Page 70 of Sins of Seduction
When I’ve cut your poisonous heart out.
Danny packed a duffle bag filled with all the toys one needed for a grand finale. The final climax Danny had been coasting toward for years now would finally come to an end. A lot faster than Danny had wanted, and yet it felt like a long time coming. Everything was set in place—the pawns on the board in the exact spots Danny needed them to be. Once the first one was hit, it would be a beautiful domino effect with just Danny and Raven still standing until Raven was no more.
“My pretty little Raven. I can’t wait to kiss your skin, sink my teeth into your flesh, and break you piece by fucking piece.”
Raven had to give Greyson credit. He didn’t even flinch when she told him she’d been poisoned. He asked all the same questions the doctors and Jax did, and Raven repeated the same answers. They were talking in circles until Jax’s hand came down on her shoulder. “Where do you get your protein powder from? If it’s coming from out of the country, it’s possible there might be something in it that’s not supposed to be in it.”
Greyson looked up from the notepad he’d been writing on. “You take protein powder? Do you know the name of it?” He pulled out his phone. “I can look it up right now.”
Raven shook her head, more annoyed with herself that she had forgotten how weird and awful the last few batches had been tasting. She hadn’t been able to pinpoint what it was and thought her blender had carried the taste of something else. “I don’t know it off the top of my head, and I don’t have my phone to give you the name. I have a fresh batch at my home though.”
Greyson nodded. “You think you can get me a sample today, Pierce?”
Jax looked down at Raven, and she could tell he didn’t want to leave her alone, but the sooner they could figure out where the cyanide came from, the faster she could go home and rest in her own bed. “You have the key?” Raven asked. “I’ll be fine here. I can’t go anywhere, and the docs are going to tell me to rest anyway.”
Jax let out a breath and nodded. “I can get you the canister. I’ll bring it to the station.”
“That’s good.” Greyson went quiet for a moment, and something about the silence kick-started her heart again. “I need to ask you a few questions on something if you don’t mind.” Raven nodded.
Greyson flipped his notepad to the first page. “Lea Matthews passed away about five years ago, correct?” Raven’s heart cracked at the mention of Lea, and she nodded unable to find her voice. “I saw that there had been a welfare check done prior to her passing, something about a call that she made that blamed you for what she was feeling inside followed by a cryptic message. Do you remember what that message was? I looked through that case file and it’s not noted.”
Raven sucked in a sharp breath. She hadn’t fully thought about those moments that lead up to Lea taking her own life. She had thrown those memories under a rug, choosing to remember the light in Lea’s eyes and not the pain that had filled them. In doing so, Raven thought it would lessen the grief and responsibility she felt for Lea’s life.
“I don’t remember the whole thing. Honestly, that time frame leading up to Lea’s death is murky for me. But I do remember her calling me her golden sun and instead of giving her life I took it away….”
A golden sun will die
The message that had been left at Lush had been for her. But no one other than Lea had known what she said. By the time the cops had questioned her about the entire phone call, Raven hadn’t been able to remember everything other than it sounded like she was going to hurt herself.
“Does Lea have any family left or friends?” Greyson questioned.
“No. Just her mom. There were people Lea knew, but the funeral and condolences weren’t many. In fact, I think aside from her mom, I was the only one at her funeral. Oh wait. There was a half-sister. Her father had an affair, but from what Lea had told me, her mom was the other woman, and neither his wife nor his daughter wanted anything to do with them.”
“Do you know the sister’s name?”
Raven shook her head. “No. The way Lea described it, they weren’t nice to Lea or her mom. They wanted her—Lea—to die. They felt that her presence would always connect the father to them. Why are you asking all this?”
“Because Greyson thinks all of this has to do with Lea.” Jax spoke up. “You think someone blames her for Lea’s death.” Raven wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be a question or not, but she didn’t feel like this was the right path. There was no one really in Lea’s life aside from her mother who cared about Lea, and that woman didn’t blame Raven for her daughter’s death. She’d been honest with Raven after they met. She told Raven her daughter’s mind hadn’t been the most stable. If it wasn’t Raven, something else would have caused the break.
“I’m not saying you’re correct or not, Pierce.” Greyson shrugged. “I thought it was Cruz at first. Considering how vocal he’s been about Raven, but Bastillo’s and Jennings’ deaths don’t fit.”
Hearing that Cruz had been a suspect made Raven flinch.You welcomed a killer into your body—practically begged for it.Raven shook her thoughts, trying to catch up with what Greyson was saying. “Wait, what?”
“I was saying Cruz would have had plenty of time to take you out, for one, and two, why only kill the two people you’ve been intimate with after Lea’s death. I mean, no disrespect in this question here, but how many people have you been intimate with in the past five years? Or since you broke up with Lea?”
Greyson’s question gave her pause. The months and years after she broke up with Lea and then her death had been a whirlwind of emotions she had been trying to shift through. Bastillo had happened because she was trying to get over her feelings for Jax, which she foolishly thought was the reason holding her back with Lea. Jennings had been after she buried Lea, but aside from Jax, there had been no one else.
Raven rubbed at the spot in her chest as sadness threatened to pull her under. Raven had gotten two people killed all because she was trying to chase away feelings she couldn’t deal with. If this was related to Lea, who was the person lurking in the shadows hell-bent on getting revenge or forcing Raven to pay a penance for the perceived crimes against Lea?
“Your theory makes sense,” Raven whispered, as Jax interlaced his fingers with hers. She looked up at him. The realization that she could have lost him made her want to chain him to a hospital bed away from her so he couldn’t be hurt.
“Is Jax going to be safe?” The question fell from her lips as panic settled into her stomach. “I mean, based on your theory.”
“I’ll be fine, Rave.” He smiled down at her, but it did nothing to calm her. “I think the target is you now since you’re in here. I actually don’t feel comfortable leaving you alone.”
“I have a uniform outside your door. He’s been given instructions that he’s not allowed to leave until he gets a call from me or the captain. I’m going to need Lea’s mother’s name and number if you still have it.”
“She’s not behind this.” Raven stated, feeling the truth in her words. Her mom had been kind and welcoming to Raven. Even thanked her for loving her daughter the best she could.
