Page 115 of Coup De Grâce
“Not necessarily,” Kavanaugh said. “Your father isn’t exactly known for being on anyone’s side. He did warn you about the hit on me.”
“Yeah, but he wasn’t going to do anything to stop it. That doesn’t scream loyalty.”
“Maybe not, but I’m saying things might not be as black and white as you think.”
Possibly, but still…
I turned the envelope over and slid my finger under the seal, about to break it open when my phone rang, scaring the shit out of me. Sighing, I closed my eyes and did my best to compose myself.
Fuck, I was turning into a goddamn mess.
“Rae,” I barked out harsher than necessary as I answered. Setting the phone down, I put it on speakerphone for everyone to hear.
“Boss…”
“What is it?”
“A news report, boss.” She cleared her throat, very unlike Rae. “Boss…”
“Whatever it is, just tell me.”
Silence greeted me for an entire minute before she continued. “We got a call from local LEOs out in Colorado.”
“And?” My heart thundered in my chest as I waited for the news. Claire. It had to be about Claire. And if the LEOs were involved, it wasn’t good.
“Boss, they responded to a 9-1-1 call. When they entered, they found Claire on the floor with a knife in her chest.”
My eyes slipped closed as the weight of the package I held finally sank in.
“He was with her,” I murmured, knowing it before she even said anything.
“Yes,” she answered quietly. “He was with her. Along with four other men. All of them dead. Michael was…he didn’t go down without a fight. I’m so sorry, boss.”
The package felt like a lead weight in my hands, ready to explode as the news of my father’s demise hit me. I glanced over at Knight, but the look on his face was the same cold expression he always wore. Then again, he hadn’t had contact with our father in years before this whole mess started.
Michael had left him and his mother behind for my mother. So, if anyone had a reason to be pissed at the man, it was Knight.
“Thanks, Rae.”
“As soon as I have the names of the other men, I’ll send them over to you.”
“And crime scene photos,” I cut in.
“Boss, do you really?—”
“Just get them,” I snapped, feeling slightly unhinged.
“On it, boss.”
I hung up without another word, staring at the envelope in my hands for a good minute before I finally broke the seal and pulled out the contents. I didn’t see a thing.
My mind was replaying the fact that my father was dead. Killed alongside Claire, who didn’t deserve any of this after the shit she’d been through. Whatever Michael had done, it finally came back to bite him in the ass. The Shadow Government wouldn’t stop until we were all dead, and apparently, that included my father now.
Pulling out the documents, I spread them on the table, allowing everyone else to see them, but my fingers clutched the letter that was inside.
Cash,
If you’re reading this, that means I’m dead. I instructed these documents to be delivered to you uponmy death. Don’t ask me how the courier knows where to deliver them. You’d only hate me for it.
