Page 23 of The Complete Truth Duet
I narrowed my eyes, trying to figure out what she was playing at, when it suddenly dawned on me that Savannah was nowhere in sight.
God, my girls were smart.
“Yeah. Go ahead,” I said and then watched her head down the hall. Before Larry could hear River’s soft knock or Savannah opening the locks, I got to talking. “What can I do for you?”
A wolfish grin split his mouth. “Oh, I could think of a lot of things you could do for me.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I shot him a bored glare. “Yeah, well. I don’t have enough time, energy, or Viagra to make that happen. So let’s try this again: Why are you still here?”
Drew coughed to cover his laugh, but the only thing that came from Penn’s quadrant of the room was a whole lot of pissed-off energy and a death glare.
Larry sucked through his teeth and rested his palm on his gun at his hip. “Woman, you got a record a mile long. I put you in cuffs in the back of my car, you’ll die in a cell. One of these days, you’re going to learn to watch your mouth.”
He was full of shit. I had a record exactly two sentences long: two drug charges. Fun story—I’d never so much as smoked a joint in my life. The real story was I spent three years in jail for pissing off Marcos and Dante. It was a pure power play for them. And seeing as I was riding the wave of thirteen years under their control, it had worked. Now, though, I was on the wonderful list of what the State of Illinois called Habitual Offenders. Three-strikes-you’re-out kind of deal.
“I’ll be sure to start working on that.” Snapping my fingers, I motioned for the return of my coffee mug. “She’s dead, Larry.” God, that burned, but I tucked it away in its own little disgusting drawer in my subconscious and powered through. “You can fill me in later on the details about how and where you claim to have found her in case any of your buddies start asking questions. But, right now, you have to get the hell out of my apartment. I need a shower, a metric ton of coffee, and then I have a building full of grieving girls to check in on.”
Passing my mug back, he held my stare. “Watch yourself, Cora.”
I gave him the most honest answer I’d ever spoken. “I always do.”
His lips formed a thin line as he scowled at me for several beats longer.
Jerking my chin to the door, I prompted, “Have a good night, officer.”
On a muttered curse, he turned on a toe and walked out, leaving the door wide open like a surly teenager.
Once he was gone, I blew out a ragged breath and reached up to pinch the bridge of my nose, jerking it away when I saw the blood caked under my nails. My stomach rolled.
“Oh God, I really need a shower.” I glanced up at Penn. “You do too. Let me just grab my shampoo and I’ll make sure none of the girls are in the other bathroom for you. It’s the least I can—”
“You got this?” he clipped at his brother.
“Yeah,” Drew replied on a sigh.
Before I had the chance to inquire with the obvious, Does he have what?—the answer clearly being me—Penn all but sprinted out the open door, slamming it behind himself, also not unlike a surly teenager.
Confused—and a tad insulted—I peered up at Drew. “Did I say…”
He shook his head and hooked his arm around my shoulders, pulling me into a side hug. “Don’t worry about Penn. You’ve got enough shit on your plate without adding his to it. He’ll be fine.”
I immediately shifted out of his hold. “What kind of shit does he have?”
“The kind that no one can fix. So wipe that look off your face.”
Challenge accepted!
“Who’s Lisa?” I asked.
Drew’s gentle face morphed into stone-cold fury, and his voice turned to gravel. “What did you say?”
I squared my shoulders. “Lisa. That’s what Penn called Angela when he saw her on the floor.”
Visible relief sifted through his features until he was back to Mr. Nice Guy. Gripping the back of his neck, he replied, “He probably just got confused. Thought that was her name or something.”
Yeah, judging by nothing more than Drew’s reaction, that was a load of bullshit. But we all had our secrets. God knew I had a mountain of my own. So I let it go.
For now.
“Yeah, that had to be it,” I mumbled.
He offered me a gentle smile. “Now, for real, you gonna be okay?”
I shrugged. “It’s kinda my only option.”
Penn
I fell to my knees as I violently threw up in the trash can.
I couldn’t breathe. And the pain was relentless—not even my numbness could block it out.
