Page 13 of Obsessed Fox

Hendrix set the spatula down and placed the omelet in front of me. Despite how good it looked and smelled, I was no longer hungry. My stomach was too busy being tied up in knots.

"Who else knew you killed him?"

My thumb landed between my teeth. I wasn't the kind of person who chewed on my nails but I did nibble on the skin around it as a nervous habit. I was breaking all sorts of promises by confessing to Hendrix and I still wasn't sure if I could trust him.

Yes, you can! Otherwise you would've kept your mouth shut.

I wanted to kick the little voice in my head for reminding me of what I didn't want to admit to myself.

"Matty, my brother," I finally confessed on an exhale. "He came with me that night to confront Atlas. I never planned to kill him and I freaked out after. It was Matty who helped me get away, who told me what I needed to do to protect myself. I've followed his word to a T until Willow Creek, but even here, I made sure I was ready to leave at a moment's notice if it came to it."

"When was the last time you spoke to your brother?"

Sadness overwhelmed me. Matty and I weren't just siblings. We did everything together. "That night. It killed me but he said it was best if we went our separate ways. Up until that moment, we were never apart. We were what people called Irish twins. Ten months’ difference, and because of how our birthdays fell, we were in the same grade. At least when our parents remembered to enroll us in school. We had the same friends." I frowned. "We were inseparable."

Werebeing the key word. Twelve years changed a person and I, for one, wasn't the same as I used to be.

"Eat your omelet before it gets cold. You're going to need to keep your strength up."

I forced myself to take a bite, and I moaned. Damn, it was good. Too bad my mind was going a million miles a minute to actually fully enjoy it.

"What's the next step?" I asked between bites. I was operating on automatic, not even paying attention to the fact that I was nearly halfway through my breakfast.

"Next we find out where your brother is and see what he can tell us. Someone made the body disappear and if the only two people involved that night were you and Matty, then something tells me he has the answers we need."

The thought of seeing or speaking to my brother again after all these years was like a shot of adrenaline straight to the heart. I wanted it so bad, and I wanted it now.

CHAPTER SIX

Hendrix

Sitting at work while Maisie hid out at my house was the equivalent of torture. I was kicking myself for not having enough forethought to have cameras inside my house. Then I could've at least checked on her periodically.

Or constantly.

Constantly was definitely more like it.

Now that I had the chance to taste her again, I was going to need it daily. Like an addict, I routinely needed a hit. I had to find a way to get her on board with my way of thinking.

"Uh-oh. That evil grin means trouble for the rest of us." Nolen straddled a chair across from me and crossed his arms over the backrest. "What are you up to?"

"Just thinking about some security measures I need to add to my house."

The crinkles around Nolen's eyes grew deeper the longer he studied me. "Nope, I'm not buying it. I know that look and things never end well when you wear it."

My friend wasn't wrong. I didn't hide my level of crazy from anyone. I wore that shit like a badge of honor.

"I'm serious. My reasons are just a little . . . unconventional."

"Now that sounds like the Hendrix we all know. What are you working on anyway? Last I checked, your plate was clear."

Because this was such a small town, it was rare we all needed to work on the same assignment. To be honest, we probably didn't need seven of us here either but we were a tight-knit group and where one went, we all followed.

"It is. This is more of a personal project."

Nolen shook his head. "By personal, you mean it has to do with Maisie. Come on, man. Stalker is not a good look on you."

All my friends liked to joke about my obsession with Maisie. They just didn't realize how deep it really ran.

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