Page 63 of Toxic Obsession

She visibly swallowed, her entire body rigid. “How long has he known about my work?”

“I don’t know. But he has pictures from before you were eighteen.”

Wynter pressed her fist against her mouth. “I couldn’t pay the bills. I tried a part-time job while I worked to finish high school, but a mortgage payment is no small feat at seventeen. I did what I had to do to take care of Janine and secure a future for us.” Her voice was tight, anxiety hanging off her words.

“Wynter, don’t misunderstand. Yeah, I enjoyed the hell out of the pictures, but I’m not sharing this because I judged you. I want you to know part of what we’re dealing with. Adam filled my head with a lot of lies about you. I need to understand why.”

Her eyes narrowed on me. “The website …” She barked out a laugh. “It’s how you knew I would be a good fit for the society.”

Wynter was sexy as hell, but I was falling in love with her intelligence first. “Yeah. It was the fastest way to get to you. I want you to know, I regret the shit I said to you as the Red Dragon.”

The color returned to Wynter’s cheeks, but she ignored my last comment.

I showed Wynter the pictures of Adam and Drew with Kyler, and explained that Adam had taken Bell and Brody to her house when they were younger.

“Holy shit. That’s why Adam looked familiar the night he barged in on us.” Her lips pursed, anger flashing in her gaze. “I must have only seen Adam briefly, but Bell looks more like him than you.” Her hand trembled. “Can you go back to the one with my dad?”

I did as she asked, watching her as she stared at the image. “I don’t know whether to love or hate him.”

Her voice hovered above a whisper, her confession hitting me hard. “What happened after the sh—situation with Kyler?” I almost said “shooting,” but it sounded insensitive at the moment.

Wynter paced the small area behind Adam’s desk. “It all turned to shit so fast. Dad was getting death threats, and bricks were thrown through the windows of our home. At first the cops protected us, but they didn’t have the staff to continue to keep us safe. After a few weeks, we hoped that the public blame and outrage had calmed down, but then Dad showed up after work one day broken and defeated. He’d been fired from his job. It was too much for him and the next day … he was gone. No note, no phone calls, just gone.” Wynter placed her hands on her slender hips and tilted her head back, looking at the ceiling. “A part of me doesn’t blame him for taking off, but why wouldn’t he take us too?”

“I wish I had the answer for you. Adam said they worked together for years and were friends. I don’t trust the bastard, but maybe he knows why Drew left. Do you want me to ask him?”

“No. He’ll just fill you with a shit ton of lies again.” She picked up her soda and took another drink. “What did he tell you about me, Quinn?”

I leaned back in Adam’s chair, checking his browser history to see if there was anything new before I closed the laptop down. “I would feel better if we took the conversation elsewhere. Adam isn’t supposed to be home until later, but I want to make sure we’re not in his office in case he surprises us again.”

A heavy silence hung over us as I locked Adam’s office and led Wynter to my bedroom.

“Really, Quinn? You destroyed my life last night and now you’re taking me to your room?” She stood in the hall, refusing to enter.

“It’s not like that. If the alarm beeps because someone came inside, I can hide you here, then I can safely sneak you out. We’ve done it before, so you know I’m not bullshitting you.”

She shot me a look of disapproval but walked in.

“I’ll leave the door open.” I approached my dresser and set the drinks down before I located my desk key, then opened the drawer where I kept the file. Removing the folder, I gave it to her. “This is what Adam put together. I even did my own research, and it was all true as far as anyone can tell.”

She took it and sank onto the end of my bed, then began flipping through the pages silently. Every once in a while, she would peek up at me, then return to read the so-called evidence that Adam had on her.

“He’s good. Really good.” She huffed as she closed the folder and tossed it back on the mattress. “The police report didn’t tell the entire story, the rest is crap, but I’ve already told you that the media spun shit. I’m not sure about the letters from … Ky.” She wrung her hands in her lap. I understood how hard it was to talk about Bell and Kyler, but I had to keep going.

“Sutton said they’re fabricated. I’m sorry I gave the first one to you. I didn’t know the truth until seconds before the video played.” I sank into my chair near my desk and propped my elbows on my knees.

Tears welled in her eyes, and she turned away as if ashamed. A soft sniffle filled the room before she trained her attention on me again. “If you were having it all investigated, why didn’t you wait before setting that up?”

“Pressure from Adam and my own unresolved anger at losing Bell.”

Wynter pressed her lips into a thin line. “I can see that. But Adam gave you the correct police report with the facts, so I can understand why it took you a beat to question the letters. I’m sorry if this upsets you, but he doesn’t sound like a good person.” She glanced at me apologetically.

“He’s not even close, and it was a friend who urged me to look past my hatred and see if Adam was fucking with me. I’m sure it was hard for you to see the articles and police report again.”

Wynter stood. “Quinn, it’s nothing I haven’t seen or heard before. The media spun it to make me look almost as guilty as Kyler. It was a fucking disaster. Inevertold the cops or anyone else that I knew what Kyler had planned. Ever. Why? Because I had no fucking clue.”

“I believe you, Wynter. I need to ask you something, though. Please, just be honest with me.”

Fear flashed through her eyes, but I couldn’t soothe it this time. “Did you know that Bell was pregnant with Kyler’s baby?”

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