My beautiful girl scrubbed her eyes, smudging her makeup further, then crossed to Jace and Rhett. She started to sit down, but Jace hauled her right into his lap and hugged her like his security blanket, his face buried in her breasts. She closed her eyes, resting her chin on his head and stroked his back. It warmed my heart to see their bond growing stronger with every day that passed. Billie and Jace were the kind of couple fated in the stars.
I was just glad the stars were plentiful and fate had brought all of us together with her.
“What’s the plan?” Gray asked quietly.
I glanced at him. “Let’s find this crazy bitch. Jace said she recognized him from Bellerose, so she could still be a threat to all of you. We can’t risk her running around out there.”
“All ofus,” Grayson corrected with a firm set to his lips. “You’re Bellerose, too. She’s a threat toall of us, Billie included. So let’s take care of it.”
Rhett was looking our way with suspicion and curiosity, so I jerked my head to call him over. Gray and I gave him a quick update on our plans and instructed him to stay and support Jace. He agreed without complaint, telling us to be safe, then returned to his seat beside Jace and Billie.
Grayson and I headed for the exit, but before we stepped out, I overheard two uniformed officers asking the desk nurse where he could find the family of Teresa Cramer. Jerking to a stop, I tapped Grayson’s arm, then hurried back to the desk to intercept.
“You’re here about Tess’s attacker?” I asked without preamble.
One officer eyed me with suspicion, taking in my numerous tattoos, visible even with a dress shirt and suit pants on. He clearly didn’t like what he saw, because his lips tightened. “Who are you and what do you know?”
I glanced at his partner, who was squinting at me in confusion like he recognized me but couldn’t quite place why.
“Apologies,” I purred, switching on the Ricci charm. “That was rude of me.” I extended a hand. “Angelo Ricci. And you’re Officer Simpson?” I read it off his badge.
“Oh shit,” the partner murmured. “The new Bellerose bass player.”
“And son of Giovanni Ricci, notorious underworld player,” Simpson sneered. “We’ve heard all about you.”
“Great,” I replied with a cold smile. “Then you know I’m not inclined to play games. Jace Adams is distraught; he just watched his sister get stabbed by an insane Bellerose fan, so he’s in no state to be questioned. So, I’ll ask once, just once, nicely. Then I’ll call your boss.” I paused to let that sink in. “What do you know about who attacked Tess?”
The officer swallowed visibly, then chose to be smart. “She’s been apprehended and taken to Naples General.”
Confusion rippled through me. “The hospital? Why?”
The officer glanced at his partner, who gave him a quick nod. “She was hit by a car while running from the scene. It was pretty brutal.”
Well fuck, that was unexpected.
“I take it she’s still alive?” Grayson asked in a deep rumble.
The cops nodded. “For now,” the second one added. “She’s in surgery, but it doesn’t look good. Seems like karma caught up quick, huh?”
“We still need to talk to Mr. Adams, though,” Simpson said with an uneasy frown. “And his girlfriend, Miss Bellerose? They witnessed the attack and—”
“And are currently distraught,” I cut him off. “You have the guilty party in custody—I assume you have officers at Naples General? So questioningwitnessescan wait, don’t you think?”
The cops exchanged another look, and then Simpson sighed. “Sure, I guess you’re right.”
Pulling a business card from my wallet, I flashed a tight smile. “Call me if Tess’s attacker makes it through surgery. I want to be updated if she doesn’t die.”
“So you can kill her yourself?” the second cop asked with an uneasy laugh.
I just stared at him, totally deadpan. “Yes.”
Their smiles evaporated, and Simpson flinched. Then they both murmured a polite farewell, and Gray sighed. “Perks of being a Ricci, huh? All the Bellerose fame gets us is loose women that pale in comparison to Billie.”
I snorted, then bumped him with my shoulder. “Now that the crazed fan is dealt with, we can grab Jace and Billie some clothes. ” She had distinctive splotches of dark blood staining her tight green dress, and that had to be playing on her mind. She used to faint at the sight of blood, but I guessed things had changed.
Gray grimaced, then nodded. “Yeah. She might want some underwear too.” Then he threw his hands up defensively at my accusing glare. “I didn’t know it would end up like this. Fuck. I just wanted to help Jace out.”
Fair call, and I’d bet Jace had been all too pleased to find our girl was flying bare under that sinful, demure dress. Jealousy sparked in my chest, but it wasn’t dangerous. It was just healthy.
