Page 45 of Lust

“This better be good, getting me up this early…” His words trail off as he notices Sydney. He looks between Ro and I, then takes in Syd again. He walks forward, and I tense, unsure what his reaction will be. “Sydney Kincaid, nice to meet you,” he says, offering his hand for her to shake.

She tentatively extends a hand, shaking his. “Oz, right?” she hedges.

“I see these two have been bigging me up. Now, I’m guessing you’re the reason I’ve been dragged from my warm bed at this time in the morning?”

Ro steps forward, pulling Syd’s phone from his pocket. “The last call, I need you to trace it. There’s also an image in the messages I need you to look at too. I want some fucking idea of where it was taken, or at least as close as you can get.”

Oz’s takes the phone, checking the image first. “Fuck! Really? Didn’t think to warn me first? Who is she?”

“She’s my…was my friend,” Syd says sullenly. “Her name is Cressida Owens. Her address is in the messages.”

“Well damn! Okay, I’m not making any promises because he’s too smart to have not covered his tracks. Leave it with me. Anything else?”

Ro shakes his head. “We’ll be checking out the address you gave me last night while I wait for some info. Sydney is also going to speak with her father today. But keep looking into that name I gave you.”

“What name?” Syd asks, eyeing Ro suspiciously.

Ro ignores her question until Oz leaves, then he turns to her. “John Smith.”

She barks out a laugh that is somewhere between humour and incredulity. “Pa gave you this name?”

Ro nods. “It’s an alias. But I get the impression your father knows this guy’s real name.”

She downs the rest of her tea, places the cup on the counter, then jumps down from her stool. “I’m assuming that’s why you want me to talk to Pa this morning, right? To find out the person’s real name.” Ro nods. “Then let’s go.”

As we follow her out, I’m starting to think that Ro and I highly underestimated her. I’m looking forward to discovering exactly how much.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

SYDNEY

Anxiety and nausea battle for dominance as we drive to the hospital. Seems they are my overriding emotions lately. Ever since Blake and Roman arrived on the scene, I’ve had to fight a pressing desire, a lust that has no boundaries and the devastating realisation that Pa might not be who I thought he was. I have tried to ignore the whispering and questioning voice inside my head that reminds me of Roman’s questions about my mother and who she was.

The more Roman reveals, the less confident I am that anything in my life is what I thought. According to Roman and Blake, my pa’s real name is Warren Burns and he stole Amos Kincaid’s identity. The McDonald’s breakfast we stopped to grab on the way is very close to coming back up. Maybe I’m not as strong as I thought because I’m certain I’ve almost reached my limit for revelations. I laugh internally at the irony to the Book of Revelation and the overthrowing of evil. I just never imagined that Pa would fall into the category of evil. He might not be the rapist and killer Roman and Blake thought, but he is guilty of living a lie. And god knows what else he’s done over the years to cover up his real identity.

As we pull into the hospital car park, clarity slaps me round the face, and I realise the reason we moved around so much was part of keeping Warren Burns hidden. But at what cost? And if Pa does know the man responsible for all these deaths, he has to share the guilt for them too.

And that thought is the most difficult to reconcile.

Even above my epic fall from grace into pure sin.

As we reach my pa’s floor, a doctor and a nurse are exiting his room, and I hurry forward wanting to get an update.

“Ah, Miss Kincaid, good timing.”

“How is he?”

The doctor places a placating hand on my arm momentarily. “He’s doing well. His latest scan shows the swelling around his brain has significantly decreased, and if he continues to improve, with no further complications, then he should be able to go home in a couple of days.”

I sigh in relief, but it’s short lived when I realise that he can’t go home alone while this guy is still out there.

“That’s great. Thank you. Can we…”

“Of course. Go ahead. But he may tire quickly, so don’t be alarmed if he falls asleep.”

The doctor and nurse head off down the corridor, and I face the door to Pa’s room. I blow out a deep breath, hesitant to go in there knowing the conversation we need to have.

“I know what you’re thinking. But one thing at a time,” Roman whispers into my ear from behind me.

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