Page 121 of Ruthless Cross

"And he was the reason you didn't want me or Wyatt to come there, not until it was almost too late."

"I didn't want to put you in a difficult position," he admitted.

"Because one of us might have actually seen him leave or tried to stop him. I get it, Flynn. Damon gets it, too. But since you and Callie both mentioned your father's name in your statements, I suspect you're going to get some flak from the higher-ups."

"Probably, but I'll deal with whatever happens."

"You had to do what you had to do," she murmured. "Sometimes the lines are blurry."

"More often than not," he agreed. Hearing something in her tone, he glanced over at her. There was a contemplative expression in her eyes. "Everything all right with you?"

"Oh, it's fine, just some personal stuff."

"If you ever want to talk..."

"I know, but not now. Let's focus on Mr. Vitelli."

At her words, his mind moved to Marcus. He had a lot of questions for Victoria's son. Hopefully, he'd finally get some answers.

Chapter Twenty-Six

When they arrivedat the hospital, they found a security guard posted outside Marcus's room. They showed their badges and entered the room. Marcus was in bed, one leg casted and propped up on a pillow on the bed. His left arm was shackled to the rail.

He gave them a tired, defeated look. "I already said everything."

"Then you'll say it again," he returned. "This is Agent Kane."

"I know. I talked to her at the museum last Friday."

"After you shoved Arthur over the railing."

Marcus stared back at him. "You still have to prove that."

"That won't be difficult now. You made a lot of mistakes Marcus, and your pal Greg is already talking. Oh, yes, we found him and he's under arrest for attempted murder. He wants to save himself, as I'm sure you do. The list of charges against you will be quite long before we're done. It might get shorter if you're willing to talk about your mother."

"My mother," he spat out. "She tried to kill me. You saw how crazy she was. She's the person responsible for all this."

"When did you find out you were adopted?"

"Six years ago, when I was eighteen. My adoptive mother was very sick. She confessed that I was adopted right before she died. I found Victoria about eight months later. She said she was happy to see me, but I could never tell anyone about our relationship. If I honored her request, she would help me get my art career going."

"Which she did. You were an instant success."

"She helped me sell my first painting," he admitted. "She also arranged for Judge Corbyn to become my benefactor. But he was putting a lot of pressure on me. I couldn't paint fast enough for him. He threatened to withhold money if I didn't produce."

"Victoria said you were a fraud. You were copying other people's work."

"Only a few times when I was blocked, and I needed cash," he said defensively. "I didn't think Arthur would figure it out, but he did, and he threatened to destroy me."

"So you killed him."

"I didn't say that," he muttered, still trying to hang on to some defense.

"How did you know about the belladonna painting? When did your mother tell you she was a serial killer?"

"Six months ago. She was drunk, and she wanted to show me some of her work. She pulled out the painting, and I, of course, knew the legend. But I didn't really know the ins and outs of it until she started talking. I was impressed and terrified. She said she had only killed people who deserved to be punished. Each one had not only wronged her, but they'd wronged someone else. She had the power to make them pay, so she did."

"Did she tell you the specific reasons?"

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