Page 8 of Ruthless King (Mount Trilogy 1)
“I don’t even know what Brett did with the money. I didn’t know he borrowed it in the first place.”
Magnolia’s gaze drops away.
“What? What aren’t you telling me?”
“Ke-ke, you know I love you, but there are some things you don’t need to know.”
It doesn’t surprise me that Magnolia would try to shield me if she could, but right now, I need answers. I take a slow, deep breath and let it out, as though preparing for something painful. Which I suppose I am.
“Tell me what you heard.”
After a few beats, she finally speaks, her tone flat. “Word on the street is that part of the money went to pay off one very irate loan shark, which is like borrowing from the devil to pay one of his minions. Some went to his very expensive nasal problem, and the rest to the bitch he was banging on the side, because she told him she
was pregnant. That’s all rumor and hearsay, though.”
My knees are supposed to hold me up, but they fail. I fumble for a grip on the counter, but miss and fall flat on my ass on the floor. The crystal tumbler shatters on the marble as I go down.
“Ke-ke!” Magnolia bolts toward me, her arms outstretched.
I hold my hands out. “Don’t. Just. Don’t.”
Stunned, I suck in breath after breath as I process her words.
Loan shark.
Nasal problem.
Pregnant mistress.
I knew Brett was cheating on me. He barely tried to hide it. I can’t even believe it took me almost the entire four months we were married to figure it out. It’s why I met with a divorce lawyer three days before he died and leased an apartment so I’d have somewhere to go when I filed the paperwork.
Magnolia backs away and reappears with a broom to sweep up the broken glass. I pull myself together and stand. There’s one part of what she said that doesn’t make sense.
“What kind of nasal problem did Brett have? Allergies?”
She dumps the dustpan in the trash bin and looks at me with an expression that can only be described as sympathetic. “Ke-ke, he was a cokehead. Since before the day you met him.”
“What?” The word bursts out of me. She surely can’t mean . . .
“Cocaine. Blow. White.”
“That’s impossible. I would’ve known. I—”
“You’re a good girl,” Magnolia says, shaking her head benevolently. “You can recognize a drunk at twenty paces, but drugs are out of your wheelhouse, Ke-ke.”
“That piece of shit put my family’s legacy at risk because of drugs?” I’m no longer on the verge of hysterics. I’m there.
“That and pussy, which is even more addictive, in my experience. Plus, Brett Hyde was a con artist. He had you hook, line, and sinker before you even had a chance.”
I cover my face with both hands and focus on breathing. Counting to ten. Trying to let the anger recede.
It doesn’t work.
Eloping with Brett was the one impulsive decision I’ve made in my life. I thought meeting him was fate. He was so perfect for me from day one, I couldn’t help but believe the world had destined us to be together. And after that incredible night . . .
I shake off the memories. I was such a naive little idiot.
“I wish I could bring him back to life so I could kill him myself,” I whisper.
