Page 10 of Black Hearts
He didn’t raise us. Even when he still lived here, he barely saw us or spoke to us. We were raised by the entire household, not our actual parents.
“You should care because I had to bring him your girl,” Stella said, her words cutting through the room like a very sharp knife. “Markus didn’t stop him, so I brought you guys here so you could think of something.”
Markus didn’t stop him? “What didn’t Markus stop?” I asked.
She once again looked at me, and I was thankful I didn’t deal with Stella too often; those eyes were definitely of the peculiar variety. If you weren’t careful, they could reel you in, trap you and hold you in place while she gutted you. “Your father came with hers. Markus didn’t stop her father from taking her. She’s not in this house anymore. She went home.”
“Bullshit. This is her home now,” Bennet growled out, prickly.
Theo broke his silence, “She’s not lying.” He’d been studying Stella this whole time, watching her body language, her movements. “Juliet’s gone.” Stella nodded. “Why tell us? Why bring us all here?”
“I didn’t do it for you,” she said. “I did it for Tori. She’s fallen under that girl’s spell much like you idiots. When she finds out Juliet is gone, she’ll throw a fit, and the last thing I want her to do is try to one-up her grandfather.” She paused, holding our stares, unflinching. “It’s why you need to go get her and bring her back.”
Stella had brought us here so she could tell us, so we could think up a plan, and bring Juliet back? My mind spun. This was not how I expected the day to go. I’d thought… well, I guess I’d thought things would slow down for a while, that I—and the others, I guess—could enjoy Juliet’s company in the house without worrying about Markus.
And by company, I meant other things.
Stella shrugged. “Or don’t, but like I said, Tori will flip her shit. She might only be ten, but you guys know how she can get.” She said nothing else, turning on her heel and walking out of the room, leaving us to think on everything she’d said.
Theo was the one who spoke first, “She’s right. We have to figure out a plan and get her back.”
“Why would Markus let her go?” I said, rubbing my chin.
“I’m going to fucking kill him” was what Will said, to which Bennet nodded in agreement.
“No,” Theo spoke with authority. “No killing. Not Markus, and not your father. We need to be smart. If your father’s here, that means he’s keeping an eye on Markus—at least, we can safely assume that much. If that’s the case, Markus won’t be able to do anything, which means it’s up to us.” He turned to look at me, Bennet, and Will. “It’s up to you three. I should stay here, make sure nothing else happens here. If you three get her, I don’t want you to bring Juliet back to a warzone.”
I said, “If we get her, we will be going against our father. He won’t take that lightly.”
“Another reason I should stay here, make sure he’s focused on dealing with Markus,” Theo went on. “If he’s distracted, he might not realize you three are missing. Based on what we’ve learned of Fred Osborne, I don’t think we have much time. With everything Markus has done… we’re on the clock.”
“Should we tell Markus?” Bennet asked, and then he shrugged. “Not that I give a shit about the guy, but—”
“Fuck him,” Will cut in, frowning. “He almost had Lincoln rape her, so fuck him.”
“Grab what you need and go. Don’t worry about Markus. If I have the chance, I’ll tell him, but if I don’t… I won’t go out of my way to inform him. As far as I’m concerned, he’s lost his privilege to know what’s going on with Juliet.” The others agreed with Theo, and I was slow to nod my head along with them.
“I’ve been there. I know how to get there quickest,” I said. “I think Rave was put on watch. He might still be in the area.” I pulled out my phone. “Let me give him a call. We’ll meet in the garage in thirty.”
Will and Bennet grunted, neither looking too happy about this, but neither one said anything else as they left the lounge. Theo, on the other hand, stayed back, watching me behind those thin-rimmed glasses. I had Rave’s name pulled up on my phone, about to dial his number, when I noticed.
“What?” I asked.
“You should stop at an ATM, pull out some cash. You guys might have to bunk somewhere else for a while,” Theo explained. “The last thing I want to do is bring Juliet back here and your father tries something else with her.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
Theo stepped toward me. I couldn’t remember ever seeing the good doctor so… distraught. Even when he’d gone bananas at Will in the basement, he hadn’t acted quite like this. Like his entire world was crumbling around him and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
Then again, we all kind of felt like that right now.
“Keep her safe,” Theo whispered, pleading. “Please, just keep her safe.”
I knew there was nothing I could say to him to make him feel better, nor was there anything I could do short of having Juliet by my side, safe and sound, to resolve this situation. It’s like, Will and I had just gotten back here with Bennet and Juliet in tow, and now she was gone again, taken from us not by another Scott but by her own father.
Her serial-killing father.
All I could do was nod solemnly and watch as Theo turned to walk away from me. My thumb hit the dial button, and I brought my phone to my ear, starting to pace the lounge as I waited for Rave to pick up.
