“They need evidence to commit to an investigation. Right now, we have a lot of speculation, but nothing that will stick. Even the photos don’t prove he is behind them.” He opens the closet, finding it empty. Then he charges past me, moving into my bedroom, to find much the same situation. All clothing he owns is now in a damp pile in my hallway. “Shit, I don’t have anything to change into.”
“Actually, there is one thing.” I hold up the large, colorful overalls, purple wig, and red nose that was chucked in a corner. I wonder if Grayson saw them and what he thought of it. It’s too early for it to be out because of Halloween.
Joey chuckles, a small smile thankfully breaking out over his stern and sore-looking face. “I somehow don’t think the guys will appreciate me dressing in that. Not sure how easy it will be to blend in if I need to.”
“I think you look cute in this.”
“Cute? Don’t you mean fucking irresistible?” He moves over to me, wrapping his arms around my back and pulling me against him.
“True. You’re always irresistible to me.”
He lowers his head, and I adjust mine, holding my breath and listening to my heart pound loudly in my ears as I wait to feel Joey’s lips against mine. Unfortunately, I only feel his touch for a few seconds before we both move to deepen it and his nose brushes against me.
“Shit!” He pulls away, touching his injured nose, and I grimace in sympathy. “Your fucking brother!” he growls now, stepping away from me and opening my closet. “You got a suitcase or bag?”
“Yeah, I do.” I point upward, where a small travel bag sits on the top shelf.
After Joey helps me get it down, I quickly pack away enough clothing to last me a few days. Then Joey carries it out, leaving the clown costume behind. By the time we walk into the living room, Grayson is just returning with a happy, wet dog.
“Don’t bring her in the house when she’s—”
Before I can finish, Karma shakes her body, wetting the walls, my furniture, and us.
“Oh, sorry.” Grayson winces, and I shake my head at him.
Was Grayson always this frustrating? Have all my previous visits with him been stored in a happy haze that has excluded all the times I wanted to kill him?
“Grab your things; we’re heading out,” Joey grunts.
“We are?” He glances at me in surprise.
“Yep, and you can sit in the back with Karma,” I threaten.
“Actually, I want to explain what is happening to him, so how about you ride with Harvey?”
I eye Joey carefully, not sure I trust them to be alone together. However, if I can avoid the wet dog stench, who am I to argue?
I nod my agreement, and then I’m packed into Harvey’s car, leaving my house and wondering when I will be able to return.
I suppose, for a short while at least, I won’t need my car to get around. Not until this is all over.
Why do I get the feeling things are about to start moving very quickly and the ever-present danger is about to explode in our faces?
And why couldn’t I have been wrong about this?
Chapter 17
As we enter Sasha and Declan’s house, the atmosphere is a lot different this time. There is a sense of worry, panic, and chaos hovering.
When we arrive, Gemma is the only other to have made it, and Grayson basically pounces on her like Karma does to any new guest.
I have never spoken to Gemma, never even seen her with all her clothes on, and even I can read the anger boiling beneath the surface.
“This your brother?” Sasha asks me, eyeing Grayson as he chats amicably and very much one-sidedly to Gemma.
“Yeah, when he stops drooling and sees there are other people in the room, I’ll introduce you.”
“He do that to Joey?” She nods at Joey, who is standing with Declan and Harvey, all their expressions serious as they no doubt discuss our predicament.
He has removed the blood from his face, but his nose is swollen and his eyes already have dark swirls under them, as well as the skin beginning to puff up. Tomorrow, he is going to look like he’s been put through the wringer.
“Yep.”
“Interesting,” she mumbles, gazing at Grayson again. I can’t tell if she’s impressed or furious. Maybe both.
“Where are the others?”
“On their way. Cynthia should be here any second, and Ava called to say Van is being difficult, refusing to leave the apartment, so who knows when they’ll arrive?”
At the mention of Cynthia, she bounds inside and appears in the large living area, her eyes bouncing in surprise between Karma and Gemma before she finally lands on Joey’s face and gasps.
“What the hell happened to him? And what is happening now?” she asks, taking the glass of wine Sasha almost instantly offers her.
Isn’t it too early into this potential catastrophe to be drinking wine? Although, it is basically dinnertime, and after the shit day, yeah, maybe not too early.
Gemma manages to get away from Grayson and proceeds to butt into the conversation the guys are having. They quickly step back to accommodate her, and then continue with their hushed conversation.
Left out, Grayson makes his way over to us, smiling warmly at Cynthia.
“What happened to Joey is my brother, Grayson.” I nod at him as he stands beside me, looking frustrated that I outed him. “And what is happening is something I’m sure will be explained soon enough.”
Just as I say this, a door slams shut, then there is a stomping of feet approaching from down the hallway. Before long, we see Jensen rushing into the room, heading toward Declan, before his mom follows him, looking fuming mad.
“I need an entire bottle of wine to deal with this shit,” she snaps, apparently not caring that Jensen is in earshot.
When the front door opens and closes again, we all hold our breaths, waiting for Zander to come in. Except, he doesn’t. Van does.
“I got chips and salsa already waiting for you in the other room,” Sasha tells him.
“I’m not sure I …” He glances at Ava, his concern evident.
“Van, this isn’t the right conversation for you to be hearing,” Ava says, looking at him gently.
“I’m not a kid,” he argues.
“Regardless, this still isn’t your business.”
“It is if you and Zander are fighting about it. Are you guys going to break up?”
We all hear the concern in his voice.
She shakes her head, looking frustrated again. “Of course we’re not. Soon, you’re going to have a baby niece, so don’t be dramatic. Just go play one of your games.”
“No,” he stubbornly snaps at her, stomping his foot to emphasize his point.
“Van …” Ava sounds desperate now, and I quickly come up with an idea to salvage this situation before it turns any worse.
“Grayson, why don’t you go show Van what you’re made of? You used to be good at video games.”
Grayson predictably looks offended. “What do you mean, I used to be good?”
“Well, you’re an old man now. Not sure if you have the same skills as this kid.”
“I’m not a kid, and I’m not playing against that old guy,” Van gripes, looking so put out you might suspect I told him to lick dirt off the ground, or something equally as awful.
“I’m not old, and I’m not playing against him, either,” Grayson whines back, which might be acceptable for a teenager, but it looks ridiculous on him. “I’d kill him in any game we played in seconds.”
“No way. I could beat you one-handed,” Van retorts.
“Looks like you both have a lot to prove to each other,” I point out.
When Grayson looks ready to argue more, I give him my most stern look, hoping it conveys how much he messed up today, and he owes me.
Apparently, he gets it.
“Fine, I’ll beat this child in a few seconds, and when I win, I expect pizza for my winnings.”
“No way. When I win, I want
pizza,” Van cuts in.
“Fine, go kill each other and give us some time alone,” Ava shoos them away.
The door opening and closing again has us all on edge.
Zander pads his way through, his son rushing back to his side before pounding on his legs to be held.
“Ava, you’re being unreasonable,” Zander snaps, lifting his son and placing him on his hip.
“Unreasonable?” she cries, throwing her hands up. “How is it unreasonable to have thought this shit was all over? How unreasonable is it to think my own husband wouldn’t lie to me? How is it unreasonable to feel upset that he’s been putting himself in harm’s way while I’ve been completely clueless?”
“I haven’t been in harm’s way—”
“Oh, really? Should I just take your word for it? Or should I just assume you’re lying about all kinds of things to me now? Since, you know, you’ve been lying to me about this.”
“Let’s give you guys some room,” Sasha mutters, her eyes darting from Zander to Ava before landing on Declan.
“How about you guys? Did everyone but me know?” Ava demands, eyeing us all.
When everyone struggles to maintain eye contact, I see how crushing this information is to Ava.
She doesn’t stick around to hear excuses, rushing outside and slamming the back door shut on all ofus.
Zander hands off Jensen to Declan before he goes out there to join her.
“Shit,” Sasha hisses, her eyes on the closed door.
“This is a fucking mess,” Joey agrees, looking distraught.
“This fucked up shit with Clayton needs to end now,” Declan states, his eyes narrowed on the closed door, too.
Cynthia clears her throat, looking concerned, but for a different reason. “How about us girls and Jensen take Karma for a walk so he doesn’t learn a bunch of swear words to tell Ava when she eventually comes back inside?” she suggests.
“I’m not leaving here until Ava is okay and we’ve talked,” Sasha shuts that down.
Joey shakes his head in disagreement, too. “It’s getting late; I don’t want you guys open to attack if Clayton comes around.”
Jensen is babbling in Declan’s arms, reaching out for Karma, who seems to be interested in Gemma’s shoes at the moment. Then he cries out a word that is either sit, sick, or shit.
I have my suspicions it’s shit.
“I’ll go with them; keep an eye out,” Harvey offers, and everyone hastily nods their agreement.
Cynthia, Jensen, me, and Harvey take off out the front, weaving our way through the cars parked along the driveway and street before making our way down the road.
The sun hasn’t set yet, but the air is already growing cooler. Jensen stays bundled in Cynthia’s arms, but I can already tell he wants to be let down. He wants to walk Karma, as well as play with her, pat her and, most likely, ride her like a horse. I’m not sure Karma will be up for any of that.
We walk for an hour, taking longer than expected due to Jensen throwing a tantrum and insisting on walking on his own for some of our trek. We are forced to walk at an incredibly slow pace so Jensen can keep up as he helps Harvey hold Karma’s leash, getting hit by her tail a handful of times. Each time it gets close, he reaches out to grab it. Karma is not cool with this, and I’m certain Harvey’s arm muscles get a workout trying to keep her from bolting off.
At the first sign of Jensen growing tired, I pick him up, and then we speed walk home, which makes a whiny Karma suddenly very happy.
When we come back inside, the house appears calmer. Ava is inside, sitting next to Sasha on the couch as they share a drink. They both either have water or vodka. I’m going with water. I hope.
The guys and Gemma are outside, and while Zander spares us a glance through the glass door, gazing over his son for a split-second while Harvey takes Karma outside to join them, no one says a word to us.
I plonk Jensen down next to Ava, taking up the chair on the side, and eye the two ladies, which turns to three when Cynthia joins them, sitting next to Ava, who now has Jensen in her lap as he cuddles up, using Ava’s boobs as a pillow.
“I’m sorry,” Cynthia whispers to her, her voice wobbly and her eyes glazing over with unshed tears.
“It’s okay. I know it’s not your fault. I was mainly angry at Zander, especially when Sasha informed me that you guys only just recently found out, too.”
“Are you and Zander okay?”
“Not really. I’m still so angry at him,” she growls, but then she moves her hand around her son’s curly mop of hair and a soft smile breaks up the harsh words. “He drives me crazy sometimes.”
“Zander or Jensen?” Sasha asks.
“Both. Add in Van, and they’re all driving me insane.”
“Speaking of, how is it going with my brother in there?” I ask. I haven’t heard any cries of victory since we got back.
“They haven’t left that room, but I did hear some shouting earlier. Pretty sure Van beat him,” Sasha informs me.
I chuckle, knowing how much that will irritate Grayson.
“Want me to ring up and order some pizza?” Cynthia offers.
“I’ll do it.” Sasha shakes her head, and all our eyes widen in alarm.
If Sasha overdoes it when she cooks, what does she do when she orders food?
“Let Cynthia do it. I think Jensen wants to play with his auntie Sasha.” Ava settles a sleepy Jensen in Sasha’s arms, and she settles back down while we all take a breath of relief.
“How many pizzas do you think we should order?” Cynthia asks.
“I’d order at least twelve,” Sasha comments, making a face at Jensen, who giggles.
“Six large pizzas it is,” Cynthia mutters, standing.
I watch Sasha playing with Jensen, then look over at Ava, who sometimes looks sad and sometimes smiles at her son and best friend beside her. Lastly, I look over to Cynthia when she plonks herself back down on the couch, leaning her head on Ava’s shoulder and staring at the reality show playing on the TV. These women look settled together, and I hate that what is happening is not only upsetting their lives, but that everyone is potentially in danger because of it.
This needs to end. I just hope that doesn’t take long to happen.
Unfortunately, I get my wish, whether I’m ready or not.
***
Days later, after spending too much time cooped up in Sasha’s house, I’m finally outside and walking Karma with Harvey. It should feel normal, but it doesn’t. There is this undercurrent of unease moving through everyone, and even though it’s been quiet lately, it’s like everyone is waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Thankfully a sweep of my house came up empty. At least no one has trespassed there. I’m not sure how I would feel if they had found something.
Karma is excitedly sniffing around, likely enjoying the new scenery and smells. Harvey’s arm pulls as he tries to control her, but it looks a lot less jolting than when I’m holding her, which looks more like she is dragging her silly human along rather than the one being controlled.
“How are things with Joey going?” Harvey asks out of the blue.
“You’re actually asking me a relationship question?”
“I can take it back and not ask if you’d rather?”
I consider him for a moment, making sure he really is Harvey, and not some doppelganger who is trying to trick me. A just as likely possibility hits me.
“Are you sure you haven’t been taken over by an alien?”
“Shit, Teagan.” He shoves my shoulder and rolls his eyes at me. “Just forget it.”
“Maybe you’re going through a midlife crisis? You’re almost fifty, right?” I joke again, loving the outraged gaze he swiftly shoots my way.
“I’m thirty-three, fuck you very much. Consider that the first and last question I ask about you and Joey,” he grumps, confirming this is the real Harvey. No one can grump quite like him.
“Aw, don’t be like that.” I wrap my arms around h
is free arm, hugging it to my chest. “Things are good. We had sex for the first time last weekend, and—”
“Don’t tell me that shit! I don’t want to know any of that.” He grimaces, looking like he would rather be anywhere in the world right now than having this conversation.
“But you’re my best friend. Best friends talk about sex.”
He vehemently shakes his head. “Not us.”
“But, why not?”
“Because I don’t want that shit in my head. Besides, I have to work with that asshole!”
“Don’t start acting like my brother! I have five; I don’t need a sixth,” I groan, fearing it may be too late for that.
“You have those crazy women to talk to about that shit.”
“But they’re biased and have an ulterior motive. They want me and Joey to succeed.”
“Are you saying something happened that you weren’t into? Did he force something?” Now Harvey looks pissed.
Yep, definitely acting like he’s in brother-mode.
“No, I’m not saying that. What I’m saying is, I’d like to say what I feel without them reading into everything and relating it back to Joey.”
“Like what?”
“Like the fact that it was incredible. That he was sweet, kind, and caring. That I don’t think I’ve ever felt that during sex. Don’t get me wrong, it was hot, and he made a promise to get me off multiple times and didn’t disappoint.” I ignore Harvey’s pained groan and keep going. “But I don’t know … It made me wonder if that’s how it’s meant to be. Sex with Jarrod was a bit bland. It was nice sometimes; a chore others. I didn’t ever feel any fire. I liked making him feel good, and I liked that sometimes I got to feel good, too. Yet, it never felt like something more. It was more about routine and something we should be doing.”
Harvey’s mouth is agape by the time I’m finished. It takes him several attempts to get any words out.
“That is the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“But see, I didn’t think it was wrong until now. I figured everyone had a little of that in their relationships. But with Joey, it just feels so different. Just getting a smile from him can change the outlook on my day. It feels so easy, so natural with him. I just don’t get what that means.”
I Burned Down His House (Love at First Crime Book 3) Page 24