Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 133878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
“Real nice,” Shane chimed in. “She was sweet and caring. She was barely nineteen when he hired her and started sleeping with her. Apparently he always keeps a young mistress around.”
“Why did he kill her?” Brooke asked.
“She was pregnant, and she didn’t want to terminate it,” Shane said flatly. “She told him she wanted to go home. Apparently the wife is saying she was there, and all her husband said was he would take her back to her parents’ place after they saw a lawyer about taking care of her.”
“And he killed her with a hammer?” Brooke asked.
“From what they’ve put together, he brought the hammer along and killed her when they got to the ravine. They already found her body and her folks have been informed,” Bay said. “And I’m getting calls from some dude who says he’s directing a documentary and that this is the wildest turn he’s ever seen, and will I sit for an interview. I can say no, right?”
Brooke put a hand on his. “Of course, but let’s see if Cleo knows him. The indie film world is small. If she says he’s legit, you might think about it. This might be the first time art solved a murder. It’s a crazy thing to happen.”
“Bay, it’s not like you caused the murder,” Shane said. “You literally solved it.”
Bay’s head shook. “No, Kingman’s paranoia caused it. I wouldn’t have done anything with it. I didn’t know what it meant. If he’d left us alone, no one would know.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Brooke mused, sinking down beside him. “You’re about to have a big showing that will likely lead to an even bigger showing. Stef said he thinks one of the gallery owners he’s invited is going to want to do a showing in New York. At some point that drawing would have been seen. Her parents cared about her way more than Kingman knew. They’d been looking for her since she left, and they contacted someone who produces true crime documentaries. That picture, whenever it came out, would have caused the police to look more closely at Kingman, and once they did, it would all have fallen apart.”
“I won’t let it get out,” Bay vowed. “I told Nate I’ll show her parents if they want it, but then I would like to keep it out of the public. I’m not going to make money off Meli’s death.”
Brooke nodded. “That’s a good thing for you to do.” She turned his way. “Maybe we should talk. I know we all said some things in the heat of the moment, and I need you to understand that I won’t hold you to it.”
Shane sat up. “Really?”
Bay saw her tense, like she hadn’t expected that. “Of course. It was a lot. We should talk when we’re less emotional.”
Oh, she misunderstood that “really.” Shane hadn’t said it in an “I’m getting out of something I don’t want” way. That “really” was asking how deep a hole she was going to dig for herself.
Because while she might not hold them to it, they were damn straight holding on to her words for the rest of their lives.
“I think we shouldn’t talk at all.” Bay stood up. It was time. She’d had dinner with her brothers and they’d all taken showers and gotten ready for rest. Except he wasn’t feeling like sleeping. She’d been wearing a plug for over a week. It was time to put that training to use.
He understood her. She was worried she was putting them in a corner. She needed to understand that they were hers. Forever. There were no corners. Only the home they shared, and it was wherever the hell that girl wanted the home to be. Here in Bliss. In California. If she wanted to try the city again, he would find a way to deal with it since she was the most important part of their lives.
“Bay,” Brooke began. “We need to talk about what I said. What you said.”
“Why?” Shane stood, too. He was wearing pajama bottoms and had conveniently left off his shirt when he’d come downstairs from his shower. “We said everything we needed to say in the barn. It’s done. It’s settled, Brooke.”
He watched the moment it registered Shane wasn’t trying to wriggle out of it. Her shoulders relaxed and her expression was suddenly saucy. “Oh, is it? It’s all settled now?
“No.” Bay stepped up and had her in a fireman’s hold in seconds. “It’s not settled at all, and we do have something to talk about. We’re going to discuss what happens the next time I attempt to save you from being assaulted and you yell at me.”
He wasn’t mad. He should have been calmer, but he would use any excuse to get her into that playroom.
“What are you doing?” Brooke asked, her torso coming up.