Page 98 of The Complete Truth Duet
“And it gets worse: The cops said it was an electrical fire in my apartment that started the blaze. But what the fuck? The amount of coincidence involved here is impossible. I’m supposed to believe that Penn just so happened to sneak out of my bed at the hotel and go back to the building where he just so happened to pack up my money? And this was money that he wasn’t even supposed to know existed. And then my stars? I never told him they were Nic’s. But he thought they were important enough to peel them off the ceiling?
“And…and…and then your brothers just so happened to show up in the middle of the night and attacked him? I saw Dante shoot him in the leg before chasing him into my apartment. But what the hell happened after that? They didn’t just all tuck in for the night and go to sleep. Even if it was pure coincidence that the fire started at that exact moment, why did none of them see it? Why did none of them try to get out?” I was panting by the time I finished.
“Maybe the fire wasn’t a coincidence, then. Maybe one of them started the fire.”
“Right!” I yelled, sans the whisper. “Okay, but which one of your dumbass brothers would have the first clue on how to rig an electrical fire? I’ll tell you who could though… Penn. He rewired at least three apartments while he was there. But see, when the cops found their bodies…” My stomach rolled at the memory. “Penn was tied to chair.”
“Shiiit,” she breathed.
“Yet, again, I’m expected to believe that he just so happened to get everything that meant anything to me out of that building that night, then left me the exact amount of money I needed for me and all the girls to escape, and then the building caught fire, burning to the ground, taking the two men who kept me trapped for over half my life with it? It just doesn’t make sense.”
“It’s definitely suspect. But I’m not sure I’d be complaining. He basically solved all of your problems.”
“But he died doing it.” A rush of tears I should have long since run out of snuck up on me. “I want to know what happened to him. I loved him, Cat. I loved him so much. And I feel like he was another man who sacrificed everything for me. I don’t know how to process that.” I rested my forehead against the wall as two vending machines hummed behind me.
“You don’t have to process it, Cora. Not right now, anyway. Grieve. Be sad. Cry. Fine. But you don’t have to figure it out. What are the cops saying?”
I took a few seconds to collect myself before answering. “Nothing really. I think they were just happy to finally be rid of Marcos and Dante. You know the cops haven’t been their biggest fans since Manuel went down.”
“They aren’t the only ones,” she muttered to herself. “Good. At least they aren’t looking at you for any of this. And what about Penn’s brother? Have you talked to him about this?”
Another room door opened, and I peeked into the hall and saw Drew heading my way as if his ears had been burning. I got busy straightening out dollar bills on the side of the pop machine and whispered, “I don’t know. I think he’s still in shock. He keeps saying stupid crap, like maybe Penn was trying to take off with all that money. But Penn clearly left everything for me to find.”
I’d only fed one bill into the machine before Drew rounded the corner.
“Shit. There you are. How long does it take to get a drink? I was starting to worry.”
I swiped under my eyes and offered him a halfhearted smile. “Sorry. I just needed a minute alone.” I pointed at the phone. “It’s Brittany. I was talking to her about getting the girls together so I can give them some money.”
His eyebrows gathered. “Right. Of course.”
“I’ll be back in a minute. Okay?” I lifted the dollar in his direction. “You want anything?”
“Nah. I’m good.” Skeptically, he stared at me for another beat. Then he shook his head and reluctantly backed away.
I leaned through the doorway and watched until he was out of earshot. “Listen, I need a way to get in touch with you. Things are different now. We don’t have to sneak around anymore.”
“Well, maybe not from my brothers, but my father and Thomas are still very much alive.”
“I just need a number, Cat. I’ll keep it private.”
“Okay. Okay. I’ll text it over.”
“Thank you,” I whispered. “Now, I’ve got to go. I’m going to see what info I can get out of Drew. I’ll keep you updated if anything comes up. Oh, and stay away from the storage unit. That’s where I ditched the cash.”
