Page 157 of Brutal Prince

Briar

It’s perversely sunny outside this morning, as if the world’s mocking the darkness of my inner world with its godawful brightness.

Thought you were king of the hill, did’ya?

No one’s gonna forget what I did. Not now, not ever. Might as well have served my time — maybe then people would have considered my debt to society paid in full.

We never did end up going to Addy’s house. It seemed so much easier to keep driving until I came to Marcus’s house. And then all I wanted was to go home and crash. I regret it now. I could have ended this all last night. Settled the score.

But when I woke up this morning with a new text from Addy, and that unread text from my father, the culmination of the two messages broke the last restraint inside my mind.

I glare at the safe in my father’s study. It was hidden behind the painting that’s now leaning against the wall by my feet. This one’s just as bright and colorful as the other abstracts in the room, but it depicts a fantasy forest of some kind instead of the seemingly random Rocher inkblot shapes of the others.

Not the greatest hiding place for a safe, but I have a feeling my father didn’t really care much for the location of his safe compared to the security of his vault. Maybe he saw it as a second prize to anyone stupid enough to come in here and try to break into his vault.

This pin code I know. There’s a handgun, our passports, and a few stacks of notes inside the safe. I remember the first time Dad showed gave me the code and showed me how to open it. I went around thinking we were part of an international crime syndicate for weeks before my imagination found something new to latch onto.

I know how to load and shoot the gun, but I’ve never had to use it. To the best of my knowledge, neither has my father.

I ignore it now — it’s not what I came for.

I’m here for one thing only — Addison Green’s motherfucking blood money.

I close the safe and hoist up the painting. As I’m adjusting it to make sure it’s hanging straight, something catches my eye. I turn my head a little and stare at the demonic face of some kind of goblin hiding behind a tree just a few inches away from my nose. It’s looking straight at me, it’s eyes so realistic, there’s no mistaking the gleam of evil flickering inside.

I brush my hands on my ass as I step back, grimacing. I glance at the right-hand corner, at the name scrawled in the corner, but I’ll be fucked if I can make it out.

Christ, what a fucked-up painting. Once you’ve seen that evil little shit, it’s ruined.

* * *

Indi

I force my eyes open,cringing at the pain. God, it feels like someone’s gone and poured a whole bag of sand in them. Rolling onto my side, I focus on the shape beside me. It eventually resolves into Addy.

Which means…

I push up to my elbows, and scour the room I’m in.

Yup — cardboard boxes, plastic wrapping. And, if I’m not mistaken, I’ve been sleeping on a bare mattress.

My aching bladder — the reason I woke up in the first place — drives me to my feet. The world takes a slow spin as I head for the hallway, hoping against all hope that the first doorway will be a bathroom.

It is.

I let out a long sigh as I sit down and pee. And then groan when I see the bathroom is as bare as the rest of the house — toilet paper included.

Damn it.

There’s a crash from downstairs. I drag up the sweatpants Addy loaned me last night as I stand, almost tripping in the process.

“The fuck?” Addy mutters as she stalks past the bathroom door.

“Addy, wait!” I run after her, just in time to see Briar bursting through the door. Addy and I both stop walking, Addy letting out a strangled gasp.

“What the fuck are you doing?” she shrieks.

And then she does the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen. She runs down the stairs and heads straight for Briar.

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