Page 125 of House of Lies

Ethan

“Maybe we should install a revolving door,” Myles says dryly as Troy steps aside to let me into the Balmont Boys’s study in the heart of the Devil’s Den. Actually, it’s more a den than a study, but that seems redundant.

“Where is she?” I don’t bother with civility. This woman has me tied up in fucking knots, and I can’t explain it any more than I can try to untangle myself.

“She left,” Smith says from his seat behind the computer at the large chrome-and-glass desk. He flicks back his cuff to glance at his watch and adds, “Over an hour ago, in fact.”

A growl escapes me as I sink down into the nearest sofa. Richmond brings me a beer, and I stare at it for a moment before taking a sip. “Did she interrogate you?”

Myles laughs. “She tried.”

I shake my head, letting out a rough sigh. “Am I really the asshole here? Or should I keep entertaining this delusion she has?”

“She believes there was foul play,” Smith says. “You claimed the same thing with Hearst at one point, too.”

“Yeah, but then I moved on, Smith.” I glare at him, then over at Myles. “I know what it’s like, being stuck in that limbo. Waiting for her to walk in the front door, like she’d just popped out to the shop.”

“You’re sure you never had an appointment with Monroe in April?” Smith says from the back of the room as he gets to his feet.

I growl, and then take another chug of beer. “I told you, I never met Rebecca.” I shake my head. “I was holed up at the penthouse March through June. There was a whole month I didn’t even set foot outside. Angelo handled everything.”

“Even your correspondence?” Smith asks, frowning.

My eyes are glued to my beer for a long moment before I can summon the words. “You know how it was back then. I only stayed sober long enough to find the next bottle of whiskey. I couldn’t deal with anyone back then. Not even myself. Angelo took it upon himself to keep the business going.”

“Why didn’t we speak to Angelo?” Myles asks Smith.

He turns to Myles, arms crossed over his chest. “Because we knew Ethan wasn’t lying about knowing Rebecca.”

“I’ll try to explain it to her.” I study my nearly empty beer and take another sip. “If she’ll even fucking talk to me.”

There’s a long, pensive silence, and it reminds me of unpleasant times. Nothing could bring down a mood like me walking into a room back when Becks first ran off.

I was sullen, violent, and willing to do anything to get out of my own head. That was the first time I began receiving complaints from Devil’s Den clients.

The Den is a safe place. The Balmont Boys had strict protocols in place to protect their clients.

Safe words.

Hard limits.

I began ignoring them all.

“Cordelia!” Rich announces.

“Oh, yes, I almost forgot,” Myles says, leering at me. “The happy couple have set a date. Have you decided who you want to work with yet? Seems Cassidy isn’t very keen, but you still have a bit of time to persuade her.”

I grind my teeth. “Really? This? Now?”

“A few hours of your time seems more than a fair trade for the hours we put into finding Rebecca.”

“Cordelia!” Rich yells.

Everyone in the room turns to look at him like he’s lost his mind.

“Easy on the coke there, chap,” Myles says, mildly annoyed at being interrupted. “We’re in the middle of it now.”

Rich snaps his fingers, storming up to me. “No, no, see, I couldn’t think of her name for the fucking life of me until you walked in.”

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