Page 148 of Lady Killer

“You’ll have to be more specific, Victor.”

“Yes, because there is more than one, isn’t there.” He leaned back in his chair, eyes hooded.

With my grandfather, anything was possible.

If he believed Lucian had the situation under control, this could be a test of my loyalty to my cousin.

However, if he believed Lucian was failing, there was an equal chance that this was a test of my loyalty to the Blackwell name.

Being the inquisitor wasn’t just about the information I could extract under torture. It was also about what I was able to discern just by being in the same room as a man and observing him.

What did the patriarch of the Blackwell family want?

“The drugs, the killer . . . or the girl?”

Something uncomfortable shifted inside me as I added the last bit, especially knowing Victor’s preferred solution to problems. But I had no doubt that he knew everything going on in Shady Harbor.

Hiding her would do no good.

“Are the drugs not resolved, or is someone besides Aaron Croft and Melody Thomson involved in selling them on campus?”

Taking a deep breath in, I attempted to settle deeper into my seat. “There haven’t been any more reports of unsanctioned sales on campus.” I placed my drink down and steepled my fingers. “But I would argue that Aaron Croft’s likely involvement in the numerous unsanctioned deaths on Blackwell land, including that of one of our long-standing clients, means that he and his little gambit at selling drugs at Hollow Oak are still far from resolved.”

My grandfather inclined his head.

“The serial killer is the bigger issue. Until whoever is killing on Blackwell land is put down, our reputation is under threat. What happens when the next Glory Van Holt goes missing?”

“Ah, yes, the so-called Virgin Sacrifice Killer.” He took a slow slip of his drink. “What can you tell me?”

Probably nothing the shrewd bastard didn’t know already.

“The killer or killers have been abducting girls only for them to turn up dead months later, their hearts ripped out of their chests. Postmortems revealed that five out of the six girls whose bodies have been recovered died from what appears to be some form of suffocation, while Glory died from blunt force trauma.” I paused to consider my next words.

My grandfather pounced on the opportunity. “I see, and Aaron Croft? His heart was also removed, correct?”

Alarm spiked in me, but I didn’t react. “Yes.”

“And how did he die?”

“Blood loss . . . The coroner believes he was still alive when his heart was cut out.” I didn’t need to add the last detail, but if this was the test I thought it was, then he already knew that.

We sat in silence as Victor took another long sip of his drink before speaking again. “Who do you think killed Aaron Croft?”

There was no point in holding anything back.

“A freshman by the name of Luz Torres killed him after he assaulted her.” The words felt clunky leaving my mouth.

“She is the one who cut out his heart?”

“Yes, sir.”

“And she’s fucking your cousins and the help?”

He’d never been Everest’s biggest fan.

Likely the lunatic’s willingness to kill near indiscriminately saved him from being eliminated from Lucian’s life. That and the old man knew nothing of the true nature of their relationship.

Not even I was cruel enough to betray that confidence.

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