“My bad. I’m waiting for a message.” Salv pulls his phone out.
“Let’s catch up after this.” Mason grabs my attention back. “We can talk in private—”
“What the fuck?” Salv shouts, catching us off guard.
His hazel eyes stare down in horror at his phone before looking up at me. Anger is slowly replaced with something else. Something that looks a lot like pity.
“What is it?” Mason asks.
As soon as the question is out of his mouth, Mason and Kaz’s phones chime. They both pull theirs out and check their phones.
My phone chimes next. I quickly retrieve mine out of my pocket. The text message from the unknown number is followed by a picture that hasn’t loaded yet. I read the text.
Unknown Number:I wonder what they will think of you now that they know your nasty truth. Oh, by the way, I sent this to your pretty wife too.
My heart races to the point that I think it may beat out of my chest. I go to the picture attached to the message. It’s an image of a journal entry. The moment I see the handwriting, I know exactly where it’s from. In plain view, Howard talks about the first time he touched me.
Bile rises up my throat. I make it to the trashcan in Mason’s office just in time to empty my stomach.
Around me, I hear voices. They all sound as if they are talking from a distance. The most prominent one is Mason.
“I want this number traced, and that picture erased…I don’t care how difficult it is. Get the shit done,” Mason snarls into his phone.
“Nic, look at me.” Salv is standing over me. He goes to touch me, and I pull away from him.
They know. They all know. They can see my shame and disgust. My skin feels like it’s crawling, like it’s covered in millions of tiny maggots.
“It’s okay, Nicholas. You’re my favorite.”The memory of Howard’s voice repeats in my head.
My breathing comes out in short bursts.
“Give him space.” Mason walks up to me. His gaze raked over me cautiously.
My gaze runs from Mason’s, taking in the room. I notice Ghost is standing near the door. He looks worried. He must see it; he can see the shit and filth covering me. I look down at my arms.
“You were too weak.”The Horseman had said in that last email he’d sent. Too weak to fight him off.
“I wasn’t. I wasn’t weak.” My voice sounds gravelly, as if I’m choking the words out.
“We know that.” Mason tries approaching me, but I back away from him.
He’s lying. I can see it on his face. He has no idea how hard I fought. None of them do.
My phone rings in my pocket. It’s my actual phone, not the Saint one that received the text. It’s the phone only my close friends and family have access to.
Pulling it out, my chest nearly caves when I see the number flashing across it.
Oh, by the way, I sent this to your pretty wife too.
She knows. My world, my heart, knows my truth. She will never look at me again. She knows I’m tarnished.
“I have to get out of here.” I push past Mason.
“Nic, where are you going?” Salv shouts.
My phone rings again, I toss the device against the wall, causing it to shatter.
“Boss, what’s going on?” Ghost tries to step in front of me. I shove him out the way, causing him to stumble into the wall.
