Page 92 of Hunted By Valentine

“Umm, I’m not sure,” I say, hesitantly. I honestly have no clue. I stole it from Dad years ago, and it has a skull on the bottle. What more is there to know?

“You can’t just use whatever, Ruby. Especially not if you don’t know what it is. Marco will get you what you need,” Nick states. “And he’ll stay with you. Out of sight, of course. But I’m not leaving you alone with Michael—”

Before he can finish speaking, I throw my arms around him and hug him for the second time today. “Thank you,” I choke out. “Thank you so much.”

Some women love flowers. Some jewelry. I’ve loved both, and a lot of other materialistic goods. Yet nothing compares to the feeling of knowing your oldest brother isn’t just condoning the murder you want to commit; he’s also making it possible.

Nick spends the rest of the drive filling Marco in, and asking him to get in touch with Sergei, one of the three, to get the poison for me.

While the two of them discuss which poison might be best, I interject, “It needs to be a slow working one. Not too slow. Like, it should knock him on his ass. But I don’t want him to die too quickly.”

My brother grins proudly. “You might not be a Knight in name, but you’re definitely a Knight in blood, little sister,” he says affectionately.

We arrive at my house, a grand brownstone. The front steps are slick with ice, and I make a mental note to salt them later. We get out of the vehicle, and I reach for my keys in the bottom of my purse.

As soon as I’ve unlocked the door, Nick steps forward. “Right, let’s search the house,” he says, shooting Jack a look. “Ruby, stay here with Marco.”

I’m just about to say that Marco is still in the car, but when I turn around, he’s there, waiting like a shadow. Jesus, that man is like a freaking ninja.

We wait in silence while they search the house, making sure Michael isn’t hiding in a closet inside. I don’t bother telling them that I know he isn’t here, they’d never take my gut feeling seriously.

Marco looks up from his phone. “We’re all good,” he says vaguely, and I give him a nod.

My brothers return, announcing what I already knew; Michael isn’t here.

“Well, I hate to do this,” Nick says. “But Jack and I have to go. Will you be okay if I leave Marco here?”

Before I can answer, Jack sputters, “What the fuck? We can’t just leave her—”

“There’s business to take care of,” Nick insists. “She’ll be fine with Marco.”

We say our goodbyes, and I do my best not to look guilt stricken as Jack scrutinizes me as though he knows there’s something I’m not telling him. “Tomorrow,” he reminds me. “You promised me answers tomorrow, and I’m going to hold you to that, Rubes.”

“Of course,” I lie smoothly. “Why don’t I come by yours tomorrow?”

He shakes his head. “I’ll beherefor breakfast.”

“Okay,” I agree, my voice trembles as my emotions threaten to get the best of me. “I love you, Jack.” Before he can answer, I pull him in for a tight hug.

“Love you, too, Rubes,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

Letting go of him, I reach for Nick. It’s almost comical how surprised he looks. “Come on, give me a hug before you leave.”

He hugs me tighter than he ever has before while his lips move against my ear. “Are you sure this is what you want?” he whispers.

The way he says it has me wondering if he knows what’s going on, what I’m planning. When he lets go of me, I shake my head at my paranoia. No, there’s no way he knows.

Without another word, my brothers walk away. I watch them getting into Jack’s SUV, and stay outside, waving at them, until they disappear from sight. Then I walk inside with Marco hot on my heels.

Chapter 35

The Prey

Now that it’s just me and Marco, it’s time to set my plan into motion. I send Michael a text, telling him I’m going to our house to pack some things, and that I never want to see him again. My husband is nothing if not predictable. I know this will ensure he shows up, probably within the next couple of hours.

“Do you want anything to drink?” I ask Marco as I head toward the kitchen, where I quickly locate a bottle of my favorite red wine.

“No thank you, I don’t drink on the job.”

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