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I nod, staring at the TV screen.
A list of names is being read, followed by flashes of the men’s faces who’ve been involved with the terrorist organization. My eyes widen as I see the men who’d assaulted me on the night Jake revealed his true character to me.
“Those two men,” I say, pointing my finger at the TV. “They were the first ones who got together with Kelso to assault me. I didn’t know who they were but I finally know.”
“They were all military officials with close connections to Nox Callahan, the leader,” Oliver says through clenched teeth. “If we’d known earlier, we could’ve taken better care of them for you.”
The storm raging in his eyes tells me what kind of “care” he wanted to give them. They wouldn’t have escaped to jail unscathed like the rest of their comrades.
“Jake Hudson, a newly appointed candidate for the upcoming mayoral election, was supposed to stand against Mayor Philip Bailey this year. Unfortunately, he was also found to have connections to the Black Widow,” the male reporter continues as a photograph of my ex-boyfriend is presented on the screen.
I sit up straighter to listen to this part of the news.
“The funds for his campaign were coming from the leaders of the Black Widow,” the news anchor announces. “Maplewood PD detectives were conducting further investigations on this man but before they could come to a conclusion, Mr. Hudson was found dead in the custody of the local county jail.”
“What?!” I gasp, staring at the TV. “How can he be dead?” Turning toward Seth, I ask, “Did you know about this?”
Seth nods and grabs one of the glasses on the table. “We knew he died,” he says with a shrug and takes a sip of his tea. “This is nice. Just the thing to quench my thirst.”
“Seth,” I say in a grim tone. “Tell me how he died. Did you have something to do with it?”
He glances toward his brothers and sighs.
“We had nothing to with his death,” Oliver says, lowering the volume of the TV. “He was recuperating from his gunshot wounds quite well while he was in our custody. The mistake he made was to believe he’d be safer in the county jail.”
Grabbing the remote, Simon increases the volume of the TV. “Listen to this,” he says.
“Mr. Hudson was attacked by his cell mates,” the news anchor says. “He was strangled to death by three men during the night. The guards found his body the next morning but by then, it was already too late.”
Sitting in silence, I absorb the news of Jake’s death. The man who tore apart my life is truly gone. Instead of feeling happy, I feel numb inside.
“One of those inmates was closely related to Senator Vaughn,” Seth says in a grim voice. “He probably blamed Jake for the situation he was in.”
“That’s why they say there’s no honor among thieves,” Oliver says with a disgusted look on his face. “We’d have tortured Jake for answers if he was under our care but at least, he’d be alive right now.”
“It sucks he got a ticket out of his misery so soon,” Simon says, looking angry. “I wanted him to suffer longer to pay for what he did to Rory.”
“Hey, are you okay?” Oliver asks, laying a gentle hand on my back.
“I don’t know,” I mumble, still trying to absorb the fact that Jake is dead. “I wanted him to suffer for the rest of his life too but now that he’s dead, it doesn’t even matter anymore.”
Oliver’s arm wraps around my shoulder, pulling me closer against him.
Someone’s phone vibrates loudly. Burying my face in Oliver’s chest, I ignore everything around me until Seth’s urgent voice startles me.
“What?! He’s already on his way here?” Seth shouts, sounding alarmed.
“What’s going on?” I ask, looking toward him.
“Your dad’s here,” he says. “Were you supposed to meet him today?”
Straightening up, I shake my head. “No. I spoke with him yesterday but he didn’t say anything about visiting me today.”
“Do you think we should change into something else?” Oliver asks, looking down at his bare chest and shorts.
“Put on a shirt, at least,” Seth says with a huff. His expression seems anxious, so I reach out to touch his arm. “Why do you look worried?”
“Philip doesn’t rush in like this until something’s wrong,” Seth says.
