Page 76 of Accidentally Mine
I tried to process those words, every pore in my body revolting.
Steve arranged the accident?
For a second, my mind focused on the car accident that terrible night.How could that have been contrived?But no, they weren’t discussingthataccident.My mind didn’t want to go there, but I made myself face it.My father’s own business partner, his confidante, the man he trusted had turned on him, had killed him in order to pay off his gambling debts.
I really was going to be sick.My poor, poor father had been murdered.I gagged, swallowing back the nausea in my throat.
Anthony pushed off the wall and sauntered over to Steve, licking his lips.Steve, sensing the danger, backed up and flattened the lapels on his suit.His eyes fell to the floor as Anthony stepped close to him and sneered, “Watch your mouth, asshole.We’ll tell you when you get your money.”
Steve’s gaze shifted uneasily between the two men.“But you said you would wipe the slate clean upon delivery.”
Malcolm laughed.“So I did,” he said, smiling brightly at him.Too brightly.
I tensed as his face turned to stone.
“But no slate is ever wiped clean.Right, Rebecca?”His cold eyes zeroed in on me, and he motioned to Anthony.
Anthony, my ex-boyfriend, as easily as he breathed, ripped a sleek black gun from the inside pocket of his jacket and pointed it at my father’s business partner.It let out a small popping sound that was little more than a breath, and then a perfect circle appeared in the center of Steve’s forehead.
Claudia and I let out a chorus of identical, short shrieks as blood started to trickle from that circle.A stunned look appeared on his face, and I didn’t think he knew what hit him as he watched our reactions and slumped slowly to the floor.
Anthony was busy watching me.Grinning.
Anthony.The gorgeous man who’d knocked my freshman-year socks off.Who’d taken my virginity and told me he loved me.
Had he always been such a ruthless, cold-blooded killer?
Tears threatened to pour down my cheeks, but I held them back.“What do you want?”I bit out, my entire body quaking.
He walked over to me, still holding the gun.He held it up to me, and touched my shoulder with the barrel, blazing a hot, lazy line down to my breasts.He leaned into my ear, his breath warm but making a cold chill race through my body.“Just what I’ve always wanted.What is mine.You.Always you.”
I breathed in sharply, avoiding meeting his cold eyes as Malcolm spoke his son’s name.“Let’s get this done.Remember, no witnesses.”
“Right.Just a minute, and we’ll be on our way, okay, sweetheart?”he said to me, sounding almost like the old Anthony, the sweet one from our first year together as he kissed my forehead.Like he just had a little more work to do, and then we could go out for pizza.
Then he turned, lifting the gun again.
This time, he pointed it at Claudia.
23
Brent
Recalculating…recalculatingscrolled across the GPS screen.
Fuck.Where the hell was I?
I had never been in this area of Boston.It was a rundown area, some of the houses boarded up.I wasn’t a snob, I just had no reason to visit this type of neighborhood.Now, I was regretting not getting to know South Boston as well as I knew the rest of the city.
I hung a left, taking a quick detour down a narrow street to head back the way I’d come, and found myself in an alley behind a slow-moving garbage truck.
I went to back out but found myself boxed in by a group of kids on bicycles.They goggled at my car, a few waving, and a boy who looked about ten said, “Hey, you lost?”
“Yeah,” I said as the GPS-lady started spitting out directions to turn around when possible.“Looks that way.”
He wheeled up to me and leaned his hand on my doorjamb.Sitting on his bike, he peeked inside.“Sweet car.What is it?”
“MGB, 1975,” I said, taking a deep breath.“I’m in a little rush.My girl’s in trouble.You know the area?”
