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“Tell me if there’s more evidence before I snap your fucking neck,” he said in a voice she had never heard before.
“No,” Thea said hoarsely. “No more.”
“What the fuck is going on here?”
Roth released Thea who crumpled to the ground, wheezing and choking as her family clustered in the doorway. Jasmine dropped to her knees beside Thea as Lyle advanced into the room.
“What the fuck, Roth?” Lyle roared.
Polara began to cry, forcing Colette to retreat out of the room. Ariana herded Kye and Bailey away as well as they stared at her with puffy eyes the size of saucers.
“Thea, are you okay?” Jasmine whispered as panicked tears slipped down her face. “I’m so sorry.”
“What happened? Do you—” Rami dropped to his knees beside them and spotted the marks on Thea’s throat. He shot Jasmine a stunned look. “What’s going on here?”
She ignored him. “Thea, should I call an ambulance? Can you talk? Is there damage? I—”
Thea squeezed her hand and shook her head as her trembling hand brushed over her throat.
“You can’t talk,” she realized. “Rami—”
“Roth, tell me what the fuck is going on, or I’m calling the cops,” Lyle shouted.
Roth stood in front of the fire, hands in his pockets. As Lyle came close, he turned. It was clear Roth was ready for a physical altercation. She knew Lyle could hold his own, but there was something about Roth… He didn’t play fair, and he didn’t care who his opponent was. Case in point, he had just attacked an elderly woman without hesitation.The psychologist says he lacks empathy. It allows him to focus on his goals without letting anyone get in his way.Kaia’s words drifted through her mind as she climbed to her feet. Roth’s eyes flicked to her. It was a clear warning to stay back. She ignored the warning. This was her family he was attacking.
“Roth, don’t!”
Lyle stopped a few feet from Roth and held his hand out, also indicating she should stay back.
“Explain what the hell is going on here, Roth,” Lyle ordered.
“The housekeeper gave Jasmine something from her father,” Roth said.
“And what was that?” Lyle demanded.
Roth looked past him and lanced her with his gaze. “Blackmail.”
She felt the bottom drop out of her stomach. Behind her, she could hear voices and movement, but she couldn’t move. She was welded to the spot.
“Maximus blackmailed me. He told me he would destroy the evidence if I agreed to his terms. He double-crossed me.”
“And he handed it to the housekeeper?” Lyle asked, trying to follow the logic.
There were five beats of silence before it clicked.
“He gave the housekeeper evidence against you in case you came back into the picture,” Lyle surmised.
Roth looked back at him without expression. Lyle turned to her.
“Where is it?”
“He destroyed it,” she whispered.
“Did you see it?”
She shook her head.
Lyle turned back to Roth. “It didn’t even take twenty-four hours for you to fuck up. We’re out of here.” He turned his back on Roth. “Come on, Minnie.”
