Page 200 of The Silent Note

Finn shakes his head. “You don’t get it.”

“Getwhat?” I shriek in frustration.

“YouareZane’s light.”

My heart hiccups to my throat.

“And darkness isn’t inherently evil. Darkness is just a life without light. That’s it.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Zane was fine before he met you at Redwood. He didn’t know what light was, so it didn’t bother him to live without it. After he married you, that all changed. He had sunshine in his hands, but he still made the choice to let you go. He still chose to protect you, toloseyou. Are you really going to deny him after all he gave up?”

“So the moral of your story is that I’m Zane’s reward for being mature? Forget what I want?”

Finn looks amused.

“Don’t tell me…” I glance behind him, “you admitted you’re the next heir of the yakuza as a threat? Am I going to be forcefully removed, tied in a bow and delivered under Zane’s Christmas tree?”

A corner of his lips curl up. “You think Zane could wait until Christmas to have you?”

Prickles of heat run up my arms when I remember Zane’s lips teasing its way down my body and skating between my thighs.

Steeling myself against the memories, I spit, “I’m nobody’s trophy, Finn.”

He looks unfazed. “You really don’t know what’s going on, do you? Have you looked at Jinx’s app once?”

“Oh, I saw Jinx’s app,” I spit bitterly.

“I’m not talking about that drunk video of Zane being an idiot after you broke up. Have you checkedafterthat?”

I frown. There’s no way I’m admitting to Finn that I couldn’t stomach turning on Jinx’s app after the video.

Finn walks over to the door. “Come with me. Let me show you why Zane prefers to break you thanloseyou.”

“No. I’m no longer Zane’s wife and I’m not working for The Kings, so tell me right now where we’re going or I’m not leaving.”

“I’ll take you to him,” Finn says simply.

“To who?”

“My father.”

Chapter Fifty-Three

GREY

The quiet is thicker than a fog.

Finn’s fingers are white-knuckled as he grips the steering wheel. I have a million questions rumbling under the surface, but I shove them back into my throat and zip my mouth closed.

Restless, I pick up my phone that was charging and log into Jinx’s app.

The notifications pile up to an overwhelming number.

Jinx hasn’t stopped reporting the scandals of Redwood Prep. Dutch and Cadence are still a prominent feature. Sol’s change in style and boosted confidence gets a mention. And there’s even a story about The Kings’ new ‘lap dog’—probably referring to Hall. Even I get a little write-up about ‘being a runaway Snare Queen’.

But as I keep going, I notice something strange.

Every so often, a story will pop up about Jarod Cross’s campaign or a random public figure being demoted, arrested, or fined.

Since when does Jinx report on news outside of Redwood?

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