Page 1 of Filthy Little Regrets

prologue

SIX MONTHS AGO

CASSIA

Years of searching for the people responsible for my father’s death—or, at least, responsible for the compounding stress that led to his heart giving out—is finally at an end.

Rayce Lions and Ryker Williams sit back-to-back, bodies tied together with one of the ropes that’s typically used for the lines. The private yacht bobs in the water, the anchor working overtime to keep the boat in place in the rapidly strengthening seas. Rayce comes to with a groan, but his buddy Ryker is still out cold.

Rayce startles as soon as he realizes the predicament he’s in, eyes widening and gaze flicking around. His neck strains as he screams, but the gag muffles the sound. His terror isn’t as satisfying as I thought it might be.

“We need to finish this,” Dare, my best friend’s husband, says from behind where I stand.

I turn, my hair whipping behind me as the salty breeze crashes into me. Rose is standing beside him, glaring at Rayce, who has started to flail about, trying to get out of his restraints, but his struggle is pointless. Those ropes aren’t budging. Next to Rose are Frank and his son, Remy.

They all helped me hunt down these men, determined to see justice served. These men, these billionaires who prey on those in desperate need of loans, have destroyed so many lives.

Rayce gives out loans that should never be made.

Ryker’s debt collection company swoops in like a vulture, feasting on the carcasses of the prey Rayce leaves behind.

My dad was one of their victims. He’d still be alive if not for them. Anger pulses in my chest, and my breath rattles in my lungs.

Dare looks at Rayce, then glances at me. “The ocean isn’t going to be kind to us tonight.”

A storm is rolling in, which is perfect for what we’re about to do.

Nodding, I spin on my heels and walk over to the men. Rayce is saying something, but I can’t make out his words around the gag, and I don’t want to hear whatever it is he has to say. I squat next to his friend and slap him.

Ryker wakes up with a grunt, his head swinging up and eyes snapping open. Like Rayce, he takes a second to look around and panics.

“You know, for a long time, I wondered how you slept at night.” I tip my head, eyeing the piece of shit who shamelessly takes advantage of those less fortunate. Before I decided to follow through with my quest for vengeance, I did my homework. There are a thousand emails andmessages between these two. Enough to put them in prison, but that’s not enough for what they’ve done.

My father can’t be the only one who’s died. Stress has a way of eating people alive, and Rayce and Ryker have made it their life’s work.

“But neither of you has a conscience, do you?”

Though the gag smothers his words, one is easy enough to make out.Bitch.

I shake my head. “Call me a bitch all you like, but that doesn’t change anything. Do you know what’s about to happen?”

Huffing, they both shake their heads.

The boat rocks with a particularly brutal wave. I slap my hand on the teak. “You’re both going to die,” I tell them, smirking when they start to freak out. “You’re only wasting your energy.”

“Cassia,” Dare says, reminding me time is of the essence.

I grab Ryker’s chin, digging my nails into his face. Rayce’s company might’ve given the loan, but the debt collectors were the worst. They called multiple times a day. Sent letter after letter. Repossessed my dad’s car. Threatened to take our house, my future, anything and everything to squeeze as much money out of my dad as they could.

“I think you should know that your wife is cheating on you with your brother.”

Ryker lunges for me, and Dare is suddenly there, shoving both men onto the teak and pinning them with his knee.

“These men are going to throw you overboard, and when water fills up your lungs and you start to drown, I want you to think about every debt you collected and everylife you two destroyed. And with your last breaths, I want you to remember Eddie Harris.”

It hurts to say Dad’s name, but at the same time, it’s cathartic. I step back, and Remy, Frank, and Dare work together to throw the men overboard.

Rose wraps her arm around me. “Are you okay?”

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