Page 124 of Pretty Little Threats

“Nothing,” I lie, but I can’t fight the wobble of my voice.

Right about now, my dad would call me pathetic and weak.

“Rose, I love you, but you’re lying and doing a shit job of it,” Cassia says. She wraps me in her arms. “If you want me to hunt him down and chop his dick off, say the word.”

“I’d recommend plotting murder after I leave,” Orion says.

Cassia pulls away and glares at him. “Whose side are you on?”

“My own.” Orion shrugs, then looks at me. Thick-rimmed glasses frame keen brown eyes. They don’t have as much depth as Dare’s, and there’s a hint of regret shimmering in those irises. “I have news.”

Cassia looks up at him expectantly.

I scrunch my nose. “Are you two . . .”

“Dating?” Cassia scoffs. “God, no. Orion was at my house, helping me hunt down a lead, when he got some information, and he said I should come too.”

“Can we come inside?” Orion’s breath frosts in front of his face.

“Right, of course.” I step aside to let them in. “Sorry, I’m not myself today. I haven’t been feeling well.”

“Spare the lies for our sake, bestie. This has man trouble written all over it.” She waves her hand in front of my face. “Orion’s news first, then you and I can talk.”

That sounds exactly like what I need. Cassia might be the sole person left who cares about me. “Okay,” I murmur, leading them to the kitchen to make some tea to warm them up.

Orion drums his fingers on the counter while the water heats. Silence stretches between the three of us; the onlything disturbing the quiet is the soft roar of heating water.If Dare were here, maybe he’d know what to say.Regret is heavy on my mind, and I’m too lost in my head to carry a conversation. So, I let the quiet linger, hating that every moment that passes is another moment when I’m left incomplete.

I grab three blue mugs and drop peppermint tea bags into each one. The minty scent tingles in my nostrils. The hot water bubbles as I pour it into the mugs, the last drops trickling out in soft drops.

I hand mugs to each of them, then glance at Orion. Why does he look so serious? “So. What’s this news?”

He grimaces. “You should both sit down.”

I pause with the mug at my lips and study him. He’s hard to read, but his eyes are almost filled with pity. Unease unfurls in my gut. “You’re scaring me,” I say with a hollow laugh.

Once I’m seated on his left and Cassia on his right, Orion sighs and grabs his computer from his bag. “You asked me to look into your mother’s death.”

Cassia gasps.

I shoot her an apologetic look. It’s been a bit since we last chatted.

She waves it away. “And?”

Orion’s eyes narrow at the unwelcome prompt. “And it took a bit, but I found some things that are...concerning.” Orion pulls up some documents on his computer. “I’m going to warn you, it’s not good for either of you. Do you really want to know?”

He glances at Cassia first.

She blinks, face scrunching, then glances at me in confusion before slowly nodding.

“Okay, and you?”

The severity of his features tightens my chest, but I don’t hesitate. “Yes.”

Orion turns the laptop toward me. I lean in and read the screen, eyebrows drawing together. “My mom had her own companies?”

“No,” Orion says, showing Cassia the paperwork as well. “Someone created these companies in her name.”

“I don’t understand.”

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