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And for a moment, as he watches me with a smile, I almost forget how queasy and weak I was from the blood loss. I’m somehow feeling better. Against all odds, it must be because of him.
Not that he’s anywhere near on my good side right now.
A gentle pat on my leg, like I might break if he does it any harder. “For real, though. I can go ahead and take you home if you want me to.”
I think about it a hard minute. He’s so full of crap. He’s just saying that because it sounds like the right thing to say. He still needs time to win me over. To focus on his endgame. He has a season to finish out, after all.
“I mean,” he continues. “If you feel like you’ve had enough of an inside look, that is.”
Yeah, I bet. “Not quite,” I say. “I don’t mind sticking around a little longer.”
He shakes his head, chuckling. “You really are a tough one.”
Something like that.
Some would argue it’s stupidity.
Stephen and Daphne, to be exact.
Speaking of my not-very-well-thought-out expedition this weekend…my gaze roams around the room. At least I stumbled across something interesting. Or, I guess carried down into it, rather, after a twat in a blue dress tripped me. A gift from the journalism gods from enduring this family over the past twenty-four hours. The only sacrifice, so far, has been my hand.
“So, what’s all of this about?” I ask, motioning around the room.
“This room?”
“Yeah. I mean, you know this isn’t normal, right?”
He grips the back of his neck as he looks around. “Yeah. But not everyone has a surgeon in their family.”
Yikes. He totally thinks this is normal. Why doesn’t that surprise me? I guess it’s always been his normal. “It’s not normal,” I inform him. Only sociopaths and killers have special rooms in their basements with surgical tools. Their mom’s basements, at that.
He lets that sink in. Then shrugs it off. “Mom and Preston don’t like going in for simple things. Ruby takes care of them.”
I then think of all the scars on Preston’s body. And his ‘mystery work’ for his mom. Does he get injured doing her dirty work, and Ruby stitches him back together?
I shiver.
My eyes land on the file cabinet again. On their locks.
Ruby had the key for the door, so I wonder if the key for the files is on the same keychain. I’d bet my other hand on it.
And she got them out of the office. She sure as hell hides them well.
Now I just need to figure out a time to get into it all.
“I like your cousin, Farrah,” I say, purposefully changing the subject. He didn’t tell me I couldn’t include this creepy room in my story and I want to distract him before the idea comes to him. Though, like with Preston, he probably already would have if he cared about it.
And it’s not a big deal to have one…apparently.
“Yeah, she’s cool. My favorite cousin.”
“I can see why.”
I then debate telling him about her trying to sneak in to see his dad, but I decide against it. I need to stick with my original hunch of not getting in the middle of their family drama. Low profile. Find something incriminating. Get out with minimal casualties.
Cruise control.
I hear Stephen’s voice of reason in my head. And stay away from the dick.
