Page 159 of Risky Passion

As their attention shifted to Jaxson, I raised the water to my mouth and dropped the pill onto my tongue. It was small, bitter, and sharp against the roof of my mouth.

“It’s good to hear your voice,” Jaxson said. “We’ve captured Beatrice.”

No, you haven’t.I swallowed hard, chasing the pill down with a gulp of water.

The taste of cyanide lingered on my tongue, yet for the first time in decades, a glorious wave of peace washed through me.

I was free at last.

CHAPTER 36

Jaxson

As Beatrice sipped the water,I pulled Onyx back, giving her the signal to stand down. Whisper was seated on the top step of the deck and when she extended her hand, Onyx padded over, leaning in for a head rub.

“You caught Beatrice? How?” Aria’s voice on the phone rose with a mix of shock and relief. “Where are you?”

“Stanage Bay,” I said. “It’s a tiny fishing village north of Risky Shores. She was holed up in a shack out in the middle of nowhere.”

I ran a hand through my hair, glancing at the others. Tory still sat beside Beatrice, calm and composed. The way Tory handled Beatrice was impressive.

If it had been me, Beatrice wouldn’t have gotten the same compassion. That bitch deserved nothing but cold, hard justice.

Whitney and Parker hovered near Alice’s body on the floor, flipping through the pages of Beatrice’s handwritten notes. Their expressions were twisted and unreadable. But I had a sinking feeling there were names in those pages we knew.

Just like Cooper and Eddie; cops I’d worked with and trusted.

It was strange, though, the way she’d written it all down. Like a final confession. A last message to the world.

Aria’s voice cut through my thoughts. “How did you find her?”

My gaze flicked back to the notebook Parker and Whitney were reading. If Beatrice had planned to burn everything in that fire, why write those details down?

Was this part of her game? Was she still screwing with us, feeding us lies?

Had we just walked into her trap?

As I darted my attention to the beach, scanning for armed bastards intent on mowing us down, I dropped my free hand to the gun holstered at my side.

Hating what needed to be said, I cringed at my triplet and responded to Aria’s question, “Whitney put a tracking device on the body Beatrice took from the orphanage. Led us straight here.”

“What the fuck?” Anger flared in Aria’s tone. “Why am I only hearing about this now?”

I opened my mouth, trying to form a response that wouldn’t make Whitney look incompetent. But before I could answer, Beatrice gasped and her face washed pale. Too pale. Her lips gaped as if she struggled to breathe.

“Aria, I—” The words died in my throat when Beatrice’s eyes rolled back.

Something’s wrong.

The glass slipped from Beatrice’s fingers, shattering on the floor.

“Beatrice?” Tory lunged forward, grabbing Beatrice’s arm.

“Shit!” I dropped the phone, sprinting toward her. “Beatrice!”

Her body convulsed violently, rattling the chair. Tory and I caught her shoulders as she pitched forward, sliding to the ground like a rag doll.

“What’s happening?” Tory cried as she tried to steady Beatrice.

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