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BLUE
After a noisy, family style dinner in the kitchen, Isabelle gets ready to take the kids up to bed and tells us she’s going to have a long bath and will see us in the morning. I see the meaningful look she gives Jericho. They’re very much in love. It’s actually nice to see.
“I’ll be up in a minute to help,” Jericho says to her.
“Your kids are great,” I tell Jericho once they’re gone.
“Thank you. Never a dull moment.” He chuckles, his eyes on the stairs where they all just disappeared.
“I thought you’d send them away while we work through this,” Zeke says.
Jericho shakes his head. “They’re safest with me.” He glances at me then back to his brother. “And I need to be here for you. I told you I won’t leave you to handle this alone. I meant it. But first…” He stands up. “I need to kiss my kids goodnight and take care of my wife. You’ll both stay here tonight?”
Zeke nods, surprising me.
“Good. Goodnight then,” he says to both of us. “See you in the morning.”
I watch the two of them. Their relationship is fraught, to be sure, but I think Jericho is trying to be a good brother. I think he truly wants to be there for Zeke.
“Is that what a normal family is like?” I ask, our earlier conversation coming back to me full blast once we’re alone.
“Not sure about normal but that’s Isabelle. She’s been good for my brother.”
I nod. “So, what did you find out?” I ask, broaching the subject I need to discuss.
Zeke recaps their meeting with Augustus for me, tells me about Ines and Antoine Girard, painting a different picture than I’d constructed of the man I remembered from my few moments with him several years ago. A man who would employ the Hoxton brothers to carry out his bidding.
“Do you think he still loves her?” I ask.
Zeke shrugs a shoulder. “Not sure about love, but he must have his reasons for being there. I think he’s playing a dangerous game, though, staying under Augustus’s roof.”
“What does he have to lose? Augustus destroyed his life. He physically maimed him. And it sounds like Augustus married Ines only to punish her. Whether or not Antoine Girard still has feelings for her, he’s probably been festering all these years. I mean, the man has money. It’s not like Augustus could take that away, even though he took everything else. With money comes power. I can see his sole purpose becoming revenge and after twenty-five years of single-minded focus, anyone would have tunnel vision.”
“Well, whatever they have going on between them is not my concern. My concern is your safety.”
“So, the Councilor knows you killed Hoxton and he’s covering it up.”
Zeke nods. “He knew Hoxton worked for Girard. Which again, makes no sense that he’d stay at the Councilor’s guest house.”
“Keep your enemies close?”
“Maybe. But there’s more. I get the feeling Augustus isn’t through punishing either his wife or his one-time best friend for their betrayal.”
“Did he say anything about me?”
There’s a pause before he answers. “Just mentioned the beautiful woman on my arm.”
“Right.” I roll my eyes.
“I’m serious.” He holds out his hand. “Come.”
“You haven’t told me everything yet.”
“We’ll get to it. I need to think. I haven’t been home in a long time. I want to walk.”
With a sigh, I nod and take his hand. He leads me toward the back door. “Where are we going?”
“There’s a place I want to show you.”
