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Tommy whirls around, stomping inside to collapse on the couch, hands clutching his temples, the envelope still in his grip. He’s mumbling to himself, and I hear words like ‘stab’ and ‘death.’ Oof. He’s never been so pissed off before. Ever. Not when Greg pushed him. Not when he’s lost tournaments, or when his car was stolen.
Henrietta locks the door and hurries over. "Give it to me."
Tommy shakes his head.
"Thomas Jonah Hillcrest, I need to know what's going on, right this minute."
He leaps up, shaking, his eyes wild as he shakes the now crumpled envelope in his fist. "They… they took photos from last night—"
That's all I need to hear. Without saying anything, I snatch the envelope from him, ripping it open. Inside, a grainy black-and-white photo of me, naked on top of Tommy. There are some tree leaves in the corner, leaving no doubt that they were watching from the window. A fucking picture. My head tilted back, my mouth parted in ecstasy as I straddled Tommy naked on the bed. His mouth on one of my breasts. My face goes white as I sit back down. It’s so over the line that I don’t even know how to feel. My own goddamn cousins watched the most intimate moment of my life.
Without a word, Henrietta whips the picture from my trembling hand and tosses it into the fireplace, igniting the flames in a whoosh.
"Who were they?" Her question hangs in the air, but I'm the one to answer. "My cousins."
She recoils, and I can feel her judgment. "I'm sorry, Henrietta. I'm going to head home this afternoon, and they'll leave you alone."
Tommy's shaking his head. "That night you came to Sam’s. They trashed your apartment, didn’t they?" I nod, unable to meet his gaze. He sighs, and I can see how his entire body has tensed up at the confirmation. "You know, Greg gave me a business card for a friend. Maybe I should give him a call."
"A friend in the FBI?" I ask, half afraid of the answer.
Tommy shrugs. "DEA. He said there was a case against your family."
My heart races at the thought, and I struggle to get any coherent words out. Hell, I can hardly think clearly. The DEA? That’s… that’s amazing! If they somehow manage to lock down the evil hellions that are considered my blood, I might have freedom I’ve never dreamed of before. Freedom to be who I want. To go where I want. To actually live without looking over my shoulder.
Henrietta stands abruptly and leaves the room without a word.
"Where's she going?" I ask, confused.
Tommy manages a weak laugh as he rubs a palm down his face. "My mom’s a fixer, Til. She's probably trying to figure something out."
"Are you okay?" My concern is genuine as I watch him, defeated, slump over his knees.
"No. I’m pissed as hell. What about you?"
"I've been dealing with this all my life. I thought my dad was bad, but he never did anything like this." As the words leave my mouth, I can't help but reconsider my father's actions. Sure, he was far from perfect, but compared to my aunt's recent escalations, he seems almost tame.
He meets my eyes, and I can see the swirls of emotions reflecting at me. With his hair sticking up from sleep and running his hands through it, he looks a mess. "Will they actually do it?"
"Yeah." The word is heavy on my tongue. I've seen what my family is capable of in the past, like what happened to Grayson's wife. I know things weren’t perfect between Grayson and Suzanne, but the family intervened, and we never saw Suzanne again. Grayson is convinced she’s only missing, scared away, but I wouldn’t put it past my family to kill. In fact, I know they’re capable. Whispers and murmurs here and there. Enemies disappearing, opposing business owners in suspicious car crashes. Yes. If they say they’ll burn this house down, they will.
Henrietta re-enters the room, determination in her stride. "I've canceled my errands for this afternoon and our dinner with Dylan."
I turn to her, my gaze apologetic. She doesn't deserve all this. Not at all. "Please don't. I'm leaving, and they won't bother you anymore."
She looks from me to Tommy, her expression hard as she gestures to me. "And you're allowing this?"
"Ma, I don’t control her!" Tommy yells back.
My phone rings, cutting through the tension. It's my sister. "Hello?"
"Oh Tilly, thank God." Her voice is breathless, panicked. "Tia is livid. You’re supposed to be with us in thirty minutes."
"For what?" My confusion grows with each word.
"Investor meeting."
"Andy, you cannot be serious."
