Page 131 of Stabby Little

Michael pries himself away from Kobe. But the flash in his eyes lets me know he doesn't do so willingly.

Jagger stares into Kobe's eyes. "Tell me what you know about Tiffy Diavolo."

Kobe shakes his head. "I've never heard of her in my life. You must believe me."

"What about Crystal Diavolo?"

A look of something I can't quite place flashes across Kobe's eyes. "Is she the one who made that viral Tik Tok video about the barista with the neck beard?"

"Ha." Michael shoves Jagger aside and plants himself in front of Kobe. "So you do know my niece."

Kobe lets out a sob. "I only saw her video. It's the most popular video on Tik Tok right now. Everyone was laughing at her. I would've never seen it if Becca hadn't showed me."

Michael's fingers clench. "No one laughs at my niece. She's not even on Tik Tok. It poses a security risk to our family and her father forbids it."

"Maybe it's a different Crystal," Kobe sobs. "I promise I wasn't at her wedding."

"I didn't say you were at her wedding. You were at Tiffy's, her cousin. You're fucking your story up."

I place my hand on Michael's shoulder. "Leave us alone with Kobe. We'll get the answers you need."

Michael narrows his eyes. "If you let him go, I'm killing your son. There's no way around it."

"You can trust me,” I say. “I won't fuck this up."

Michael shoots us one more look before he exits the room. Jagger and I face each other as we pivot back to Kobe.

This shit is pure evil. Kobe had nothing to do with Xavier or Gordon's death. Michael and his brothers have no morals. They're willing to do anything to get ahead—even hurt innocent students. The fact that Anton and Zaire brought Kobe here proves the entire family is sick.

I take Kobe's hand in mine. "We know you're not mixed up in this. Do you know why my boss thinks you killed his men?"

Kobe sniffles. "No. I study in the campus library and volunteer with animals. That's the extent of my life."

"There must be some reason my boss put a target on you. Did one of his men rape you?"

“No.”

“Did they take you to a warehouse basement?”

“No.”

“What suspicious things have happened in the past few weeks?”

"Someone stole my ID when I went clubbing last month. That's the only unique thing."

My eyebrows slam together. "Someone took your ID?"

"Yes. They snuck it out of my wallet when I was drunk. I was really upset because it had my best picture. My new one isn't half as good—the woman at the DMV forced me to remove my cap."

"You wore a hat in your original picture?"

Kobe nods. "My favorite ball cap. It covered my bald spot."

"You remember anything else about that night?"

"There was a young guy at the club. He kept getting close to me but I thought it was suspicious."

"Why?"

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