Page 54 of Split You Open

“Ah, hey.”

“Mi amado, perfect timing!” I greet. “I was just learning what Wes doesn’t want Blair to tell me.”

Wes sighs. “I just don’t think she needs your two cents on the matter.”

Rhett shoves a bite of French toast into his mouth and through the mouthful of food, he says, “Well don’t let me interrupt. Let’s hear it.”

Blair and Wes exchange a look before Blair’s entire demeanor changes. Her face hardens. All warmth and softness recede until I can’t read her at all. Even her eyes go carefully blank.

“We need to figure out what to do with Ledger,” she says.

Rhett lets out a long sigh. “And suddenly I’m no longer hungry.”

“Why do we have to do anything?” I ask her with a shrug. “Let him waste away in the basement. We’ve managed to stop the hitmen from coming after you for the time being so you’re safe until this Dixie person can figure out another way to get his hands on you.”

Blair gives me a curious glance. “Remind me how you stopped more hitmen from coming after me again?”

“I siphoned all of Dixie’s funds,” I explained. “He’s completely broke. Unless, of course, he has other accounts I couldn’t find—which could be the case given most of the accounts led to offshore, shell corporations created with made-up aliases. But a couple million dollars went up in smoke so I’m guessing that’ll slow him down a lot. He’ll have to rethink his approach to this situation.”

The asshole, Dixie, must’ve realized sometime yesterday that his firewall in his private chatroom had been breached. When I tried accessing it last night before Rhett had called letting us know he was nearly home, the entire chatroom had been terminated. We’ll be in the dark when the next attack comes but hopefully that won’t be for a while.

Rhett clasps me on the back. “Smart move.”

I beam at him as I try not to swoon under his rare praise.

“But Dixie will keep coming,” Blair says slowly, her brows furrowing. “You just bought me a little time.”

“And in that time, we still have to deal with Ledger,” Wes points out. “Blair here wants retribution.”

“Let me guess, she pitched you a gruesome form of torture,” Rhett drawls, his tone grim.

Wes nods.

Rhett’s eyes narrow on Wes. “And what do you think about that?”

Good question. Wes is the most laid-back person I know. Witnessing him a few nights ago savagely stomping a man’s head in is a reminder that just because he’s chill most of the time doesn’t mean he won’t flip a switch when he needs to.

Wes looks at all of us before reaching up to smooth down his facial hair then sighs.

“I know what it’s like to have a life and then lose it,” he starts grimly. “While it might’ve been at my own doing, I know how devastating it is to lose it all. Ledger took Blair’s life from her; one she worked so incredibly hard for. Not only that but he also put a target on her back. He’s put us all in danger—and for what? He’s gone mad. I think the nicest thing we can do for someone like him is to put a bullet in his skull.”

My stomach lurches.

Kill Ledger?

I mean… I can kind of see how Wes had come to that conclusion. All this mess is Ledger’s fault. I could’ve lost her and Rhett over the course of the past nine days they were gone and Ledger would’ve been to blame. Then again, if it wasn’t for Ledger, I wouldn’t have Rhett or Blair to begin with.

Don’t we owe Ledger something other than death or torture?

Blair nods. “I agree.”

“Well…” Wes rolls his eyes. “You didn’t agree about the bullet part. Your ideas were a bit more… creative.”

“Yeah, her dad taught her a whole bunch of torture techniques that she then relayed to me throughout our little vacation,” Rhett rolls his eyes.

I gasp with delight. “What? Really? Maybe we can start implementing a few during The Hunt? That’ll certainly switch things up.”

Blair gives me a smirk, but Rhett holds up his hand.