Page 141 of Red King

We drive through a typical suburb. The lawns are manicured. The streets are lined with trees. Kids ride bikes.

I look out the window and try to relax. It doesn’t work. I’m worked up. Paisley’s ex is an absolute prick. It took everything not to put my fist through his face. The asshole was hitting on her. He was trying to get back into Paisley’s panties after nearly breaking her.

If I ever run into him in a dark alley, the fucker is dead.

“I smell smoke,” Paisley says.

“I’m a little tense right now.”

She’s not wrong. I think if someone lit a match, there’d be flames.

Calm down!

“Your ex is a piece of work,” I growl.

“Yes, he is,” Paisley says. “It’s funny how stepping away can change your perspective,” she says absently. Then she gets this look and swallows thickly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m just a little carsick. It’s nothing.”

Come to think of it, she does look a little pale.

“We’re nearly there,” I tell her.

“Wait a minute. How do you know we’re nearly there? Actually, how do you know how to get to Rebecca and Dave’s house? I never gave you the address. How did you find me in the first place?”

“You told me that you were staying with a friend from school. Someone called Rebecca. It wasn’t hard to find her. I looked up her address and went to the house. The neighbor was very nice…Jessica, if I remember correctly. She was pruning her roses when I arrived, and she told me that I’d just missed you guys. You were headed to the church for a christening. Since there is only one church in Cedar Pines, it was easy to find, and the rest is history.”

“Oh…okay. I see.”

We pull into the driveway.

“This is it,” she says. “It isn’t fancy like you’re used to.”

“I don’t care about fancy.”

We get out of the vehicle. Paisley doesn’t wait; she heads for the door.

“Stay outside,” I instruct my guards. They do as I tell them, moving to stake out the perimeter.

Paisley’s hand is shaking when she tries to put the key in the lock. I take it from her and open up, gesturing for her to go inside.

“Who is Reese?” I ask as soon as the door closes.

“Wait just a second,” she tells me. She walks through the living room to the backdoor, which she unlocks and opens. Two dogs come running into the house. “Hi, boys.” She gets down on her haunches and scratches them. “It’s good to see you, too.”

Then they run to me, bouncing around my legs. I pet them both. One of the dogs goes to the front door and whines.

Paisley snickers softly and shakes her head. “Not right now, Cookie.”

“Cookie? That’s his name?”

“Yeah, and he’s Fortune.” She points to the other one.

The dog gives her a forlorn look, and they both jump up on a nearby sofa.

“Are you going to tell me who Reese is?”

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