Page 38 of Princess of Thieves

Okay, then, I think and gulp more coffee. With the caffeine permeating my brain, I think I have a bead on the dynamic here.

Will drums his fingers on the table idly, watching Tuck as he slaps an entire package of bacon on a hot griddle and expertly saws off thick slices of sourdough. Then he looks at me.

“Were you okay?” he says, his voice breaking a little.

I’m taken aback by how frank the question is, how raw the pain is that I can plainly see in his eyes. I set my mug down.

“I... I was, I mean, I guess so.” I shake my head and massage my right temple. “It was a weird situation, I—”

“You can say that again,” Will says. “Gisbourne got you, right?”

“Yeah,” I say, and I explain briefly what happened with the car. As I do, my heart squeezes, realizing I have no idea where my beloved Mustang even is. “And then he pulls up, waves her off, and tells me to come with him,” I finish. “That’s how I ended up at his place.”

“And you didn’t run?” Will says, an edge to his voice. “You didn’t try to escape?”

I want to think he’s just being protective, but the edge of judgment in his tone sets me off.

“Run?” I say. “How, dude? I mean, I guess he didn’t have me under lock and key, but he smashed my phone to bits, and I had nothing but the clothes on my back. I wasn’t going to get far, and he had food and shelter for me. And I had a plan. Iwasgetting out of there. Idid,in fact.”

Saying it aloud, I realize it sounds a little nuts. I wonder if I should throw in the fact that I didn’t want Rosa to be punished for my indiscretion, but decide to try a better tack.

“Besides,” I continue, “Keep in mind I literally don’t have anything you need to live on your own. No ID, no cash, nothing. I had to start from scratch. I couldn’t even get online until I hacked into his computer.”

“Really?” Tuck swivels his head, impressed.

“Well,hackedis a strong word,” I admit. “But I did get access to Gisbourne’s laptop.” I drum my fingers against my coffee. “He’s running for office, you know. District Attorney. Says he’s going to clean up Sherwood, and...”

I pause.

Should I tell them what I saw in the library? What Guy said?

I’d flay them like animals.

Before I can form the words, Will speaks up. “Once we figured out he was the one who had you, I stayed up all night looking into his shit.” He pivots his gaze to me, hard and intense. “He’s bad fucking news, Maren. Worse than the sheriff.”

LJ scoffs. “If that’s even possible.”

“It is,” Will says, his voice deadly calm and serious. “It absolutely is. The sheriff’s greedy and corrupt, a schmoozer who can get his fat fingers into every pie, but at the end of the day, he’s not that bright. Gisbourne, though? He’s a smart cookie. He’s got charm, he’s got brains, and he’s got ambition that goes beyond just Sherwood. And he knows how to make the law work for him on every level.”

I shiver in spite of myself. “Well, it doesn’t matter now,” I say. “I got away from him.”

“Did you?” Will says. “There’s a missing person report out for you, Maren. Gisbourne issued it last night. Said you were his fiancée and that you were kidnapped.”

My heart throbs. “What?”

“See for yourself.” Will pulls his phone out of his back pocket, thumbs it unlocked, and pulls up a news article before pushing it toward me.

I take the phone, my eyes scanning the headline:

Sherwood DA Candidate’s Fiancée Missing, Authorities Say

Sherwood County Sheriff’s Office has issued a missing person report for Maren de Mornay, the fiancée of district attorney candidate Guy Gisbourne. According to Gisbourne, Ms. de Mornay was last seen at a Fourth of July event where she briefly departed to escape the heat, but did not return. Authorities are asking for the public’s assistance in locating her. “I am heartsick and deeply concerned for Maren’s safety,” Gisbourne said in a statement. “While it would be rash to jump to conclusions, I can’t help but suspect foul play, given my candidacy. I urge anyone with information to come forward immediately.”

I read it, my eyes wide. “Fuck,” I whisper under my breath. “That bastard. He’s making it sound like I was kidnapped.”

“Not in so many words,” Will says. “He’s being careful.”

I roll my eyes. “Anyone who reads that will pick up what he’s putting down.”

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