Page 97 of Callum
Her brows rose. “Oh, um. Okay.”
She moved to the bed and perched on the edge, and again, he was hit by that feeling he’d gotten downstairs. Like something was different about her.
“Jenny’s not who you think she is,” he said quietly.
There was a beat of silence, where Fiona’s lips parted, and she just looked at him. She finally shook her head. “What?”
“Liam didn’t like the way she was looking at you today, so I did a search on her and found she’s been using someone’s else’s identity. Liam then went to her place. He found pictures of you and surveillance videos. Even acting-class receipts.”
Fiona covered her mouth. “Oh my God!”
Callum studied her. Was it just him, or was there something almost…disingenuous about her reaction?
A bad feeling began to churn in his gut, something he had no fucking clue how to even navigate. She looked and felt…different. And now her reaction didn’t feel authentic.
“I don’t know what to say,” Fiona said, shaking her head.
“Did you suspect anything?” Callum asked carefully, studying every part of the woman in front of him as she answered.
“I mean, I’ve only known her for a few months, so it shouldn’t surprise me. But she was my friend.”
Her voice…that was different too. He heard it now. He’d been distracted before, with the phone calls and the need to get home away from the crowd, but now that he really focused on her, it was like each word was carefully said in a certain tone. Too carefully.
“Well, at least I have you guys to protect me,” she said, before touching the bridge of her nose with her forefinger.
It took him half a second to realize what she’d just done.
She’d tried to push nonexistent glasses up the bridge of her nose. Only, Fiona didn’t wear glasses.
Jenny did.
His stomach dropped, his skin turning stone cold in utter disbelief at having his suspicion confirmed. The woman’s hand lowered slowly, like she realized her mistake.
He took a step forward to grab her, but she quickly pulled a gun from beneath her discarded towel on the bed. She stood and aimed it at his chest.
“After the way you looked at me downstairs, I knew I needed to keep this close. Just in case.”
Her voice was different now. Raspier. Colder.
“Where the fuck is Fiona?” Callum growled, the shock now twisting into a suffocating mix of fear and rage. Fear for his woman. That she was somewhere else. Possibly dead already. That he’d figured this out too late. And rage that this fucking imposter had done something to her.
“He would have taken her by now. Doesn’t really matter, though. Soon she’ll be dead—just like you.”
His hands fisted. “Where. Is. She?”
“It’s a shame I have to kill you. You would have been a fun boyfriend. For a while.”
“You have five seconds to tell me before I force the words out of you.”
He’d never hurt a woman in his life, but this person wasn’t a damn woman. She was a fucking monster. And she was the only thing standing between Fiona and safety.
“I’m holding the gun, Callum, so I’m in charge. But if you really want to know, I have enemies. And they may have received atipon Olivia’s location. Maybe even a photo of her new appearance…”
He was so fucking close to snapping, his muscles twitched, but first he had to get information from her. “So you sent the assholes you stole from to the library?”
She scoffed. “You think I’m that stupid? I couldn’t have the bitch dying here in Cradle Mountain and exposing me. I was actually going to drive to a location the other day, when I convinced Rick to send her to the store. Then that idiot Freddie followed us. And of courseyoufound us and ruined everything by refusing to leave her side. So, I had to get creative. Decided Freddie could be useful. I went to visit him at the lodge. Told him who I was, that I planned to kill Fiona. Him too. But if he agreed to help me, I’d let him live instead, and in addition, he could take Fiona and keep her for himself. Win-win.”
If there was anything that could put even more gas on the fire of his rage, it was the knowledge that Freddie had agreed to take part in this.
