Page 65 of Ruthless Regret

“And she didn’t get his name?”

“No. She never saw him again.”

“Interesting. If this guy knew details that weren’t public, he must have been involved somehow. If he wasn’t part of the investigation, and wasn’t a journalist, then who the hell was he?”

“I wondered if he’s the one who the print belongs to. If I can find him, or find out who he was …”

“And if you can’t?”

I don’t have an answer to that.

“I can reach out to some contacts and see if they’d be able to access the file and do a search on the print. But It’s a long shot, Zain.”

“I know. But it’s the only real lead I have.”

Peter nods, and his expression turns focused. “Alright. I’ll start digging into it, see if I can find anything. If Ashley decides she’s not interested in helping, then it might be the only thing we have.”

I let out a heavy sigh.

Ashley. I’m sure her lost memories are the key to this. Ineedher to be willing to come back to Whitstone.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

ASHLEY

The silence left behindafter my announcement hangs in the air. I’m standing in the middle of the kitchen, trying to hold myself together.

Zain wants answers. I have maybe ten hours to make a decision, but my head is spinning and I have no idea how to figure out what I should do.

I’m aware of Scott standing near the door, watching me like I’m some puzzle he’s determined to solve. Karla is still standing beside me, while Jessa-Mae is near the stove.

“Are you going to do it? Go with him?” Scott breaks the silence, the words a hard demand.

“I don’t know yet.” I try to keep my voice calm. “I haven’t decided.”

Scott’s eyes narrow, and his jaw tightens. “Why do you even need to think about it? He shows up, tells you he needs you to go back to Whitstone, and you don’t just tell him to fuck off. You tell him you’ll think about it. Do you even hear yourself?”

I don’t know what shocks me more—the bite to his voice or the fact he swears. I’ve never heard him sound so aggressive before. I don’t like it.

“It’s not that simple.”

“Not that simple?” His voice rises, and the tension in the room spikes. Karla moves closer to me. “That man destroyed your fucking life, and you’re thinking about going back to him.”

“I’m not going back to bewithhim,” I snap, frustration bubbling over. “I need answers. You don’t understand. For years, I thought I knew the truth about what happened to my brother. But I don’t!”

“You can’t even see what he’s doing, can you? He’s fucking manipulating you.”

Karla shifts uncomfortably, glancing between us, but she doesn’t say anything.

“I know what he’s done better than you do. But I need to know the truth about what happened that night.”

“You don’t needhimto find those answers. You think he’s just going to hand them over to you?”

I close my eyes, pressing my fingers to my temple. “I don’t know. But I have to try.”

Scott pushes away from where he’s leaning against the door frame, and comes closer.

“You don’thaveto do anything for that bastard. You’rechoosingto go back to him, and it’s going to fucking destroy you.”

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