Ronan leaves before we can answer, slamming the door behind him. A curl of winter wind moves through the living room and ruffles my hair.
“What the fuck was that?” Cash’s eyes are pinned to the front door.
I count to three and get up off the couch. Ronan maneuvers his car around in our driveway. The second he’s finished he accelerates toward the main road. My heartbeat is lodged in my throat. “This is bad.”
“Is it, though?” Cash comes to stand next to me at the window. “He left us alone. That’s an improvement.”
“He left us alone for what? Ronan’s been here because Caroline thinks Dad is the worst threat to the family. They both think he’s working for the Morellis. What bigger threat could there be, other than—” My voice dies. The words shrink until they pop out of existence. “Does your car have gas in it?”
“Yeah.” Cash glares after Ronan’s taillights. “Wait—are you planning to leave? Ronan just said there’d be hell to pay, Hales. We’re already in hell. You want to make this worse?”
I’m already grabbing one of Petra’s abandoned coats from the last time she lived here and pulling it on. “Where are your keys?” A pair of winter boots are the only footwear in sight, so I put those on too. “Cash. Keys.”
“Where are you going?” My dad has chosen to enter the conversation, but he’s blinking, confused.
“Stay here, Daddy.” I reach into Cash’s coat pocket and my fingers meet metal. “You too, Cash.”
“No.” Cash comes to my side and pulls the coat out of my hands before I can get the keys free. “I’m going with you.”
“I’m going to Leo’s house.”
He meets my eyes, his jaw tight. There isn’t time to argue. There isn’t time to put together a full presentation on why I am not letting Ronan get to Leo like this. “What the hell happened to you?” Cash pitches his voice low, so Dad can’t hear. “He’s a Morelli. You should let Ronan kill him. At least then no contract with him would be binding.”
“Are you coming or not? Because if you’re not, give me the keys and get the fuck out of my way.”
Cash blinks first. He shrugs his coat on, cursing under his breath. “I’m driving.”
“Great. Let’s go.” I run back to the couch and bend down to kiss my dad’s cheek. “We’ll be back soon. Stay here. Stay safe. Don’t answer the door.” I’m straightening up when he puts his arms around me and pulls me back for a hug.
“I love you, honey.”
“I love you too.” I swallow unshed tears and follow Cash to the garage. He hefts the door open and backs out. I’m buckled in by the time he’s done pulling it closed. “We have to hurry. Please. Go as fast as you can.”
It’s a good thing Cash is the one at the wheel. My hands shake all the way to Leo’s house. I keep thinking we’re catching up to Ronan, but every car turns out to be the wrong one. Night is falling by the time Cash steers us down the last long road. There are two tire tracks in pristine snow. No one else has come this way. They also haven’t gone. My pulse is out of control.
“Call the police,” Cash says, and I do it, barely registering the conversation. I hang up just in time.
“The gate is on the left. Slow down. Slow down. Here.”
Cash pulls in, and we both stare up at the stone pillars. The gate is here, technically. It’s also swinging open. The locking mechanism has been blown apart. “Okay.” Cash nudges the car forward. I hold my breath. The pickets of the gate catch on the front bumper. A little acceleration, and they let us go.
Ronan’s car is parked in the circle drive. Cash pulls up behind it. Cold sweat breaks out under my clothes. I could already be too late.
“You’re not going in by yourself.” He has his neck bent to look up at Leo’s house. “That place is a nightmare.”
I put a hand on Cash’s shoulder, and he straightens up to look me in the eye. “You have to go home now.”
“What?” Horror on his face, in his eyes. “What the fuck, Hales? No. I’m not leaving you here with a pair of killers.”
“Think about it.” I don’t want to think about it. “If Ronan finds you here, you’re screwed. You know he’ll shoot you. He’ll shoot anyone who threatens the family image. Dad is alone right now. He can’t be alone. I will be okay.”
My heartbeat marks the time I’m losing.
“No. No.” Cash grips the wheel. “You can’t ask me to do this. You—you at least have to wait for the cops to get here.”
I pull him into a big, tight hug. “I’m telling you to do it, and you don’t have a choice. Go home to Dad and wait for me.” I let him go and scramble out of the car, then bang my fist against the window. “Go.”
Cash slaps a hand down on the wheel. “Fuck,” he shouts, but he reaches for the gear shift. I don’t have time to watch him leave. I run up the wide stone steps and find the front door cracked open.
“Fuck,” I whisper, and go inside.
The silence inside is like death. Like a tomb. It’s so deafeningly still that with my breath steadied I can hear voices. They’re coming from the hall to the right. That’s where Leo’s office is. I step out of my boots, abandoning them in the foyer. No wet squeaks to announce my arrival. At the threshold to the hall, I abandon the coat, too. My clothes seem too simple for this moment. Leggings and a long shirt. I should be wearing armor.
Ronan is speaking as I approach Leo's office.
"—blood. There's going to be scarring. She’s looking at several reconstructive surgeries.”
“Good,” Leo answers.
“The balls on you. I always knew Morellis were psychopaths, but whipping Caroline Constantine over a grudge makes you seem terrifying. Or like you have a death wish. Guess it’s both.”
There’s a long, strained silence. During that silence, my pulse jumps into my ears and bangs itself around. The pieces of this puzzle assemble themselves. The older woman. The scars on Leo’s back. Caroline. It was Caroline, and I don’t have to question it. I know how ruthless she can be. How cold. I’ve been giving her too much credit. I thought there were lines she wouldn't cross, but Leo was fourteen. I discover I’m holding my hand over my eyes and take it back down. No crying. Clearly, Leo has made things even between them.
Clearly, Ronan is the only one who’s meant to know.
“Are you almost done?” Ronan asks. “I’ve got other jobs today.”
I inch myself close enough to see through the door. Ronan’s back is to me. He has both feet planted and a gun in one hand. He taps it impatiently against his jeans.
Leo is leaning against his desk.
I breathe in air that feels like knives. No—it’s not the air, but the distance between us that’s sharp enough to cut. The empty air is a travesty. And Ronan is an abomination. I know I should be watching him, waiting for the right moment to act, but I can’t take my eyes off Leo.
He’s in the same golden firelight as he was the first night I came here. It draws him in rich color, though his clothes are dark. A black shirt that looks like mine. It’s not like mine. I’ve touched his shirts. They feel so expensive. It’s only now, in this horrible moment, that I connect his highly specific wardrobe to something more than money and status. Soft shirts for damaged skin. He can’t bear to have anything else touch his scars.