More important? The guilt card is tossed down, not sixty seconds into the family intervention. Already, we’re playing dirty. Well done.
“Did you kill Brett?” Upon hearing my sister’s bland tone, my head snaps back.
“Huh? No. Of course not.” In what alternate reality does any of this make sense?
“Miss, are you hurt anywhere?” That’s the paramedic again, no doubt trying to insert some sanity into the scene.
Good luck, dude.Wordlessly, I slide my arm from my sleeve. He pokes. I wince.
Frowning, he points inside the well-equipped interior. “You’ll want a doctor to examine you. Go ahead. Hop on the gurney.”
Calculating how old I’ll be by the time I pay off this debt, I shake my head. “No thanks. My friend can drop me off at urgent care. Youdohave those in Vermont, right?”
“Oh no you don’t. She is not going to some half-assed facility.” Didee, the loudest of my sisters, jabs a finger into the guy’s white uniformed chest.
I shove her back. “You don’t get a say.”
Mom, who’s been quietly plotting, taps the same medic on the shoulder. “I’m her guardian. She’s coming with us.”
When I open my mouth to point out the lie, she pivots to a Freud-ish bearded man standing behind her. “See what I mean, Dr. Wiesman?”
He nods solemnly, like I agreed to some random diagnosis. “I’ll be sure to inform the judge of her condition.”
What the actual fuck—
“Jesus Christ, you brought a shrink?” I yell. “What is wrong with you people?”
My outburst draws the FBI’s attention. I assume it’s Kade’s friend, Hunt, who strolls up, eyes flicking from the gurney to the shouting match. “What’s going on?”
The man attending to my health throws up his hands. “She doesn’t want to go to a hospital. I can’t force her.”
My dad and brothers grab my arms like this is some medieval siege and I’m the Holy Grail.
While the parking lot closes in, the gravel crunches beneath my boots. If someone doesn’t back off, I swear I’m bolting into the woods.
As I’m about to take my chances with the psycho stalker, Sheriff O'Malley reappears, slipping through the mob. Turning his back to them, he shoots me a quick wink.
“If you don’t want to be checked by a doctor, miss,” he says smoothly, “I’ll have to arrest you.”
“Thank God.” I thrust out my hands. “Cuff me, please.”
Chapter 15
Kade
I’ve already used both my plastic ties, so I borrow a set from Hunt. Once I’ve cinched my prisoner’s outstretched wrists, I scan the lot.
“Where's Griff?”
Ass to his heels, scratching behind my dog's ears, my brother-in-law shrugs. “Haven’t seen him. Probably pissed we stole his limelight.”
He lowers his voice so Briana can’t hear. “I thought you said you believed her?”
“I do.” I’m about to explain that I’m doing her a solid when the attorney steps closer.
He shoves his wire-rimmed glasses up his nose. “She is not to say a word unless I’m in the room.”
“You can’t insist on anything. I didn’t hire you.” Briana elbows me in the ribs. “Tell him.”
