The last had been when my father had illegally held him in Leith. Though that had only been a short time ago, the balance of my life had shifted from that point. From dating a cop to sleeping with a gangster. I felt less aligned with the police and closer to Deadwater’s underworld. The balance shifting.
Mila exhaled and continued her telling. “They gloated over how the press is going to have a field day, telling me they’ll do deep dives into Marchant Haulage. No stone left unturned, so if I had anything to fess up, do it now. It’s considered a murder investigation, and the detective talked about evidence of criminal acts.”
She sank onto the sofa, a mix of emotions ghosting over her pretty features. “They were asking about my role in the business. If they aren’t sounding me out as a suspect, they need me for information.”
The rest of us exchanged worried glances.
I took her hand. “You’ve done nothing wrong. You have nothing to worry about.”
“I know. It isn’t that.” Mila went impossibly paler still. “The press will name me. I was the figurehead for the family business. The one who was supposed to keep the firm going years into the future. They’ll name Kane, too, once they dig out his details.”
“Did he talk to them?” I found myself asking.
Leaning against the kitchen counter, Convict snorted. “He played bodyguard, unspeaking and intimidating in a dark corner, and trying to murder the lead cop with his eyes. He said nothing. Wouldn’t confirm his name, even though they had it from somewhere. Pissed them off no end.”
I could’ve laughed, but fear for Kane shrank my insides.
Mila took a shuddering breath. “There’s a bigger problem. What if they identify our sister? Enough of the family were in the will reading. If they blab about her, it could turn into headlines, and if Dixie reads about it, she’ll go even deeper into hiding, won’t she? I’m pretty sure that’ll kill off any chance of us finding her.”
My heart sank. If only I’d done more, I could’ve found her earlier. Now, I had not the smallest idea where to look. “How can we stop that happening?”
Mila shook her head. “We can’t.”
As Mila spoke, Genevieve had made a second round of drinks, and she handed out the coffee-laced cocktails one by one, with a fruit mocktail for Everly.
Mila sank hers in one go, her gaze sweeping all of us in. “Earlier, Lovelyn and I were discussing a plan. I’m going to pay a visit to some of my relatives tomorrow. According to the police, the story will break in the late afternoon or evening news when they have the biggest available audience. That gives me most of the day to make the rounds.”
“What do you hope to get out of it?” Genevieve asked.
A dark light sparked in Mila’s eyes. “I need to get in there first. Face to face with every one of those treacherous bastards, I’m going to accuse them of enabling trafficking and see their reactions, then ask them at what point they found out about my sibling. I can be vague enough that those who only know about Kane will think I’m talking about him. With the others, I’m goingto scare the shit out of them so they keep their mouths shut. It’s my only chance to protect my sister.”
I shivered at the venom in her speech.
She was so brave. I couldn’t imagine doing the same. I was a behind-the-scenes girl. Better placed at a computer and digging out data than trembling while trying to pluck up the courage to intimidate someone. Or go after what she wanted.
From a sheath in her boot, Cassie extracted a blade, the light catching a deadly edge. I stared in shock. That had been there the whole time? Holy cow.
“I’ll come with ye,” she decided. “Which means Rio will, too. I assume you’ll be there as well, Convict? Watching the doors, glaring menacingly.”
Like mine, Mila’s gaze was on the knife. “I love the idea.”
Convict smirked. “If anyone thinks I’m leaving Mila’s side, they’re dreaming. Hey, we can play good cop, bad cop while she interrogates them. This is going to be fun.”
Cassie raised her glass. “Skeleton girls and boys unite!”
We all drank to that.
A short while on, a message vibrated my phone. Somehow, I knew it was Kane before I even read the screen. I’d given him my number outside, and he’d remembered it. My heart thumped at his words.
Kane: Come to the fourth floor.
I made my excuses and left the apartment to travel down in the lift. When the doors opened, he was waiting for me. That typical dark gaze swept over me.
I took my first deep breath in what felt like an hour. “Lyle didn’t arrest you, then.”
“For having the woman he wanted?”
My stomach flipped. If Kane had me, that meant I was his. Possession shouldn’t sound hot. It did.
