Page 67 of Release You

On the dresser, I found an envelope with my name written in caps. In Nikki’s handwriting.

Please. Don’t do this, Nikki.

Numb, I picked up the envelope, ripped it open, and threw it on the bed. The minutes slid by as I glared at her note, unable to focus.

Henry,

My first day back in Paradise Creek, you saw right through me. You knew I was a thief and that I’d come here to steal something. And you were absolutely right. You were the mark from the beginning. Don’t be mad, darling. We did have a marvelous time, and I’m leaving something to make it up to you…Tessa’s real insurance policy.

Forever Yours,

NS

Her words left me dazed, cold, and with a gaping hole in my chest. I sat on the edge of the bed and braced my arms on my thighs.

“Take the money,” I whispered to her the day I found her leaving the tunnels. “Meet me at five under the mesquite tree.” She nodded, and I smiled. “You’re going to love Paris. I promise.”

After all the horror of Dad’s death, after five years in Tucson at a boarding school, Nikki and I had finally found a way back to each other. I kissed the side of her mouth and her cheek. Her giggles made my chest swell with happiness. She threw her arms around my neck and pressed her lips against mine, soft and full.

“Go.” I ushered her toward the end of the tunnel, where the light shone bright. “I can handle my uncle.”

That had been our first kiss. The kiss that haunted me for ten years after she left me. How many women had I kissed after that, looking for that same thrill, that same connection, the feeling that I was complete? I didn’t know. All I knew was that I never found it, that I never felt it again until Nikki came back into my life.

Even though I hadn’t said it that day, I loved her. I knew she had returned to the manor to steal, and I didn’t care. Instead, I asked her to run away with me to Paris. But the truth was, she only came back because she knew I’d be an easy mark.And I’d been stupid enough to believe her. It was all a fucking lie.

I ripped her note in half, again and again until the small pieces fell around my feet like snow. She played me. From the beginning, she’d been after my money. Like an idiot, I believed her. I believed in Dom’s good intentions too. How long had he waited to give Nikki Dad’s original will? Now she had Mom’s jewelry and the will. How much would Jonathan pay to get his hands on that loot?

Why did you do it, Nikki? I would’ve given you the world.

My mind raced, shuffling through all the conversations we’d had since she’d returned to Paradise Creek. Nikki had been angry at me that first day when she supposedly figured out who I was. God knew I’d been furious with her too. But after we talked, we figured out we’d been played. Jonathan didn’t want us together, but we won.

We’d found each other again, and we were happy—at least, I was happy. What had changed for her? Had it all been pretend? Just to get what she wanted? Acid pumped through my veins. Of course it had been. It hadn’t been Jonathan who separated us that day. Nikki just never fucking showed up to our meeting place. She lied about that too. Her pain, everything had all been an act. She’d known exactly who I was the day she came back. I was the fucking mark, just another pawn in her long con.

A growl escaped my lips, leaving tiny scrapes in the back of my throat. I sank down on the desk chair and screamed her name until I couldn’t breathe. She’d betrayed me. After all we’d gone through, she hadn’t cared about any of it. It’d always been about the money for her. She’d been so obsessed with it since we were kids. I fooled myself into thinking she’d changed, but people never change, and here was proof. I picked up theenvelope off the bed. The scribbles on it choked the oxygen out of my lungs.

I’d bet Lisa was part of it too. How they must’ve laughed at me for believing their sob story, for believing Lisa was innocent. Lisa had gotten convicted for murder for a good reason. She’d been there, for Christ’s sake. I saw her when we left the tunnels through the garden exit and came back in through the kitchen. She was there, covered in Dad’s blood. Forensics had even confirmed Lisa matched the height, weight, and strength of the killer. But Nikki knew all too well how to twist the facts and make me believe a different story.

A pounding headache spread from my sinuses to the place where a deep furrow split my forehead. I rubbed my fingers against it, crumpling the envelope in my hand until something hard inside it poked me. I shook it out, and it fell on the bed…an SD chip. I stared at the pieces of paper on the floor with her handwriting on them. The tears in my eyes made the letters blurry.

I’m leaving something to make it up to you…Tessa’s real insurance policy.

What the fuck was this? I glared at the chip between my fingers. Another lie? Another con? After all she’d done, did she really think she could make it up to me? Did she really think I would believe another one of her lies?

With trembling hands, I strode to the desk, pulled out the chair, and sat. I shoved the chip in the SD slot and tapped on the track pad to open the only folder available. Then I clicked on the voice recording.

“For Christ’s sake, Jonathan, he was your brother. What kind of a monster are you?”a woman’s voice quavered.

I slid the video counter back and restarted it. It was Mom. I hadn’t heard her voice in so long, but I was sure it was her. I pinched the bridge of my nose for a moment and hit Play again.

“I made a terrible mistake. I panicked, but I never meant for any of this to happen. I love James and you. You know that. I always have. I would never do anything to hurt you.” My uncle sobbed while another woman whimpered in the background.

“Where is the body, Francesca?” Mom yelled, and Jonathan’s wife cried louder. Footsteps echoed over the speaker, mingled with shuffling sounds that created static.“Where?”

“The tunnels,” Francesca said quickly. “You have to help us. This was all an accident. I promise.”

“Take me to him,” Mom said, her voice void of emotion. Mom’s breath hitched, more scratching sounds came through, and then the recording ended.

I sat back in the chair, covering my mouth. Mom knew Lisa was innocent because she’d been there. And not only had she not moved a finger to help Lisa, but she fucking helped Dad’s killer frame an innocent girl for the murder of her husband.

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