Page 166 of The Broken Note

“She knows,” dad calls after me.

My feet are suddenly glued to the ground. I can’t move a single muscle.

“Didn’t look like she’d cried. She was so cold about it when she asked me if it was true. I said yes and she just…” Dad stops for dramatic effect. “She just took in a breath and nodded. Almost like it finally made sense to her. Why you wanted her around. Why you were pursuing her.” He chuckles and pours himself another glass. “I’ve never seen anyone so tragically composed after hearing their boyfriend only saw them as a privatewhore.”

I whirl around, my face thunderous but dad’s goons are too fast. My arms are being held back and I’m once again hitting the floor.

“You’re never getting what you want, Dutch. Not now. Not ever.” Dad smiles at me. “I suggest you forget about that girl. She’s long gone. And I don’t just mean physically. Right here.” He taps his chest. “You’re so far away from her.”

“What did youdo?” I wrench out.

“I opened her eyes. I made her see that there’s a world beyond you. She’s expanding, transforming into something you wouldn’t even imagine.” Dad sips calmly. “I mean it when I say this is good for her. And if you truly love her, Dutch, you’ll set her free.”

My insides twist into a painful knot.

I don’t know how she found out the truth, but it doesn’t make sense. Cadence knew her mom was working with my dad. She knew dad isn’t to be trusted… why did she go to him instead of me? Why did she choose to run instead of talking to me?

Footsteps thud through the hallway outside.

Dad’s eyes jump to the door and his grin gets bigger. I see that expression and realize too late why he was talking so much when he’d usually keep his cards close to the chest.

It’s a trap.

My eyes widen when I see police officers filling the room. Lucien and Ron step aside while a cop takes over their position.

The handcuffs are cold when they slap around my wrist. I’m still reeling from dad’s words and it takes me a moment to catch up with what’s happening.

The second I do, I start to fight.

“What the hell are you doing? Uncuff me!”

No one listens to me.

“I need to find my fiancée. I need to—” The rest of my words become a breathless gasp as they push me into the ground.

“Careful. Careful. He’s still my son,” dad says, grinning like a snake.

My eyes burn with anger, but I’m helpless and he knows it.

“Dutch Cross, you are under arrest for the illegal possession of drugs. You have the right to remain silent. You have the right to a lawyer…”

I tune out the police, my eyes on dad. “Doing this won’t keep me away from her.”

“Oh, Dutch.” Dad tilts his head and looks at me like an adult would look at a child’s artwork. “Don’t you get it? The girl you thought you knew, the one you fell in love with, you’re never going to find her again.”

CHAPTERFORTY-TWO

CADENCE

I step out of the changing screen and notice there’s a tray waiting on the dresser. Right next to the makeup brush.

My stomach clenches painfully, which I don’t think was the desired effect. The food is different this time. Sushi. Yesterday, it was salad. Tomorrow, it’ll probably be something else.

“He told me that you should eat,” the makeup artist says. She’s a timid, quiet woman who doesn’t talk much. I’ve been wondering if she was instructed not to speak to me.

Doesn’t matter.

Her quiet suits me just fine.

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