Blood And Bone (22 page)

How would she have reacted when the daughter she’d spent her life molding no longer did as she was told? A daughter willing to leave town with her family to get away from her. Would that have been enough for Heddra Grey to kill the person she loved most?

But Robert confessed. Why would he confess if he hadn’t done it?

Shayne shoved her questions aside and scanned the restaurant. Indigo walls combined with dull halogen lights made the small space dark and cavernous. Strings of silver stars hanging in the windows filtered out the glare of the noon sun, and Shayne blinked, willing her eyes to adjust to the low light. The air smelled faintly of vinegar and spices. Her stomach rumbled. She hadn’t eaten lunch yet. Maybe once she’d finished with Vivian, she’d grab a bite.

She spotted Vivian seated at an iron-and-faux-wood table in the back corner of the restaurant. Today she wore a mauve blouse with a ruffle around her neck and over her ample bosom. Her hair, yellow and brittle like a doll’s, curled under her chin. The color combination made her look like an Easter egg.

Vivian’s gaze met Shayne’s and a faint smirk pulled at her smudged lips, a sharp gleam shining in her dark eyes. Unease crept up Shayne’s spine as she started toward the woman. Something was off. Vivian looked entirely too pleased with herself.

Shayne sat in the seat opposite her. “Thanks for agreeing to see me.”

Vivian’s smile widened. “Oh, no. Thank you.”

The sarcasm dripping from the older woman’s voice fed Shayne’s growing discomfort. Something was definitely up. Well, whatever it was, she wasn’t going to let herself be drawn into the woman’s games. She’d come here for an interview, and that’s what she planned to get.

She reached into her bag and fished out her notepad and recorder. “Do you mind if I tape our conversation?”

“No tape.” Vivian said, her heavily lined eyes narrowed. “No one can know I spoke to you. Well,” she hesitated as if considering something, then smiled, brilliantly and hard. “Except for Des. You’ll want to tell him we spoke.”

Invisible, icy fingers tiptoed up her spine. Clearly, the woman had some kind of ax to grind with Des and had no intention of giving Shayne an interview. Word must be out within his family he was helping her. Would that cause trouble for him? She hoped not. “I’m afraid I can’t use whatever you won’t tell me on the record. There’s no point in continuing.”

“Are you portraying Gwen as some kind of saint because she died?” Vivian’s voice took on a slightly mocking lilt. “Innocent? The victim?”

“She and her son were gunned down in her own home. Don’t
you
think she’s a victim?” Why did she even bother responding to the woman? Meeting her was obviously a waste of time.

Shayne pushed away from the table and stood, the metal legs of her chair scraping the tile floor. Vivian’s eyes narrowed, her brows pulling together in a frown. “Where are you going?”

“I’m leaving. I came here for information for my book, but if you have nothing I can use…” She shrugged and hauled her bag over her shoulder.

“They’re all the same you know, those Greys. They use people up, feed on them like vampires. Everybody thinks
poor Gwen
, but she was the worst of the lot, the only difference was she bit off more than she could chew when she tried to use Robert.”

“And what exactly was she using him for?”

“To gain control of the businesses, of course.”

Shayne rolled her eyes before she could stop herself. “I was under the impression her mother disowned her when she married.”

“But in the end, Heddi promised her everything if she’d come back, and Gwen took her up on the offer. Two days before he killed her, she told Heddi she would leave Robert and come back to Grey Industries. But I guess Robert had other ideas.” Her mouth curled in a feral smile, her eyes bright with grim delight.

Another version of Gwen’s actions prior to the murder. Though, this one seemed like pure speculation. Still, if Heddi had been putting Gwen and her family through hell, that could explain why Robert would be furious at the idea of Gwen going back to her mother.

But why tell Annie they’d both planned to leave? What if Gwen had told her mother she would leave Robert to stop her from terrorizing them? Maybe let her believe she was falling in line so Heddi wouldn’t suspect Gwen of actually taking her family and leaving town. Why did Robert kill her?

“Was she involved with anyone? Another man?”

“Probably. No one in that family can keep it in their pants. But I guess you know that already.”

Why even ask this woman? Vivian was hardly a reliable source. Time to go. “Well, thanks for meeting with me. I appreciate the insight.”

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and Des is a lot more like his mother than he knows. He made a deal with Heddi about you, you know.”

Her stomach shriveled and knotted. “What kind of deal?”

“He’s using you to get information about your book and passing it on to Heddi so she can shut you down.”

No. Not possible. The horrible woman was looking to start something between her and Des. Probably, because his family had heard he’d agreed to help her, and they wanted to put a stop to it.

Vivian tilted her head and leaned back in her seat. “Why do you think you haven’t had anymore visits from Heddi’s thugs?”

A cold rush swept through Shayne, draining the blood from her face. The woman was right. She hadn’t heard anything from Hudson since her first night, and the men who’d smashed her window hadn’t been back like they’d threatened. Slick fear coated her insides like icy oil.

“How did he get you to trust him?” Vivian’s jovial words, stung like well-aimed darts, pricking her aching heart. “Did he fuck you? Tell you everything you wanted to hear? That’s how they operate to get what they want, and God knows he’d do almost anything to pay Heddi back what his sister owes. Even crawl into bed with a woman he can’t stand.”

Did Des hate her? He certainly hadn’t liked her very much when she’d rented the cabin from him. How could she not have looked deeper into why he’d come around to helping her? She’d been suspicious. Why didn’t she ask questions? Why had she bought into everything he’d told her so quickly?

Because she’d wanted to believe in him.

“Why are you telling me all this?” Shayne asked, her voice thready.

The woman smirked and stood. “That’s not important. And no matter what you might think of me right now, I did you a big favor. These people will destroy you if you give them the chance. Remember that.”

Vivian sauntered away, the clack of her heels on the tile floor reverberating in Shayne’s ears as she stood too stunned to move.

The memory of Des’s hands on her body, his breath whispering against her skin, filled her head. Her stomach lurched, and she locked her jaw to keep herself from dry heaving. Had it all been an act? Had the very idea of touching her repulsed him? And this morning, when they’d talked about his father, the stupid cat’s name, the closeness—had that been part of his game?

One thing was certain. If it was all an act, he deserved a fucking Oscar.

Don’t let it be true. Let it all be the ramblings of a miserable, bitter woman.

Shayne slid out of her car and started toward the cabin, passing Des’s rusted station wagon as she went. Her stomach churned sickly, and her chest ached. She stopped walking, squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her palm to the throbbing pang. She didn’t want to do this, didn’t want confirmation she’d let this man make a complete fool out of her. But what choice did she have?

She opened her eyes, squared her shoulders and started forward again.

After leaving the Starlight, Shayne had gone to the realty office, ready to let Des have it, but the annoyingly chipper receptionist had told her he was out with a client. A small flicker of relief had ignited inside her, some of the tension easing from her taut muscles. With him busy, she’d have some time to gather her thoughts and think about what she wanted to say. But when she’d turned up the driveway, she’d spotted his car, and her stomach had dropped like a stone off a cliff.

Now, she hesitated outside the door, drew a deep breath, and stepped inside.

Des was standing in the kitchen, rooting through the cupboards. He glanced over his shoulder at her, then turned back to what he was doing. “Good, you’re back. I was going to make dinner, but there’s not a whole lot to work with. Though to be fair, my culinary talents center around spaghetti and eggs. I make a mean omelet, though.”

Her throat shriveled at the sound of his light voice, the normalcy of the moment. She had to swallow past the lump before she could speak.
Please, please don’t let it be true
.

“Do you have an agreement with your grandmother to feed her details about my book so she can stop me from writing it, and she’ll let you off the money you owe?”

Des froze, his back to her, head in fridge. Her breath locked in her chest, while she waited for him to respond.

Please, please don’t…

Slowly, he straightened, then turned to face her. All animation gone from his expression, his skin pale, and his brows drawn tightly over his dark eyes.

Oh God, it was true.

Brilliant pain sliced her chest, stealing her breath. Her knees trembled as if they might give out altogether, but she gripped the edge of the table and steadied herself. For a long moment, she stood staring at the floor, focusing her attention on the stained rug. Blood pounded in her ears, and her face burned. Then, on the heels of the pain, a blessed numbness followed.

She lifted her gaze, and met his stunned stare. “Get your things and get out.”

Chapter Seventeen

“A passing patrol car spotted a young girl at the side of the road, clutching a toddler in her arms. This was the first indication something at 4 River Road was very wrong.”

—excerpt from
Blood and Bone
by Shayne Reynolds

Shayne held Des’s gaze, her words hanging in the air. For a moment, no one moved. The room itself seemed to hold its breath. Des rushed down the short set of stairs toward her, eyes intent, jaw knotted. But she held up her hand and stopped him in his tracks.

“I can explain,” he said.

She snorted. He might have broken her heart and crushed her dignity, but at least she still had her sense of humor. “Are you kidding? Do you honestly expect me to believe a thing that comes out of your mouth?”

“No, I don’t, but I need you to listen to me. You don’t know the whole story.” The words tumbled fast from his mouth, edged with desperation, maybe panic. He probably was panicked. She’d discovered his plans before he’d finished the job. He and his psychotic grandmother hadn’t managed to kill her book yet. At least, she didn’t think they had. The reality was she had no idea how much damage he’d done.

“Did you or did you not make that agreement with your grandmother?”

He hesitated, then sighed, shoulders sagging. “I did.”

A sharp pang pierced her heart. What a fool she’d been to leave herself open, to let him hurt her like this. “I must be the stupidest woman alive. I should have known you weren’t on the level. You went from threatening to sue me to offering your help overnight. God, I should have seen right through you.”

He took a step toward her, and she stepped back. His features tightened with what looked all too close to pain. “I made the deal with Heddi, but I never told her anything. I just said I would so she’d back off.”

Even now she wanted to believe him. Wanted to believe all of this was just some big misunderstanding. And why? Because he was a good lay? Because it would assuage her wounded ego? “My God, you’re good. I have to give you that. You are one hell of an actor. How were you able to stand touching me given the way you feel about me?”

“You have no idea what I feel for you,” he ground out, his voice rough.

“Or did the thrill of ruining my work and humiliating me get you off?”

His eyes flashed. “I would never humiliate you.”

Fresh fury welled in her chest. “Really? Because having your aunt drop this particular bombshell was pretty fucking humiliating.”

“Vivian told you.” He rolled his eyes and shook his head. “I should have known.”

“Well, that makes two of us. Don’t worry, though. She didn’t give me anything I can use for the book.”

“I don’t give a shit about the book.”

“Wow, I’m surprised you were willing to take one for the team the way you did for something you don’t give a shit about. But putting yourself through this wasn’t about the book. You wanted to pay your sister’s debt.”

“Christ it wasn’t like that,” he said, his voice gritty. “Everything that happened between us was real. Everything we did. Everything I said to you.”

He reached for her, but she shied away.

He swallowed hard, and cleared his throat. “Please, please, please Shayne. You have to listen to me. I’ll tell you everything, I was going to anyway, I swear.”

“I can’t believe you now.” No matter how badly she wanted to. “I can’t believe anything you say to me.”

Her voice hitched on the last word, and she clamped her mouth shut. The anger swirling inside her was slipping away, leaving her tired and weepy. But she’d be damned before she shed a tear in front of him. She grasped the thin shreds of her pride and held on for dear life. “Go, Des. Please.”

He reached for her again, and she moved away.

“Don’t touch me.” She’d crumble if his skin brushed hers, shatter into a million pieces. “Just looking at you right now makes my skin crawl.”

He paled and looked away. Direct hit, but she didn’t feel good about it. After this mess, she couldn’t feel good about anything they’d done together. Every memory, every word and every touch…tainted. “Please go.”

“Yeah. Okay.” He nodded slowly, but didn’t look at her.

He grabbed his few belongings from the bedroom and bathroom, dumped them into his bag and started for the door, but hesitated with his hand on the knob. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the truth.”

Hell, no one was sorrier than she was. She might have told him, but she didn’t dare trust her voice. Her eyes stung with unshed tears. The back of her nose tingled. If she opened her mouth, the dam in her throat would give way, tearing from her precarious grip what little dignity she had left.