“Just back off,” I say. “You’ve let Dylan and Aro spend time there. It’s my turn.”
“Quinn…”
But I’m done talking tonight. Moving in behind Kade, I start shuffling them out of my house. They’re talking sense and making good points, but what if they weren’t around? What if I were on my own? What would I do then?
Hawke digs in his heels, resisting. “No, we’re talking about this.”
“He won’t hurt me,” I tell them. “He hasn’t hurt any of you. He just likes being a part of things or something.”
“Who?”
“Deacon.” Planting my hands on Kade’s back, I shove them toward the front door. “If I get concerned, I’ll find you guys. I’m not stupid. But he doesn’t sound threatening. Not yet anyway.”
“Sound?” Hawke whips around. “You talked to him?”
“You haven’t?” I stop, all three of my nephews gaping at me. “He called my phone yesterday.”
“What did he say?” Hawke gasps.
Followed by Hunter, “How did he sound?”
“What?” Kade breathes out.
They’ve never spoken to the brothers. I’m the only one they’ve called.
“Quinn,” Hawke says in a stern voice. “We think he hurt… Well, her name was Winslet.”
“The car in the river?” I nod. “Yeah, it’s empty.”
“How do you know that?”
“The diary.” Again, they look at me like I’m pointing a gun at them. “Really? You guys have had years. I put that together in minutes.”
If the diary is authentic, it wasn’t hard to piece together that she either made it out, or it was all a ruse in the first place.
I push Hunter and Kade out the door, then push Hawke, but he stops me. “Wait, what diary?”
All three of them stare at me, confused. They never saw a diary.
I put my hand on my waist. “You never thought of springing a trap for these guys instead of waiting for them to dole out clues at their leisure?”
I mean, they’ve been researching these brothers for years. They know they’re coming into the tower.
I push them out.
“Quinn…”
“I’ll let you know what happens.”
“Quinn!”
“Goodnight!” I yell, watching Hunter and Kade jog down the steps.
I start to shut the door in Hawke’s face, but I stop, grabbing him by the T-shirt and pulling him back. “When Aro wears red lipstick,” I ask, “what do you think when you look at her mouth?”
“Huh?”
He blinks at me for several moments, his mouth opening and closing and looking flustered.
