Page 52 of Max

"You?"

Max

“Talk,” I said urgently.

“She got a call this morning right after Brody left her. We got CCTV and man,” Chace shook his head in disbelief. “She walked out, and the moment she did, got clocked on the head. The person that did it knew where the cameras were and had his back turned the whole time. We pulled her phone records.” Chace tried to give me some papers, but I shook my head. I didn’t have the patience to look it over. “It was a burner phone. But it got me thinking. If Nico wasn’t the top man, and whoever was pulling his strings had to have a strong influence to get her to walk away. Can you think of anyone who could be that person? And where would they take her?”

He was antsy, ready to go and tear Denver apart to find Skylar and bring her home. The guilt that was still present for the years he spent undercover and did nothing to help Skylar, a force that pushed him even more. One was sparing to my mind. But where would she take her? When realization dawned, I cursed myself for not thinking about it sooner.

I started running to my car, yelling over my shoulder, “To the place where it all began over.”

Skylar

Her slap sent my head sideways. She used her nails this time, and blood trickled down my cheek.

"Look at you," she snarled. "I still don't get what he has seen in you."

I decided not to seek it. Speaking was what sent Kiki I to rage, and she started hitting me and scratching my face.

"How could you do this to me?" she asked, her fingers were pointing at her chest. And they were shaking because she was so out of it... "How could you do this to us?"

“What are you talking about?” I forgot about my vow not to say anything; I couldn't follow what she was saying.

She carried on as if I didn’t say anything.

“How could you just walk out of that church like it was nothing? Like we didn’t wait for you to show up and get hitched? Like you didn’t embarrass us?”

Sweet Marry.

I was aware we drifted apart over the years. I also knew we wanted different things in life.

But I never knew how much she immersed herself in filth.

“You were supposed to marry Nico. You were supposed to sign the business over to him. And once we had everything in place, the legit part of the operation up and running smoothly without you poking your nose in every few days to see what you have in that warehouse, he was supposed to divorce you. And we could finally be together.”

“What?” I whispered.

Tears dropped from my wide eyes. I could barely feel the sting that cuts on my face.

“Who do you think led him to you? Who do you think was behind all of this?”

“It was you?” I refused to believe what I was hearing.

Some part of me hoped this was all a bad dream, and I would wake up safe in Max’s arms. In our bed.

“I had help.”

“Who?”

“Me,” the cold voice I knew so well was heard.

The voice that aimed venom my way with each spoken word. Irene Barone.

Nico’s mother. I followed her as she walked over, kissed Kiki on the side of her head, and then stood in front of me, looking down at my bound wrists.

"Don't you have anything to say, Skylar?” she asked in a sweet tone, tilting her head.

I tried coming up with something to say, but I was so shocked my brain stopped working.