"You better mean it. Because you and Presley? You’ve got some shit to fix, too." Without waiting for a reply, I hang up, wishing I had a landline just so I could slam it down.
Julie raises an eyebrow. "Everything okay, sir?"
"Yeah." She clearly doesn’t believe me. "Mr. Casey and I rescheduled. I’ll let you know when the next meeting is."
"Hey, that’smyline," she teases.
I smile. "Listen, I’ll be out of the office for a few days. Can you keep things running?"
"Absolutely. You can always count on me." She throws a mock salute.
"I know, Jules. Thank you... for everything."
She starts bustling around. "Oh, I’m not leaving early now. We’re getting responses from potential clients! I need to set up meetings, update the calendar, and plan Chuck’s grand opening!"
"Whoa, that’s months away, "
"Never too early," she says, determined, and vanishes like a whirlwind.
Chuckling, I grab my jacket and head downstairs.
Once in the car, I call Agatha. "You know," her nasally voice comes through, "some of us have jobs and can’t just- "
"Tone it down," I growl, putting the call on Bluetooth.
"Asshole!"
"No,you’rethe asshole. Shut up and listen." As I drive, I lay it all out. The plan. The setup. The trap.
"That’s the stupidest shit I’ve ever heard," she says.
"You’re just mad you didn’t come up with it," I snap. "Look, I don’t care what you think. This is happening. Keifer’s going to pay for everything he did to Presley and to me."
"Fuck, Ry," she breathes. "I get it. I’ll help."
"You better," I mutter, gripping the wheel tighter. "Because if you don’t, you’re dead to me, too."
Silence. Then, "I’ll help. Just promise me you’ll finish this."
"I fucking swear it."
"Let me know when."
"You’ll hear it from Rafe," I say. I don’t need to tell her I already saw her sneaking out of his place this morning.
Smirking to myself, I pull up to the house.
Hopping out, I sprint inside.
"Presley! Where are you?"
No answer.
I toss my keys onto the side table. "Prez?"
I hit the kitchen. Empty. Worry claws at my gut.
Taking the stairs two at a time, I reach our room, and stop dead. The door’s closed. Lights off.