Page 86 of Winter
Inca sighed. “It’s okay, Knox. They’ll find me if they want me. If not …”
“As you wish.” Knox turned and went back into the house.
“Jerk.”
For once, Inca agreed with Raffaelo. Today, Knox felt more like an intruder. His presence had been irksome, his ability to always be there when she turned around, irritating her.
She looked at Raffaelo, sleek in his dark suit, and smiled.
“You look handsome in a suit.”
He grinned, cocky. “Oh, I know.”
She laughed. Boomer, who had been lying patiently on the grass, got up and gave a little woof. Despite Raffaelo’s initial wariness of the dog, they’d become good friends.
“I’m actually going to miss this little monster when we go to Italy. Sure you don’t want to bring him?”
“I do, but I don’t want to put him through that flight. Besides, Tyler wants to take him back to Connecticut.”
“Shame.”
She sighed and held her hand out to Raffaelo. “Come with me and help walk this pooch?”
“Yes ma’am.” He took her hand, winding his fingers through hers. They walked down to the cove, the full moon lighting their way.
Olly stoodat the edge of the woods, watching Inca and Raffaelo walking along the little jetty. He watched them walked to the end of it, both of them looking around to make sure they weren’t seen. Then, to Olly’s shock, he watched Raffaelo Winter take her in his arms, slide his hands into her hair, and kiss her.
Olly’s jaw tightened, and he slipped away from the scene before getting into his car. So, Inca was cheating on Tommaso with Raffaelo? He had to admit, he was shocked … stunned, actually. To say it was out of character for Inca to be unfaithful was an understatement—or so he had thought. An idea occurred to him then, one he couldn’t shake. And so, when he saw the Winters and Inca leave, hugging Tyler goodbye, he followed them home—at a decent interval, of course.
The Winters’ security was laughably easy to get past. Olly walked around the perimeter of the house, checking in all of the windows. At first, all was dark and quiet. Then he saw the flicker of firelight from a large window at the rear of the property. He edged to the window and peered in. As he watched the three of them, he began to both smile and shake his head.
Inca was fuckingbothof them—or rather, from the looks of it,theywere fuckingher, both absorbed in pleasuring Inca’s beautiful body. Olly couldn’t stop staring at them; the three of them were so gloriously good-looking that it was almost hypnotic to watch. Olly felt himself getting hard and turned away, making his way back down the grounds.
“Hey!”
One of the security guards had spotted him and was running towards him. Olly sighed. He had his gun, but he didn’t want to start any trouble. Instead, he got his badge out. “Police. Just following up a report of an intruder.”
The security guard looked skeptical, but allowed Olly to leave. Olly drove back into town, deep in thought. Did the killer know about Inca and the Winters? Was Nancy’s murder a punishment for that? Kevin Harnett was still in jail, and now that Nancy had been murdered, it made no sense that Harnett was the serial killer; from talking to him, Olly had surmised that his only goal had been to kill Inca for leaving him. He didn’t possess the knowledge or means to escape justice if he was behind the other murders.
Olly parked next to the police station and sat in his car.
Like a cancer.
He kept replaying Luna’s words in his mind. He still couldn’t believe that his sister had died, let alone shot Inca. They had grown up together … was Luna right? Was Inca to blame?
No.
Even in his grief, he knew she had done nothing to bring this down on them. It was the work of a mad man, a psychopath.
He just hoped the killer wouldn’t get to live out his sick dream. Olly hoped beyond hope that Inca would be safe.
The town seemed subdued, still, the week after Nancy’s funeral. When Inca took Boomer to the country park on Monday morning, she noticed no one else walking their dogs, no kids sledging in the snow. With a jolt, she realized that the whole island was mourning the loss of one of its own. She let the dog off the leash and walked slowly across the park to the beach, sitting on one of the large pieces of driftwood. The water, unusually calm, was an emerald mirror. Boomer bounded gleefully into it and Inca laughed, brought out of her reverie by the dog’s antics. She glanced around her. No one else was on the beach.
In a few days, she would leave with Raffaelo and Tommaso for Italy, for sun, for heat, for escape. Tyler and Boomer would be in Connecticut—and there would be nothing left for her here. Would she ever come back? Her thoughts drifted to Olly and she felt sadness settle on her heart. Would they ever find their way back as friends?
The thought that they might not brought tears to her eyes, and when Boomer came to check on his mistress, she hugged him to her and buried her hot tears in his fur.
Sorrento, now…
