Page 58 of Set In Stone

“And what might that something else be?” I askedcuriously.

“Well, you know that I was surrounded by car talk for years because of Frank. I’m sure my stepfather will want to hear all about your collection. Take me to the storage facility. I want to check themout.”

I wasn’t sure where this sudden need to see my vehicles came from. I was sure she had an angle, as Krystina rarely did anything without purpose. But whatever it was, I was grateful. The distraction might be good forme.

Perhaps it would clear my head before I made the trip to Justine’splace.

Almost immediately, a knot of dread formed in my gut at the thought of going to my sisters. I tried to suppress it as I stood to help Krystina into her coat. Once she had it buttoned, I pulled her into a fierce hug. I held her tight and breathed in the scent of her hair. It was always a soft smell, like magnolia blossoms on a warm summer day. After a moment, I pulled back and fixed an intense gaze onher.

“Thank you,” Imurmured.

“Forwhat?”

“For always knowing exactly what Ineed.”

21

krystina

Alexanderand I took the Tesla over to the storage garage. It was further away than I would have imagined, well outside the city, and took us over forty minutes to get there. Occasionally, I would sneak a few glances at him out of the corner of my eye. He seemed tired. The stress lines that marred his face made him seem so much older than he really was. But worse, I didn’t like his tone when he mentioned Stephen drawing up transfer of asset papers. I wasn’t sure what that entailed, but Alexander sounded resolute, almost like he was givingup.

When we pulled up to the front of the building, he got out of the car and came around to open my door. Taking Alexander’s hand, I allowed him to guide me into a standing position. I smiled up at him and recalled Hale’s words about the power I possessed. Perhaps the way for me to save Alexander was to remind him why he needed to keep fighting. It was part of the reason I suggested the impromptu drive over. The trip to the storage facility was meant as a distraction from the unfortunate situation around him, but I also hoped it would make him see some of the things he would be givingup.

Alexander pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked the door that would lead us into the garage. However, instead of a garage, we entered into a hallway of sorts and were presented with another door. Alexander pressed his palm to a glass screen that was mounted on the wall to the right of the door. The screen seemed to scan his palm and then flashed green. When he moved his hand away, a pin pad appeared on the glass and he typed in a series ofnumbers.

“High tech,” I mused aloud, wondering why in the world there would be so much security at a parkinggarage.

“It’s necessary. There’s a lot of money in here. Now give me yourhand.”

Without waiting, he took hold of my wrist and pressed my palm to thescreen.

“What are you doing?” I asked inconfusion.

“Protecting my assets. It’s a good thing you suggested coming here today, or else I may haveforgotten.”

He held my hand in place until the screen flashed green again. Alexander then entered more numbers into the pin pad and I heard a click. I could only assume it was from the doorunlocking.

“Forgotten aboutwhat?”

“To give you access. In the event that I’m…inaccessible, you may needit.”

Instantly, my heart constricted from a wave of sadness. I knew he was referring to the potential repercussions from Charlie’s interview, and I found all this talk about transferring his wealth to me to be unsettling. I didn’t want Alexander’s money. I only wantedhim.

Will people believe Alex tried to cover it up? What is the statute of limitations for Justine? Could either of them really face jailtime?

I didn’t want to think about the possibility. Alexander was surrounded by a slew of wealthy and powerful people. From lawyers to judges, someone was bound to know what to do about this. After all, they were only children at the time. I had to believe everything would work out and I forced my trepidationaside.

Once we entered, I scanned the massive space. The first two spots were empty. However, the third space held the 1931 Bugatti, the same car we had taken to the Stone’s Hope Gala. When my gaze traveled past the Bugatti, I gasped. The need for so much security was suddenly very clear. The vintage car wasn’t the only thing with an expensive pricetag.

“Alex! Are you freaking kiddingme?”

I hurried across the expansive storage garage to come face to face with a car that took my breathaway.

“You like?” he asked, coming up besideme.

“This is insane. You actually own aFerrari?”

“A Ferrari Sergio to be exact. There are only six of this design in theworld.”

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