Page 64 of The Reckoning
“Business,” he counters smoothly. “Nothing personal, I assure you. Well, not for me, at any rate. For others involved, it’s very personal indeed.”
Before I can question him further, he continues, “Do look into the will, Miss Hayes. Time is running short, and I’d hate to see the Hayes women’s little power struggle derail everything we’ve worked toward.”
The line goes dead before I can respond, leaving me staring at the phone in confusion and unease. The Hayes women’spower struggle? What does that mean? And how would my father’s will help?
I stand, pocketing the phone, a new determination settling over me. Whatever game these men are playing, whatever their connection to my mother and the Hayes family, I need answers. And it seems my father’s will might hold at least some of them.
Now I just need to figure out how to get my hands on it.
NINETEEN
ARIES
Aday of pacing these concrete floors, staring at the same faces, drowning in guilt and rage and memories I’ve spent years burying—it’s too much. We need resources. Information. People who aren’t trapped in this twisted family drama.
“We need help,” I announce, striding into the security room where Arson and Lilian are hunched over a laptop. “Professional help.”
Arson doesn’t look up. “We’re handling it.”
“Are we?” I gesture to the laptop screen, covered in dead ends and unanswered questions. “Your backers are breathing down our necks. Patricia has some medical procedure planned that requires donations, whatever the hell that means. And we’ve got nothing. No leverage, no plan, nothing but speculation and paranoia.”
“And your solution is what?” He finally glances up, eyes cold with distrust. “Call in the cavalry? Alert the whole world to our situation?”
“Not the whole world. Just my people.” I cross my arms, bracing for the fight I know is coming. “Drew, Sebastian, Lee. They have resources, connections, and skills we could use.”
Arson’s laugh is short and bitter. “Your people. The same ones who didn’t notice when you were replaced? Who drank and partied with me for months without realizing I wasn’t you? Those people?”
The accusation stings because there’s truth in it. My friends—my supposed friends—didn’t notice the switch. Didn’t see the differences, the tells, the subtle shifts in personality that should have been obvious to anyone who truly knew me.
“Maybe you played your part a little too well, Brother,” I remind him, unable to keep the bitterness from my voice. “I can give them a little leeway, considering you played the part from graduation, not like the entire senior year. They barely saw you.”
“Even so…if we need allies, we need people who are at least observant enough to notice the change of an entire person.” Arson stands, squaring off against me. “Yourfriendsare either oblivious or complicit. Either way, I don’t want them anywhere near this operation.”
“They’re not perfect, but they’re loyal to me.” The lie tastes bitter on my tongue. Are they loyal? Was Drew? Is anyone in this fucked-up world actually trustworthy? “And they have skills we need. Sebastian’s family has connections in every legal firm in the city. Lee can hack anything with a circuit board. And Drew?—”
“Drew is too distracted by his own life,” Arson cuts in. “He didn’t even realize I was you for months. Why would you trust him now?”
“I don’t,” I admit, the words sharper than intended. “But I trust his self-interest. And right now, his interests align with ours. If anything, the fact that you tricked them all for months will batter their pride into helping us. Even if…” I swallow hard, not ready to admit that men I saw as my brothers for so long could just let me rot away in a cell. “We aren’t as close as we used to be.”
Lilian stares between us, tension evident in the set of her shoulders, but it’s clear she was listening. “Maybe Aries is right. We do need help. People who aren’t emotionally compromised by all this.”
Arson’s gaze flicks to her, something softening momentarily before the walls slam back up. “Fine, but we aren’t doing this here. I’m not bringing your frat boy entourage anywhere we’re trying to live.”
“Fine.” I pull out my phone, already composing a text. “Then we take Lilian to Drew’s place. Neutral ground.”
“Absolutely not.” Arson’s refusal is immediate and vehement. “I’m not letting her out of my sight, especially not at Drew’s.”
“Then where?” I demand, my own frustration mounting. “We need somewhere secure, somewhere we can talk freely without worrying about Patricia’s people finding us.”
The answer comes to me as I’m asking the question. “The Mill House. My room. It was our plan to go there after we left this safe house anyway, right?”
“Your old room,” Arson corrects, a flash of satisfaction in his eyes. “I was living there, remember? Sleeping in your bed, using your things. I packed it all up.”
The reminder is a deliberate jab, designed to get under my skin. It works, but I refuse to give him the satisfaction of seeing it. “The point is, it’s on campus. Secure building, familiar territory. Neither Patricia nor your backers would have surveillance set up there.”
Arson seems to consider this, weighing risks against benefits. “And your friends would meet us there?”
“They would.” I finish the text and hit send. A group message to Drew, Sebastian, and Lee:Mill House. My room. One hour. Emergency. Tell no one.
