I have two days left until SweetJustice’s deadline, and it looms over me like a storm cloud.
I should focus on getting something—anything—before the deadline. But my stomach knots at the very thought of it.
Poppy splashes beside me, laughter bubbling from her lips. She is blissfully unaware of the chaos swirling in my life. I envy her carefree spirit, even if just for today.
“Race you to the edge!” she shouts, her voice slicing through my anxiety.
I push off the bottom, propelling myself forward, feeling the cool water rush past me.
For a moment, everything else fades.
The constant bickering between Dom and Mom—but not the dread of SweetJustice’s ultimatum.
I only know that Dom is meeting other Syndicate leaders at Angels and Sinners at the weekend. I’m sure hewas talking to Antonio Conti when they arranged that. But is that enough information for SweetJustice?
I suspect if my blackmailer is Caleb’s brother or another law enforcement person, it will be.
But if not, I need more information.
What could Dom possibly be up to? It eats away at me. He may be my stepfather, but that doesn’t mean I know him well enough to guess what lurks behind his icy blue eyes.
I should go home and talk to him. Will he know if I try to make the questions innocent?
My phone rings. It could be SweetJustice.
“I need to get that,” I tell Poppy.
As we reach the pool’s edge together, I hoist myself up and shake the water from my hair. My phone stops ringing but now vibrates on the lounge chair; my heart races as I dart over to grab it. Please don’t be SweetJustice…
“It’s Milly.” I tell Poppy, sighing in relief, but frustration simmers just beneath the surface.
“I’m kind of busy,” I answer, glancing back at Poppy, who swims lazily in circles.
“Love you too, sis?” Milly quips teasingly.
Poppy swims closer. “Come on! Call her back after.”
“Hey, Poppy! You forgot to wish Aunt Kate a happy birthday!” Caleb chides as he glances up from his book.
I smile at Caleb and then Poppy as she swims to the side.
“Yeah, sorry,” I reply absentmindedly to Milly, still staring at Caleb. “Did you visit Dad?”
“I’ll do it now,” Poppy says, pushing herself out of the pool.
“No. I went out with some girlfriends, but I’m thinking of visiting on Sunday.”
“Sunday,” I whisper, exhaling heavily as Milly continues chatting about the nightclub she went to on the other end of the line.
“Yeah. If you’re free, come with me.”
But Saturday is the night everything could happen, or nothing at all. And Sunday is the day I can disappear.
I sink into a nearby chair under an umbrella and cradle my phone in one hand while letting my mind drift back to London again—the city where I could vanish into anonymity. One text is all it takes.
I lean back in the chair, my phone pressed against my ear as Milly chats about Romeo. “Have you heard anything about him getting married soon? Has Dom mentioned anything?” she asks, her voice lifting with curiosity.
I shake my head, though she can’t see me. “Nope, nothing at all.”
