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“Zoe, it’s Tessa. I’m sorry we didn’t have more time together. But I remember you now. I remember everything about you, every moment we had together. And I miss you… so much.” A tear trickled over my cheek and I turned again to check on Chait and the others. They had finished and looked ready to go. “Goodbye, Zoe,” I whispered, then turned and headed back to the car, my throat aching.
“Are you okay?” Chait asked.
I nodded and got in the car, then took a moment for some slow deep breaths. “It’s fu
Chait nodded and briefly touched my hand. “So back at your house, did Rena say anything else?”
“No. Just that she killed Zoe. Jealousy over David.”
His head snapped to me. “First your sister, then you. I can’t figure out how she thought she’d get away with it. How could Rena not expect to answer to the rest of us?”
“I’d arranged to meet with Frank and Lila today. We met at the park and Boris was there. Rena accused me of joining them. That’s what she would’ve told all of you. How I was a traitor.”
“Boris, huh?” He frowned at the road ahead. “Even if you’d requested an audience, normally he would’ve said no. What makes you special?”
“Thanks a lot, Chait.” I tried my best to sound sarcastic.
“No, I already know you’re amazing.” He chuckled. “I think every guy in town agrees. What I mean is that Boris doesn’t meet with recruits. There’s something else about you that prompted the meeting, something we need to find out. Knowledge is power. I want to know what he knows.”
“I wish I knew how to figure that out.”
“We have a library crammed with old books on sorcerers, vampires, werewolves and anything else you can think of. But getting you inside our house without Boris finding out is going to be a challenge. If he thinks you’ve joined us, you’ve got a problem.”
I gri
Chapter Thirty
Hayden
I spied my soon-to-be-ex-step-dad from my spot in the hallway and watched as he threw clothes and books in boxes and suitcases. “Sam, give me your keys.”
His eyes darted to me, looking hunted. Then he turned the keys over with trembling hands.
“Are any of the cars in his name?” I asked my mom.
“Only the Porsche.”
“Should he keep it?”
She shrugged. “Legally, it belongs to him.”
“You’re never coming back here. If you can’t fit all your stuff in that car, you can leave the rest outside the gate and make another trip. Not promising it’ll be there after tomorrow morning though.” I separated the Porsche key from the rest and tossed it to him. “The computer stays.”
I bolted into his office where the computer was exactly the way we left it. After punching in the last letter of his password, I logged in and typed a new password, then closed and locked the door. If he had personal items in that room, I’d have them shipped. For now, it was off limits until I copied the files on his hard drive. Mom would need anything incriminating in case Sam sued for alimony. “Mom, I have to go, but I’m not leaving you alone with him.”
She waved it off. “I’ll be fine. He knows you’ll hurt him if he tries anything.”
“Give me a break, Mom. If I’m not around, how can I stop him?” I’d take her with me, but didn’t want Sam destroying the place while we were gone. I moved to the intercom and called our security guy. “Can you come to the main house, please?”
* * * *
“Midget, are you hungry?”
“Can I have some ice cream?” Bree batted her eyelashes.
I chuckled. “I don’t know. Let’s see what Tessa says when she gets here.”
The door flew open and Tessa came in laughing with Chait. A pang of envy sliced at my gut. It irked me that Chait had her all to himself for over an hour — obviously having the time of his life — while I trudged through the perverted images from Sam’s head.
At least my mom was finally free of the creep. It was worth it.
I met Tessa at the door and gave her a kiss.
“Nice to see you again,” she told my mom, probably wondering why my mom was hanging out at her house.
“We had a little problem with Sam and I didn’t want to leave her there.” I sent her the less disgusting pictures I’d plucked from Sam’s mind.
“Oh.” Tessa’s brows rose. “You guys had a fight?”
“You could say that.” Mom’s gaze fell to the floor.
“I’m sorry. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like. It’s the least I can do, since you guys picked up Bree.” She squeezed my hand.
“Actually, we should get back and make sure Sam leaves.” It pained me to leave Tessa alone with Chait again. Worse, I’d have to ask him to stay with her. “Can you stick around a little while longer?”
Chait’s eyes sparkled and the corners of his mouth twitched. “I’d be more than happy to help out.”
Blowing out a breath, I fixed him with a glare. “I’d appreciate that. Remember, one day, I’ll pay you back… for everything.”
Chait nodded and smiled as the double meaning registered.
I wanted to beat the smug look off his face. Another time. “Mom, we should get going.”
“Nice seeing you again.” My mom waved and I escorted her out.
She was pensive on the way home. I couldn’t blame her. She’d just discovered her entire marriage was a lie. When we returned to the house, Sam was gone. Mom tried to act casual, like the Sam situation didn’t affect her. But she stuck close to me as I inspected the windows and doors to make sure they were locked.
“Sweetheart, I’ll be fine. Even if he got past the gate, he’s not getting through the alarm. I changed the code and asked security to send over a couple more guys. Go back to Tessa and make sure that young man doesn’t take your place.”
“You caught that, huh?”
“Yes.” She patted my cheek. “Goodnight.”
She’d be fine with the added security measures. I turned to go, then faced her again and scooped her up into a bear hug. “Things will be better now. I love you, Mom.”
She sniffed and pushed me away, her eyes glistening. “Go get the girl.”
When I pulled up in front of Tessa’s, I heard them laughing. Now would be a good time not to have super-good hearing. I walked inside without knocking and Tessa met me with a kiss and an angelic smile that made me whimper inside for wanting her. “Hey,” I said.
“Hayden.” Bree hugged my hips. “You’re back. Are you going to read me a story? You said you would.”
“Yeah, Tessa’s dying to read with us.” I wasn’t about to leave Tessa alone with the girlfriend thief again.
Bree planted a hand on her hip. “I get Tessa almost every day. Tonight, I only want you.”
Tessa suppressed a giggle. “I think she wants some alone time with you.”
If I couldn’t watch over Tessa, I didn’t want her left alone. I eyed Chait.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of things while you’re gone.” He gri
I sighed and ruffled Bree’s hair. “Okay, let’s go pick out a book.”
Twenty minutes later, Bree was asleep. As soon as I appeared in the doorway, Chait stood. “You two had quite a night,” he said. “Rest up and we’ll meet again tomorrow.”
Tessa led him out, then turned and wilted against the door. In a flash, I was holding her and she melted against me. “You’re shaking,” I said, holding her tighter.
“That wasn’t exactly a relaxing evening, what with Rena trying to murder me.” Her voice came out muffled against my chest. “I just want to not think about her staring at me, dead.”
“Maybe I can help with that.” I pressed her into her into the door and fastened my mouth to hers.
By the time she pushed me away, I’d lost track of how long we’d been kissing. Her lids were half closed and a contented smile played on her lips. “We’d better stop. Besides kissing, what do you want to do the rest of the night?” she asked.