Page 2 of Brutal

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The third doesn’t speak.

That’s how I know he’s the most dangerous one there.

“…not the way?—”

“…it doesn’t matter?—”

“It matters if?—”

The words cut off abruptly.

Something tightens in my chest.

This isn’t how the meeting is supposed to go.

I shouldn’t be here.

The thought hits again. I turn slightly, glancing back toward the shore.

I’ve come too far now. It’s too late.

I take another step forward.

I need to confirm, because if the contents of this file are true, I can destroy this family, their careers, their fortunes, their legacies.

All gone in an instant.

And they know it.

They have to.

Which means I’ve already crossed the line.

I slip on the damp wood, and my shoe makes a loud scrape.

Too loud.

The voices stop.

All of them.

I freeze.

Every instinct I have screams at me to move. To walk away. Not to run. That would make me look like I have something to hide.

I turn.

Take one step back.

Then another.

But behind me?—

A hand clamps around my arm and yanks me backward. Hard.

I don’t scream. I don’t gasp. But I stumble, catching myself on instinct, the file shifting under my coat.

“What the hell?—”

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