Page 84 of Tyrant

Serafina’s father’sname is Duncan. He’s the one who bought the house I’m looking at right now. I can tell you all the details of the financing and how it was paid off. What it was used for in terms of collateral for other property purchases that have since been sold. The proceeds going right into the pockets ofBridgette Lockart. Maiden name Nealey. Nothing but fucking eye candy with a salesman brain. She hooked herself right onto Duncan. Channeling that fake care because the man lost his wife and felt his daughter should have a mother figure.

I also do a full research into people before I go near them.

The property has a security system but it hasn’t been updated in a while. All Bridgette cares about is the money. The estate. The value. And most of all, getting Serafina out of the picture. Would a stepmother really kill her stepdaughter?

I enter through a side basement door onto a perfectly clean, smooth concrete floor. It’s some kind of storage area, filled with totes labeled with Duncan’s name along with Serafina’s. I grab the top tote, place it on the floor and take off the lid.

It’s pictures of Serafina as a child. In each one she’s wearing a big smile, along with her father. The life she used to have. Used to live.

I dig about halfway through the tote and I find a dirty, stuffed animal. A rabbit with floppy ears. It’s nose a pink button. The eyes, crooked. The thing smells like an old basement and looks very old. On the back at the butt of the stuffed animal there’s a small tag. There’s handwriting on the tag. It’s from Serafina’s mother.

I keep the rabbit, put the lid back on the tote and put it back where I found it. I’m able to twist and contort the rabbit to fit into my back pocket.

I take the nearest staircase up to go from the basement to a hallway. According to my research of the house, the living room is to my right. Along with that there’s a great room, a foyer, and a bunch of other space that’s probably been decorated ten times over and never used once. To my right and around a small bend is the kitchen. That’s where I need to be.

“I can’t believe he said that to you!” Brigette’s voice calls out. “What an asshole. Doesn’t he know you’re married? Oh, yeah, I mean, sure, who doesn’t want to fuck their Pilates instructor, right?”

Bridgette cackles and she sounds like a witch.

“Move out of the kitchen, you rotten cunt,” I whisper to myself.

As though she can hear me, she exits the kitchen to the dining room. I sneak through the house, carefully. She walks to a large set of glass doors.

Come on… go…

The doors open and she steps outside. That’s my cue and chance. I walk right into the kitchen, to the counter, where a glass of red wine sits and waits for me. I only need a few droplets of my magic potion to knock Bridgette on her ass for the night. Give it twenty minutes and she’ll be so damn woozy, she’ll want nothing more than her bed. And the second her head hits the pillow she’ll sleep until tomorrow.

If I find out that she had anything to do with the attack on Serafina, then I will place a fucking knife to her cunt throat and press as hard as I can. I’ll run that fucking knife back and forth, slicing through skin and more. I’ll cut her fucking head off and gift it to Serafina.

I’m not supposed to be this fucking involved but I can’t help it.

Chapter Thirty-Two

SERAFINA

I’min and out of sleep. My dreams all sorts of messed up. I keep seeing my father. And in my last one, my father and Tyrant were out at the pool, having a beer together. Talking about business. Tyrant sat there, shirtless, his sexy nipple piercing glaring in the warm sunlight.

Now I’m awake with Naya at my left side. Lia had come in but only for a few seconds. She looked terrified of me. She wouldn’t even look at me. Naya keeps telling me not to worry about it. Standing at the end of my bed, arms folded, is Demo. He stares right at me. Almost right through me.

“Where is Tyrant?” I ask for the tenth time.

“Busy,” Demo says… for the tenth time.

I look at Naya. “Do you know what’s going on?”

“Swear on my life, I don’t.”

“Swear on your life… then tell me why Lia is acting weird.”

“Tyrant sort of attacked us both.”

“Attacked?” I call out.

My heart monitor beeps louder.

“Deep breaths,” Demo warns me.

I lift my right middle finger at him and don’t even bother looking his way.

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