Page 14 of Broken Surrender
“We can always investigate your husband’s death, though I don’t promise anything will come of it. But any issues you have with Mr. Callen must be taken up with him.”
“He’s threatening me, Mr.—” I started, but I had no idea who he was. What was his name? “Look into Desmond. Otherwise, he’ll—”
“Your husband was a member of our syndicate. Unfortunately, you are not. You’re a wife of the Marked Blooms Syndicate, and as your duty has been fulfilled, you can continue to live in the Dalton property under Mr. Callen’s protection,” he settled his eyes on me, “Or you can take your chances with us.”
A shiver rolled down my spine. I stared at the table, rubbing my finger across the rings in the wood.
“I see,” I said. Heat crawled up and down my back. Where was I supposed to go? What was I supposed to say?
Did I have to give in to Desmond’s demands?
“The estate manager will see you out,” the man said.
When I got home, I went to the linen closet. The house staff was off for the next few days, and the entire mansion was still and silent. I moved the towels to the side, removed the wall panel. It was calming to see the bottles, this small act of defiance that I had kept from John, knowing that with the right combination, I could get rid of Desmond too. But instinct made me freeze. The bottles were stacked to the side, as if someone had gone through them. I always left them lined up.
My heart raced. No one was here. Who could have gone through them? Was it Desmond? Had he gone through the house before I saw him last night?
I checked the house, creeping in silence. The paperweight in John’s office had moved from the right to the other side of the desk. Did I misplace it when I was searching for the Marked Blooms Syndicate’s address? But why would I? I hadn’t picked it up.
I closed my eyes, holding my breath. Someone had been in my house. I could feel it. And they had come in while I was discussing my lack of options with the man from the Board of the Marked Blooms Syndicate.
I got a knife from the kitchen and searched each room for more evidence, but there was nothing else out of place. When I finally circled back to the office, I let out a sigh.
What was I doing here?
Maybe Ihadrun out of options. Maybe I had to use my last resort.
This time, I drove to Oakmont, an hour away from the metropolitan area. My pulse spiked as I pulled down the familiar street. Manufactured homes were set up on each square, the grass tall. Cars crowded the street, parked on the sides, some halfway in the grass. I hadn’t had to drive around cars like this in ages.
The wooden stairs creaked. I knocked on the entrance, rattling the screen. The door swung open. Aaron’s shadow hovered behind the black mesh.
“I always knew you’d come back,” Aaron snickered.
I took a deep breath, concentrating on the door handle. Not looking at him.Never him.That always made it worse.
“May I come in?” I asked.
“City life taught you to be proper, huh?”
He opened the door, then went behind the kitchen counter, cracking open a beer. He was shirtless, his arms still skinny and lanky, like the strings of a guitar. The place stank of cheese puffs and sour alcohol.
“Is Gina still around?” I asked.
“She moved to Northside last week.”
I was glad she finally moved out. She had been talking about it for years. I always played dumb when it came to the tip jar, leaving Gina the bigger half, hoping that she could get out of this town quicker than I could.
But in the end, I had left before her.
Aaron took a long swig. We needed to get to the point before he got carried away.
“I have a problem,” I said. “There’s this guy—”
“Don’t tell me you’ve been whoring around,” he laughed. “Got pregnant? An STD?”
I sucked in a breath. “I’m being blackmailed.”
“What did Little Miss Perfect do this time?” He winked, snickering to himself. “What is it? You didn’t return your library books on time?”
