam. She nodded, taking off her coat and laying it on the table.
“Do you have a knife?” She heard the click of a dozen knives opening and grinned. It wasn’t surprising that it was Razor who stepped forward.
“It’s really sharp, honey. What do you need?” he said.
“I need you to cut out the lining and the pockets.”
“But it’s a fine coat,” he said with confusion. “Are you sure?”
“If you want the evidence, I’m sure.”
“Are you telling me you’ve had the evidence inside that coat all this time? You’ve been wearing the damn evidence?” growled Abe. She shrugged her shoulders and nodded.
“What did you expect, Abe? I couldn’t carry it any other way. I sewed the slip drives into the inside of the coat in various places so that nothing would feel too heavy in one spot. As I took photos of things, I would download it to my laptop, save to the drive, and then erase it, resetting my computer each time. Please,” she said, nodding at Razor, “go ahead and cut it open. Although I will need a new coat after this.”
He smiled at her, nodding, and began carefully cutting away the fabric of the lining. Sure enough, on the inside of the coat, she’d sewn dozens of slip drives.
