A Whole New Crowd (28 page)

“How long ago?”

“Maybe five years? I think. I was stupid, Taryn. Jace recruited me when he was young. I took him as a real patient. He built a relationship with me. He came in with broken ribs, bruises all over him. It was
obvious that he was getting beaten at home. I’m supposed to report that, but he asked me not to. He told me it wasn’t what I thought and that he was getting out. I think I was worried that if I reported anything, something would happen like—”

I nodded. The pieces were beginning to connect and I said for him, “Like the girl who went back home and was killed. You thought Jace would get hurt like that.”

“Jace was just a kid to me.”

“Yeah.” I picked up my knife and stood it upright. The tip rested on the table, grinding into it. “He manipulated you.”

“Yeah.” His head bobbed slowly. “I can see that now. I think they picked me because of what happened with the foster girl.” He looked at me again. A shine of tears in his eyes. They were sitting there, but they never spilled. “He talked to me about Brian, his brother, and about you. He talked about their dad. How their mom left them. I was emotionally involved before I realized it. I cared for Jace like he was my own son. I started talking to him about Mandy and Austin. I told him about the other girl. Her name was Cara. God,” he laughed bitterly, “I can’t believe I even told him her name, but he knew. Thinking back, he never reacted. He knew all of it. He probably knew everything about my children.”

I gritted my teeth.

He kept going, “A lawsuit was brought against me. I messed up in a surgery, and the case against me didn’t look good. I was going to lose my practice. Jace picked up that something was wrong, and I told him about it.” He paused for a moment. Then another moment. I sat and waited. When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse. “He took care of it. Just like that. The case against me was gone. I didn’t know what he did. I didn’t want to know, but it was gone and I still had my future.”

“That’s when you started working for him?”

He nodded. “It started with one prescription, for his brother. Then his cousin. Then his friend. Then there was a list of five every day. I panicked. I didn’t want to keep working for him.”

He stopped, and I waited.

“Then the money started coming in. He paid me in the beginning, but it was nothing compared to what he paid me after I tried to stop. They dumped money in my bank account. If I had gone to the police, I would’ve looked guilty. I already looked guilty with the lawsuit. I still don’t know what Jace did to get the case dropped against me. I don’t know if I could handle that on my conscious.”

“This kept going?”

He nodded. “Years. I got in so deep. I was too far in and there was no way out and then I got a call one day. Someone died and the overdose came from a prescription I wrote. I didn’t know the person, but I had to pretend I did.”

I frowned. “Who called you?”

“It was a family member. They didn’t know who I was. They were trying to figure out how their sister got a bottle of pills when their family doctor had referred her to a treatment facility.” He stopped again. His breathing was becoming labored and his hand went to the counter. It was balled in a fist, but he forced his fingers to flatten. “I panicked. I hung up the phone and called Jace. He—”

He cut himself off.

“Let me guess.” My tone was wry. “He took care of it again.”

He nodded. “The protocol was that I was supposed to be eliminated. One of the patients they sent to me dropped a notebook, and there were rules written inside. He came back the next hour in a panic looking for it, but I lied. I told him he hadn't left anything or if he did, the garbage had been taken out so he shouldn’t worry. He still did. I could see the fear in his eyes. The next time I saw him was in the morgue. He had my card in his pocket so I was asked to identify his body.”

My stomach clenched, but it was faint. As he kept going, a layer of dirt was laid on top of another, then another, then another. There were so many layers, I was growing numb.

“Keep going.”

“Yeah.” He let out a sigh. His shoulders were slumped so far down that his forehead was almost resting on the counter now. He looked like half the man he had been when he first sat down. “Jace took care of it. I don’t know what he did, what he could’ve done, but he did something. There were no emails in the morning. No more patients sent to me. It was like I had been let go. I didn’t work for them anymore.” He shook his head. “I didn’t ask Jace because I didn’t want to know. I’m ashamed of myself. I can barely look at my own children when I’m home. I can barely handle being in the same room as my wife.”

“Then Jace came to you about me?”

He nodded. “I was golfing with a few of my friends when he showed up. I almost pissed my pants when I saw him driving towards me in a golf cart. He didn’t give me a choice. He handed me your file, said I needed to adopt you, and we were supposed to move. There was even a back story of what I could tell Shelly if she needed convincing.”

“That Brian was violent.” I remembered Austin’s words.

“Once I said that, Shelly was all-in. You were her mission. She wanted to save your life, whether you wanted to come along or not.”

I glanced at the boxes now. “You were supposed to move?”

“That was the other deal. As soon as we got the adoption papers signed, we were supposed to move. Jace was furious when we didn’t go, but I couldn’t convince Shelly to go. We didn’t want to argue where Mandy and Austin could overhear, so we left. We’d go to a hotel and check in and just fight about it.”

“Those were some of your trips?”

“Some of them. I’d get another reminder from Jace that we had to move, so I would call her to meet me. She didn’t want to move. That was the one thing she put her foot down about. She didn’t want to upset Mandy or Austin’s social lives. She said their well-being was too shaky and she wouldn’t do any more emotional harm to our children.” A hollow laugh came out of him, sounding like it was being dragged from the bottom of his throat. “I told her the truth. Once the adoption set-up came out, I told her most of it.”

“What sealed the deal for her to agree to move?”

“Jace threatened to kill Mandy.”

I felt as if a knife had been plunged into my gut. It was invisible, but it was there. I could imagine Jace being in the room, smiling as he twisted the knife to the side. Hearing the same threat he gave me from Kevin had me breaking out in a cold sweat. I had to ask the next question. “When?”

“They’re already gone.”

My eyes leapt to his. “What?”

His eyes grew guarded. “Shelly took Mandy to Austin’s tournament, but they aren’t coming back. Movers are coming tomorrow, and I’m bringing everything with us. I wanted to take you with us. Shelly was supposed to convince you to come, but I can’t make you go. I’m sorry, Taryn.”

They were gone. It was already done. The knife was yanked out and shoved back into me, but a part of me no longer felt the pain.

“I haven’t heard from Jace for a while, not since his brother was killed.” He paused. “I’m assuming that’s who that was? Your ex-boyfriend? Unless that was a lie as well.”

“No,” I whispered. “Brian died.”

“I’m sorry about that too. I am, but we can’t stay. I believe Jace. I know what he’s capable of. After I leave, none of us are ever coming back.”

I’d never see them again. Then I asked one last question, “Was the adoption real? Am I really your adopted daughter?”

“No.” He didn’t look away. There was no hesitation. There was no doubt. “It was faked for Shelly’s sake. None of the documents are real. There was no real background check. Shelly just thinks it went fast, but it was all a lie.”

I nodded.

I was the lie.

Knock, knock

Tray and I turned to each other. We shared a look.

Knock, knock

“Tray! You in there?”

He ignored him and asked me, “Are you ready?”

I nodded. We had gone to a hotel after I left Kevin. There’d been only one move we could do and Tray pulled out his phone. I watched as he pressed the numbers, and then heard him say, “Chance?”

He had called the DEA. It wasn’t a long conversation with his brother. Chance told us to go to a hotel as a precaution and Tray looked at me. I already knew where I wanted to stay. “We’ll go to the hotel on Sixth Street in Pedlam.”

Tray frowned, but relayed the information. He added, “I’ll text the room number.” Then he was silent for a moment before he murmured, “Got it. Okay.”

As he hung up, I asked, “What was that last part?”

“He told me a code to use in case someone intercepts the text.”

“Does he think that’s a real possibility?”

“I don’t know.” He put the phone down and turned the car towards Pedlam. “He said not to go back home, just to be safe. I think they’re operating under the ‘better safe than sorry’ theory.”

Knock, knock

I was pulled back from my thoughts as Tray’s brother tapped on the door again. Tray went to let his brother into the room, and I stayed by the window.

Chance Evans was an older version of Tray. They had the same hazel eyes, dirty blonde hair, and chiseled cheekbones, but Chance looked more weathered. He was slightly bigger in build as well. His shoulders were a tiny bit broader, but Tray was more defined. After they embraced, Chance gazed at me for a moment. It was direct, as if seeing right through me, with a hint of caution and suspicion at the same time. I felt like I was being interrogated without any questions asked, and I straightened to my fullest height because of it. My eyes narrowed and my chin lowered in a challenge. This was my life. Gray was my friend and I wasn’t going to let a stranger cast blame on me.

After a full minute of studying me, his hand clapped Tray’s shoulder and he gently shook him. “Are you two nuts?”

Tray frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“This is a Panther hotel.” Chance swung his suspicious eyes my way again. The caution was gone. He did blame me. “I know my little brother had no idea, but you did. He said you picked it.”

I turned and leaned my back against the wall. My arms crossed over my chest and one of my eyebrows arched. “Yeah?”

“Taryn?”

I ignored the soft undertone of betrayal from Tray’s voice. “Jace Lanser is missing. He’s the one I want.”

Chance narrowed his eyes, turning back to his brother. “You said a friend was kidnapped. You never said it was connected to Jace Lanser.”

“Is there a difference?”

“Jace Lanser is a big fucking deal. He’s in a different league. Do you know what you’ve gotten yourself into?” He swung around to me. “What was your agenda coming here?”

“It’s a cheap hotel. No one will look here for us.” But that wasn’t the full truth. I didn’t want to look at Tray. When he asked, it had been a split second decision, but I knew I needed to follow it through. I could feel the hurt from him.

“Bullshit.”

I shrugged and turned back to the window. “It’s the closest hotel to Pedlam’s school.”
Liar!
My conscience knew I was still holding back.

He shook his head. “You two are going to explain everything, and I mean everything. I want to know when you wipe your ass to the real reason this hotel was picked.” He sent the last statement to me.

A good person would’ve flushed with guilt. I did nothing. There was a good goddamn reason I picked it. Tray gestured to me. “Do you want to start?”

I did. I told him everything. He got all the details, even the events with my fake family and even the conversation from Dee and Kevin. I didn’t hold back any of the exchanges I had with Brian or with Jace. By the time I was finished, Chance Evans had a different look to his stare. There was still suspicion, but he looked wary now. He said, “How do I know this whole thing wasn’t a set-up and you’re not working with Lanser to flush me out?”

“What do you mean?”

He pointed to Tray. “Is this whole thing an elaborate plot to flush us out? If it is, Tray doesn’t know anything. I do. If you’re a plant and you’re working for Jace, you take that message back to him. You got it?”

“You think I’m a narc?” Acid dripped from my tone and I stood upright, moving away from the wall where I was leaning. My arms unfolded and went to my side. I didn’t like being called a traitor.

He moved forward, his arm muscles flexing at the same time. “No. I called you a plant. This whole thing could be a set-up. So you tell me. You brought my little brother to a hotel that the Panthers own. You don’t think I know what that means? If Lanser’s alive and kicking, they’ve already told him you’re here. Now they know where my little brother and I are too.” He glanced at Tray, whose eyebrows were bunched forward. Chance turned back to me. “I don’t buy your bullshit that it’s the closest hotel to the Pedlam School.”

Ice was forming in my blood. The more he spoke, the more accusations he sent my way, only made me more firm in my belief. He wasn’t there to help. He was there to interrogate, blame, and I had a sneaking suspicion he was going to take his brother with him when he left. Casting Tray a swift look, I wondered if this room would be the last I’d share with him. I had no idea what was going to happen after this conversation, but I knew my destination. Whether he helped or not, I was going to that school. I was going to break in and I was going to find my friend.

I had no idea how I was going to get out, but I had to try.

“Taryn?” Tray asked softly as he moved to stand beside his brother. Suspicion had formed in the depths of his eyes too.

I shook my head and bit out a laugh. “He’s right.”

Chance’s eyes got big.

Tray jerked backwards like I had hit him.

I added, “I picked this hotel for a reason. I want Jace to know I’m here. I want him to come to me. I have to try.”

“Try?”

I didn’t dare look away from Tray. I moved closer to him and softened my voice, “Tray, you heard Dee. They looked everywhere for Jace. If he was around, they would’ve seen him. Jace knows Gray. He would’ve gone out to see what he wanted. The only place they didn’t search was the school.”

“What’s with this school?” Chance asked.

I turned to him. I felt rushed. I needed to keep appealing to Tray to repair the small damage done by his brother, but this was a DEA agent in the same room as me. I needed to appeal for his help too. “They did renovations over the summer. They changed things and now there are cameras everywhere. They have guards too, guards with guns.”

Tray told him, “We were in the building. We pranked it one night.” He lifted a hand towards me. “She helped us get in, so if Lanser is using the building for something, it’s got to be in the basement. We didn’t see anything on the main floors and I think we would’ve.”

“Stun guns? Pepper spray?” Chance asked me.

“Guns. Handguns and a couple of them had rifles.”

“How do you know this?”

“Because I scoped it out one night. What school has guards like that? You have guards like that if there’s something inside you want to protect. What’s around here that’s so precious?” I shook my head. “Drugs. We’re in the center of the country. I’m not stupid. Something’s changing. It’s why Jace wanted me gone. He didn’t want me to get involved or he didn’t want me to find something, and he knows me. He knows I’ll get in wherever he doesn’t want me.”

“Why?” Chance narrowed his eyes and tilted his head, reassessing me. “What’s so special about you?”

“I’m a thief.” I flinched at my words. “I
was
a thief. I can get in wherever I want.”

“Yeah?” He lifted his chin. “I’ve known a lot of criminals and a lot of people who grew up hard like you. They didn’t have any special criminal skills like that. Where’d you learn yours?”

My stomach clenched, and I avoided Tray’s gaze as I answered, “Because Jace Lanser is the one who taught me.”

No one said anything after that. The ball of anxiety that was in my chest dropped to my stomach. The longer I waited for Tray to say something, the lower that ball moved in me. It was almost to the floor when he said, “You never told me that.”

Regret seared through me. “I didn’t tell anyone.”

“It would’ve changed things.”

“It shouldn’t have.”

“You said Jace was like family, but I didn’t believe how much.” He shook his head and turned away. “It’s why you’re so mad. It’s why you want to hurt him so bad, it’s because you still care about him.” He jabbed a finger at the door. “What if he walks through there? What if he comes in here to talk to you? What then? You’ve been saying how much you want to hurt him, but what if it’s not to hurt him? I think you want to see him one last time. You want to see if the guy you loved like family is still inside him. Don’t you? This is all about reconnecting with him, isn’t it?”

NO!
My head screamed, but I couldn’t talk. I couldn’t move. My feet were glued in place and my body wouldn’t move. I was paralyzed, but I wanted to shake my head. No, no, no. A scream was building inside me. My body was betraying me. Tray was looking at me, waiting for my denial. I needed to reassure him, but it wouldn’t come out. The longer I couldn’t talk, the more I felt him pulling away from me. He didn’t move, but the distance was growing.

“Oh my god.”

“NO!” Finally. It burst out of me.

Tray moved back another step, shaking his head. “Oh my god. That’s it, isn’t it? Do you love him?” I could see the wheels turning in his head, but my words weren’t forming. I couldn’t get them out fast enough. Turning his back to me, he murmured, “Dee said that Brian thought Jace was obsessed with you, but that wasn’t it. Brian was jealous for a reason. There was a connection between you, wasn’t there?” He turned back to me. The hurt was so apparent in his eyes. He added, his voice so damn soft, “You didn’t even know yourself, did you? Did you know that you love him?”

It was like a waking nightmare. I couldn’t stop it from happening and I had no idea why. I was frozen in place.

“Taryn,” his voice dropped to a whisper, “I have to go. I have to get out of here.”

“Tray—” I gasped out and lunged for him, but it was too late. The door closed on me and I was staring into the wood. I heard him walk away. Reaching for the door handle, Chance said from behind me, “I wouldn’t.”

I turned around. “Why?”

“You hesitated.”

I flinched.

He laughed. “The real answer is the silence. Any smart guy knows that. You didn’t say yes, but the truth was that you never said no.”

“I froze. I was surprised.”

Still chuckling, he shook his head and took off his jacket. As he did, two shoulder holsters lifted in the air and he reached back to take the guns out. One was left on the table by the door. He placed the other one on the bedside table. He draped his jacket over the back of a chair. “Now.” He pulled the chair out more and sat down. “Since my brother is gone, why don’t you walk me through where you think your friend is being held.”

I didn't want to talk to him; I needed to go after Tray, but I said, “I don’t know where.”

“You said the school?”

“Yes.” I clipped my head in a nod, but I couldn’t look away from the door. I wanted him to come back through it. He needed to come back to me.

“Yoo hoo.” He snapped his fingers, tearing my gaze away. He had sat at the table and gestured to the opposite chair. “Tray needs to think. When he gets hurt, he won’t listen. He closes up and then he’ll weigh everything in his mind. When he’s ready for some answers, he’ll seek you out. It’s pointless. Trust me.” He lifted his lip up in a mocking grin. “I’m just like him.”

He waited until I crossed the room and sat down, then asked, “So Tray said something about the basement?”

My eyes never left that door. “No. I’ve been down there.”

“Then what was renovated?”

“I don’t know—”

“Hey!” He clapped his hands to get my attention this time. A fierce scowl formed on his lips. “Pay attention. I don’t give a shit what lovey-dovey thing you have going on with my brother. Your friend is missing. No matter what mixed-up emotions you have for Jace Lanser, you can’t deny that he’s dangerous. Sal Galverson is dangerous. If your friend is with him, his life is either over or going to be over.”

I checked back in. He was right. Gray came first now. “The building was the same, but there was added security so they must’ve built something underneath the building.”

“All right.” He stood and retrieved a laptop. “Listen to me.”

I was.

“I need you to leave this room.”

I opened my mouth, about to question him, but he held a hand up. I closed my mouth.

He added, “Do not go after Tray. I mean it. Give him space. The sooner he thinks over everything, the sooner he’ll come back for answers. Now, having said that,” he pulled out his phone and gestured to the computer, “I have to call this in. I didn’t come with my team. I thought my brother was exaggerating, but since this is dealing with Jace Lanser and Sal Galverson, I have to run the entire op through my supervisor first.”