Page 80 of The Daredevil

“No. He lives here and in the States.”

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I said, “Michelle could’ve died if she had been in her apartment when the bomb blew up. This isn’t some silly game. We never had a chance and never will. You should focus on improving your life and not destroying others. Stay away from Michelle and me. If you don’t, you know what will happen.”

Tears ran down Fiona’s face. “I only wanted to scare her. Not hurt her.”

“It’s the same thing. Scaring someone is hurting them psychologically. Either way, you meant harm to her, and I won’t have that. Stay away from us.”

I got into my car and drove to my office, where I researched Brittany Parker. She had a website where she posted pictures of her in previous beauty pageants. I cringed at some images of her as a child. Those outfits weren’t appropriate for little girls. Now I understood why Michelle hated pageants. They exploited children, making them into tiny versions of adults. I didn’t find that attractive, but I knew sick men would.

She had a daughter, Lily, who was also enrolled in pageants. A recent picture showed a European pageant hosted in Reykjavik last week, which explained why they were here in Iceland.

What did Brittany have against Michelle? I tabled the issue for now and checked my calendar and reminders. I searched for James McNabb, the former police officer who had died at my Whitewater Family Resort. His social media profile showed he’d worked for the Providence Police Department but had been fired a few years ago.

I logged into a thread posted on his social media page. After reading through several posts, I discovered James McNabb was suing Dominic Bryson, the police chief. Apparently, James claimed he’d been framed and the chief was corrupt.

This was no coincidence. I had assumed my high school nemesis had changed his ways since he became chief but I supposed some things didn’t change.

Did Dominic kill James McNabb because he had evidence of the corruption? But why in Oregon—at my excursion site? Perhaps that was a coincidence. Maybe he just wanted James dead somewhere far from Rhode Island and didn’t know I owned the site.

I needed to think clearly to see the entire picture. I made a chart of all the issues, the players, and their connections. Thinking like a scientist would help me stay organized.

I had to assume Dominic was after me. Why was he suddenly interested in my life after all these years?

I remembered the day the police released me to go home. Thankfully, I was supposed to hang out at Grayson’s house that night, so Aunt Klara had no idea I’d been in jail.

Dominic stayed away from me after that day, so this news about him coming back with a vendetta intrigued me. Why now?

My head throbbed with all this new information. Missing Michelle, I drove home wanting to see her and touch her. As I parked in the garage, my phone rang.

I picked up the call. “Yo, what’s up, Remi?”

“You should check out the news for Providence, Rhode Island.”

“What’s going on?” I exited the car and entered my apartment. My body relaxed when I saw Michelle’s smiling face.

“They just announced the name of the person whose bones were in my garage. I think you might know him.”

Fuck. I didn’t know how much more bad news I could take in one day.

“I just got back home. Let me settle in, and I’ll look.”

“We should all have a video chat when you’re ready.”

I agreed and hung up the phone.

“Are you okay?” Michelle slipped her hands around my waist, kissing me on the lips.

“Just a minor headache.”

She kissed my forehead. “All better?”

“A little. I’ll need a lot more kisses.” I tightened my arms around her, loving the comfort she provided. Her scent and warmth eased the nerves in my body.

Something big was happening, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I didn’t want her near whatever was looming.

“You look stressed.” She placed a hand on my face. “What happened while you were out? Who did this to you? Tell me, and I’ll make him pay.”

Her adorable threat eased the pounding headache. “Want to catch up on some current affairs in Providence?” I led her to my office.

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