“How were we supposed to know that? You could have mentioned it was a sting operation,” Sonny challenged.
Likewise, Detective Goins joined the conversation. “Did you tell anyone who was at the meeting?”
“No.” Jake pulled his hand through his hair.
Goins let out a breath. “Good. For the love of God, don’t. Their lives are at risk.”
Focusing on calm, Malroy continued, “Look, Mr. Spegal. It’s not so much a matter of secrecy. The Bishops know there’s an investigation. However, they didn’t know we were this close. You didn’t give us time to set up, to get you, and our friends protection. Your...eagerness has set us back.”
“I’m sorry, but you didn’t give us any clear instructions. I was under the impression you wanted a confrontation.”
“Me too,” Sonny said.
“Not until we were ready,” Goins countered.
Malroy took charge. “I guess, now, we’ll have to get ready. Who did you talk to?”
“Mr. Bishop, his brother, and his daughter.”
“Tigris Bishop?”
“Yes.”
“Shit. That girl is unreasonable, and she wields some power.”
Jake asked his most pressing question. “What about this death threat?”
There was a pause. “Did they say they were going to kill you?”
“No. No. It was weird.” He turned to Sonny.
“Said they were protecting us.”
“That’s right,” Jake continued. “After all the hell, they didn’t care about us staying. She said, they were protecting us, but they were going to stop, and we were going to die.”
“Fuck.”
Malroy said it and Goins repeated it.
“What’s that mean?” Jake raised his voice.
Sonny sat forward.
There was another long pause.
“Detectives, what does that mean?”
“It means, in all likelihood, for whatever reason, at some point, you were already injected. Most likely, they are planning to withhold the antidote.”
“Fuck.”
Macy chose that moment to return to her front porch. She held a bottle of Everclear grain alcohol and two tumblers. “Would you gentlemen like that drink now?”
DYLAN RODE. THE WIND in his face soothed him. The sun was starting to set and the sky was a speculator orange and rose. He needed this. He needed the road and the freedom. He needed the fog to drift from his mind.
Her hair was curly and soft. He imagined the bouncy spirals disheveled and wild, first thing in the morning or after intense lovemaking...with him... He shook his head clear.
Her lips were perfect. Full and warm and luscious...she was so eager to kiss him. He could taste her now... Stop. Focus.
His brain didn’t want to focus. He wanted to hold Nile. He wanted to touch her and be in her... Damn it.
He didn’t know anything about her, but she controlled him. He hadn’t ridden an hour and already she was calling him back. Dylan was in process of turning around before he realized it. He turned on the radio to shut his brain off and thought it more than a coincidence when he heard the first cords of One Head Light. Jacob Dylan’s voice spilled out of his Bluetooth.
Was that a message? It felt like a message. Dylan hadn’t given Jake much thought after he left them. Partly because he was angry, and partly because he’d been fantasizing about Nile for the last forty-five minutes. Regardless of the mess Jake and Sonny made, he couldn’t leave them.
...And, he wasn’t ready to leave her.
Chapter Eighteen
Tigris knocked once and let herself in. “You okay?”
Nile raised her head and spoke in monotones. “I’m good.”
“Oh, yeah, you look wonderful.” Tigris sat on the bed and stroked her sister’s hair. “Want to talk?”
Nile sighed. She did want to talk. “What’s to say? I wish he could stay, but I’d rather not have him die.”
“I’m not judging, but given you’ve known him for a day and a half, you’re rocking some heavy emotions.”
Nile sat up. “Tell me about it. I’m so confused. Why do I care? I don’t even know him. But...but, I feel different, special when he’s around.”
“It’s called a crush. Gets you all hot and steamy-dreamy.”
Nile smiled and Tigris was glad.
“Is this a crush? Do I look steamy-dreamy to you?”
“No. You look like shit. Moping and pining is not your style.”
“It’s not.” Nile hugged her pillow. “But, apparently, Dylan is. He’s got real estate in my head. That scares the crap out of me.”
“Don’t let it. If he’s in your head, it’s for a reason.”
The girls sat facing each other, feet curled beneath them.
“What about Jordan?”
“Why are you worried about Jordan? Jordan will probably help him because you never pick favorites.”
“I’m not picking favorites. I’m not picking anyone.”
“I’ll help him.”
“You can’t. Not yet, anyway.”
“I can kick Jordan’s butt if he doesn’t do the right thing. That will help.”
Nile laughed and then sobered. “It would. But honestly, the right thing is to get him out of here. They are not all going to make it...I’m scared, Tigris.”
Tigris hugged her. “Me too. But, we always get it right. Hold on to that.”
DYLAN WAS CLOSE WHEN Jake called him. “Yep.”
“Hey, buddy. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for shit to go south like this.”
Dylan couldn’t hold on to his anger. “It’s okay. You didn’t twist my arm to get me down here. None of us knew what we were getting into.”
“Yeah. About that.”
“What about it?”
“Look, man. I’m sorry. I am so sorry.” Jake broke down and wept.
That unnerved Dylan. “What’s going on, Jake?”
“We thought we were safe. Those agents told us we were safe. But they had us. Those assholes had us.”
Dylan didn’t interrupt, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.
“Somehow, without us realizing it, they poisoned us. They got to us before we did anything. They don’t care about us, Dylan. They want to watch us die.”
Everything replayed in Dylan’s head at once. Get out, get out, get out... The cupcake...almost everything he remembered eating came from her hand...hers or her family’s... Of course, they were already contaminated...or was he? ‘...But after tonight, I won’t help you...’ The cupcake was an antidote. Nile was on the rescue. He needed to see her. To Jake, he said, “I’ll be there soon.”
OUTSIDE THE BISHOP mansion, Dylan called Nile.
No answer.
He sent her a text.
No reply.
He took his chances and knocked on the front door.
The housekeeper turned him away.
He sat on his bike wondering where to put his frustration and which of the multitudinous windows Nile was hiding behind.
“Psst...psst...hey...” Mackey’s not-so-quiet whispering came from beside the fountain in the center of the circular drive.