Jay finally looked down at the box again. “Caleb wanted you to have this, but it’s not safe in the clubhouse, not now. Thingsare shifting. There’s heat coming, and I can’t trust half the table.” He sounded worn down and tired.
I reached for the box, but before I could pull it away from him, he grabbed my wrist. His fingers curled around my skin, firm and warm. My pulse spiked, and I hated that a tiny flicker of something else surged along with it.
“You walk down this road, Lucy, there’s no coming back.”
I met his eyes. Sunlight caught the scar near his jaw, the one Caleb gave him in a drunken fight years ago. I wanted to trace it and wanted to push him away at the same time.
“I’m not coming back,” I said. “I’m going through.”
He let go slowly, but the air between us stayed charged, bitter and unresolved, a current that made my skin tingle.
“I’m still angry,” I muttered. “You lied to me. You had this, and you let me twist in the dark.”
“And I’m still pissed you embarrassed me in my own house.”
“Then I guess we’re even.”
Jay gave a humourless snort. “Not even close.”
“But we’re on the same page.”
He nodded once. “For now.”
The motel room felt even smaller with Jay in it, his kutte dark against the peeling wallpaper. I set the box on the bed, fingers brushing the latch.
“You sure you want to open it now?” he asked. His voice wasn’t soft, Jay didn’t do soft, but something in it carried weight. A warning.
“It’s mine,” I said, not looking at him. “Caleb wanted me to have it.”
“That doesn’t mean you’re ready for what’s inside.”
I flipped the latch, the metal clicking like a gun cocking. My heart pounded, but I forced my hands steady as I pulled the lid open. At the top lay a folded envelope with my name scrawled across it.
I reached for it, but Jay was suddenly closer, his shadow falling over me. He plucked the envelope from the box before I could touch it.
“Hey!” I surged up, closing the gap between us until my chest brushed his. “Give it back.”
He didn’t. He held it between two fingers, just out of reach, his ice-blue stare boring into me. “Answers won’t save you. They’ll get you killed.”
I shoved at his chest, but he didn’t budge, he leaned in harder, pinning me against the wall with his sheer size. “Don’t you dare keep this from me,” I spat. “Caleb trusted me. He wantedmeto see it.”
His jaw flexed, and for a second, I thought he’d tear the envelope in half. Instead, he shoved it against my chest hard enough that I stumbled. “Fine. Have it. But when you realise what it costs, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
The air between us crackled. I couldn’t stop myself from saying, “If you cared half as much as you pretend to, maybe Caleb wouldn’t be dead.”
That landed. His eyes darkened, and for once, he didn’t have a quick comeback.
He turned on his heel and stormed out, the door slamming so hard, the mirror rattled on its hook.
I stood there shaking, the envelope still burning against my chest. Then I slid down onto the edge of the bed, tore it open with trembling hands, and finally let Caleb’s voice spill into the silence.
Caleb’s handwriting was messy and rushed.
If you’re reading this, I’m probably dead.
Trust no one but Jay. The DK are compromised.
It wasn’t just the Fangs. There’s someone inside.
