Page 11 of Culmination
The meaning of Adrian’s claim of danger finally makes all the sense in the world.
Earlier that morning
BRIE’S SOUND ASLEEP, HERcheek pressed against my chest, rising and falling as I breathe, my eyes counting the lines on the ceiling over and over again. I’ve been restless ever since we found her father’s letter with its cryptic postmark. We’ve been too narrow-minded, too focused on only one piece of art—the painting in the storage unit. Neither of us would’ve guessed her father had used various pieces of sentimental art from her childhood to lead the way. Then again, knowing Andrew Latham, who knew his daughter well, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise.
P.S. The painting over the dining table? It’ll guide you to the next location, which will give you what he’s looking for. Find it, Brie. Finish what I couldn’t.
Brie claimed pregnancy brain was blocking her memory, and she hoped that after a good night’s sleep, she’d wake up with the answer.
I don’t want to wait that long. I want this over. Now.
I know what I have to do. Return to the house and hope like hell another surprise doesn’t await me. All I need is a minute, to get in and out quickly without being seen.
Kinda like how I need to get out of this bed right now.
Early morning sunlight peeks through the curtains, a symphony of car horns welcoming the day accompanies it. I know the sooner I leave, the better, the more likely I can sneak out without waking Brie. Because I know she’ll insist on joining me.
I don’t want to leave her alone, but it’s better if I do this without her. For her sake, and the baby’s, I want to minimize the stress of the situation as much as possible. Which is why she shouldn’t even be here.
But that’s a battle I knew better than to fight.
I quickly dress, then holster my gun, stopping to look down at her before I go.
In her slumber, she’s so vulnerable. So innocent. So breathtakingly beautiful with her dark hair fanned out on her pillow, her sweet lips slightly parted. Her chest rising and falling under the comforter, the tops of her supple breasts giving me just a peek. Her hand resting on her belly as if to protect our child even in her sleep. I resist the urge to lean down and place a kiss on her forehead
After walking around to my side of the bed, I scrawl out a note for her, just in case she wakes before I’m able to get back. When I slip out of the room, she doesn’t even stir.
My hands flex on the wheel the closer I am to her childhood home. I’m not sure why I did it, but I’m thankful to have had the wherewithal to leave a window unlocked at the back of the house. That way, I won’t have to break in. It can be a clean job and no one will be the wiser that I was even there. All I have to do was slip inside, take a snapshot of the painting, and slip right back out.
Easy as fucking pie. This way, Brie won’t have to rack her brain trying to remember.
I park down the street from the house and get out, scanning the area. It’s a quiet Sunday morning, hours before the church crowd will be leaving their homes. Five minutes. That’s all the time I need. In and out. And then, hopefully, we’ll be that much closer to putting this whole thing behind us.
At least I hope so. It feels like every step closer I take, more questions arise. Why would Morningstar have bought this houseafterthe murders? A sick shrine to give to Brie one day as some sort of way to prove his fucked-up love for her? Or, worse, to taunt her?
Or does he want to finish the job he’d started and get back into Daddy’s good graces?
On that thought alone, the most critical question twists in the back of my mind.
Where the fuck is that bastard?
Before I can entertain the thought, my phone rings. It could only be one of three people, and without even looking at the screen, I know that it’s the last one I want to hear from.
“Boss,” I answer, leaning back against the rental car and holding the phone to my ear.Talk about bad fucking timing.
“When were you going to tell me, Matthews?” His harsh tone catches me off guard.
My heartbeat quickens as my eyes dart up and down the street, looking for someone. Something. The idea that the boss is surveilling me in Chicago hadn’t even crossed my mind. Not until now. Which is stupid, because why wouldn’t he?
This is why I shouldn’t have let Brie come. She’s a distraction—a most gratifying one, but a distraction nonetheless.
The last thing I can afford right now is getting caught off guard by anything.
Or anyone.
The boss clears his throat, regaining my attention.
“Sir?”
