Page 61 of Vapor

“Where are your parents now?”

“Dead.”

“Oh, no. I’m so sorry.”

“Died in a car accident six months before Demi died. I lost my whole family in less than a year. But I had the club. That’s the only reason I’m still here. I wouldn’t have survived without my MC brothers.” He lets out a shaky breath.

“So, Demi was at Tulane,” I prompt, hoping that he’ll tell me what happened.

“She was at a party the night she died. I knew something was wrong. Even though we weren’t twins, we had that strange connection twins have. I tried calling her, but she didn’t answer. So, I went down there. To the sorority house.”

I stay silent, giving him time to process the memories. I don’t want to push him too hard, but I also get the sense that he needs to talk to someone. It’s almost as if he’s never told anyone the details before. Maybe he has, but my gut is telling me that isn’t the case.

“She was in the upstairs bathroom. Dead. From a drug overdose.” Tears fill his eyes.“My baby sister was gone.”

“What happened?” I whisper.

“She had a needle in her arm. I took it. The cops wouldn’t have cared about who gave her the drugs, but I did. So, I stole it and gave it to Fang. He has a friend who specializes in drug testing. The guy told us that she died from a fentanyl overdose. There was heroin in the syringe too.”

“Those are really addictive drugs.”

“Yeah. The guy who did the testing said that the heroin wasn’t the issue. The amount she took wouldn’t have killed her. But the mix contained enough fentanyl to kill a horse. That’s what killed her.”

“Contaminated drugs.”

“Exactly.”

“How is this connected to my father or Broussard? I get the connection to Juan Vasquez, since he’s the head of the Los Serpientes de Cristal drug cartel.”

“Broussard’s just his money man. Your father’s also connected to Vasquez. I wasn’t entirely sure about that until you confirmed it. Now I’m positive that they move in the same circles. Vazquez is the one I want. He’s the one who’s going to pay for killing my sister.” The venom in his tone sends chills up my spine. But I get it. Even though Lacy and I don’t always get along, she’s still my sister. If someone killed her, I’d want revenge too.

“What’s your plan to get to him?” I ask.

“That’s the problem. I don’t have one. Not exactly.”

“But you’re having Broussard launder money for the MC.”

“That’s as far as I’ve gotten. I’m hoping that if I get in good with him, I’ll get access to his associates, including Vasquez.”

“Does Vasquez know about your sister’s death?”

“I doubt it. She’s probably just another druggie to him. One less customer.” He drops his chin.“If I’d known how much she was hurting after our parents’deaths, I could have done something. Brought her back to the clubhouse. Taken care of her. Something. She didn’t have to die too.”

“I’m so sorry.” I caress the edge of his cheek with the back of my fingers.

“She could have been anything. So smart. So beautiful. But she was trapped in her head. She couldn’t get past the pain of losing them.”

“When someone’s trapped like that, everything feels impossible. Without hope, it’s hard to see a future for yourself.”

“It sounds like you know exactly how she felt.”

“No. It’s different. She lost her parents. I haven’t lost mine.”

“Haven’t you? Your mom’s off gallivanting around in Europe when she should be at home protecting you from your father. And he’s a fucking piece of work, selling his daughters off like cattle. It’s disgraceful.”

“You’re right. It’s almost as if they’ve died, but they’re still alive. It’s almost worse in some ways.”

“Blue.” He pulls me into him, wrapping me in the warmth of his body.“From now on, I’ll be the one to protect you. You’re not marrying Broussard and your father won’t have any say in your life anymore. Whatever you want to do, whoever you want to be, I’m going to make it happen.”

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