Page 110 of Brooke's Bliss
Kingman’s eyes narrowed on her.“And the hands who are outin the field?What do I do when they show up?You know they don’t worktwenty-four seven.They do come in every now and then.”
She sighed and shrugged.“Kill them.”
They started arguing about how every extra body was anotherproblem, but Shane didn’t care.He was fairly close to the butcher block ofknives Beth kept, though he probably shouldn’t say they were Beth’s.Both Boand Trev cooked meals for their family.They spread out the work so it wasn’tpiled on Beth.
Like he and Bay wanted to do with Brooke.They’d learnedfrom their parents.The workload was a thing to manage, not to dump on thehuman with female genitalia.He and Bay had talked about setting up a schedule.Laundry and cleaning and cooking.They would all participate.
He prayed he still had a chance.
Or that Bay and Brooke could carry on without him.Bay wouldfind his way.He leaned on Shane as much as Shane leaned on him, but hisbrother was strong.He would honor Shane by taking care of the woman theyloved.
“That girl is going to get us all killed.”Dennis stared atShane.“You’re fucking with us.It won’t work.The boss can’t leave it.I wishwe could because the truth of the matter is I liked you, Shane.I wanted tobring you and Bay in, though I agree with the boss that Bay is the lesser ofthe two of you when it comes to being solid enough to be one of us.”
Awesome.So he was the better brother when it came topotentially being a criminal.Bay had his savant-like art skills and Shanehad…blind obedience?Well, turned out he wasn’t good at that either.“I wouldnever have joined.I wanted out a week after we hired on.I knew something waswrong.”
Now that was a better way to look at it.He had way betterinstincts than his brother.He had known something was wrong with the KingmanRanch.The same way he’d taken one look at that magnificent woman and known shewould complete their family.
Dennis sighed as Kingman and his mistress yelled at eachother.“Well, I thought you handled seeing the guns pretty well.You didn’t rununtil a few weeks later.What made you do it?”
He could be honest.He was close to the knives.He couldn’tmake a move yet, but it was coming.“I heard you and Andy talk about gettingrid of us.I knew enough by then to think it wasn’t going to be a firing.”
Dennis chuckled.“I wondered if someone was in the barn withus that night.I thought that might have been the reason you took off but Ididn’t say anything because the boss sometimes loses perspective, as Dinah isabout to find out.”
Kingman slapped the shit out of her.“Shut the fuck up.Youneed to learn your place.Get outside and wait in the truck.”
Dinah held her hand to her cheek.“But I did good, King.Ikilled that asshole when he was going to leave.I killed him right in theliving room.”
Dennis frowned.“Where did you move the body?”
The room seemed to stop.Dinah shook her head.“What do youmean?I didn’t move no body.That’s man’s work.I shot him.That was my job.”
“That was not your fucking job, Dinah,” Kingman said betweenclenched teeth.“Your job was to ID where they would keep the sketchbook.Youfailed at your job or we wouldn’t be here.”
“How was I supposed to know they moved?”Dinah returned.
“Well, my dear, you were supposed to get into his bed andfind it for me.”Kingman’s face was a mottled red.
Dinah sniffled, the first crack in her bitch-of-the-worldarmor.“He didn’t want me.I don’t even think it registered that I was flirtingwith him.”
Dennis stood.“Look, I don’t care about y’all’s relationshipdrama, but we have a problem if she says she killed a man who got up and walkedaway.Have you thought about that?”
Noah wasn’t dead?If Noah wasn’t dead, then they had morehope.Noah would try to find a way to call in Nate.
“He’s dead.I killed him,” Dinah shouted.
“I walked through there, and while there was a lot of blood,there wasn’t a body on the floor,” Dennis replied.
Kingman’s eyes closed.“Fuck.We need to burn the wholeplace down.Dennis, go tell Jones to forget the barn and get the gasolineready.We torch the place and pray for the fucking best, and while we’re at it,I should solve another of my problems.”
He turned to Dinah and calmly raised his pistol and shot.
Shane’s whole body went stiff.He certainly hadn’t liked thewoman, but no one deserved to go like that.And it all fell into place.“Meliwas your mistress.”
Kingman’s expression was bland.As though murdering hislover was simply another task.“Bitch said she was on birth control but thenshe showed up pregnant.Wanted a piece of my fortune.That night I told her wewere going to my lawyer’s.I couldn’t let her stay around or my wife would findout.”
“Now see, she actually could take a big old piece of hisfortune,” Dennis explained.“No prenup.”
“Why the fuck would I have a prenup?We got married in highschool.We had nothing to protect,” Kingman argued.“And I love her.But she’sold and doesn’t get my dick hard anymore.Trust me.My wife would have pulledthat trigger, too.Now let’s get moving.First thing to do is take care of thatasshole.”
