Page 115 of Abundance of Obsession

Zoe takes a step back. Her fingers tremble.

It isn’t breathing… Severed. Bloodied. The head of a little kitten.

Next to it lies a piece of paper folded in half.

A package similar to the one with Ortega’s head.

A coincidence?

Reaching out, I pull it out.

“I know what you did, kitty. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. Your head for Owen’s.”

“Fuck!” An agonizing chill pierces my body.

No, it’s not the same person. Someone else…

“What’s wrong, Eli?”

Someone has found her. Someone has marked her.

And somebody has just signed their own death warrant.

“We need to meet with Ryker. Right now. We’re not the only ones who know about Owen.”

My mind won’t stop racing. Who could have sent Zoe that shit? Who knows?

Ryker opens the door as soon as we step out of the elevator.

Zoe’s hand lands in mine, and I squeeze it, trying to reassure her. This won’t be an easy meeting, but it’s necessary.

“Hi, Ryker,” she greets him.

“Hi, Zoe. Come in. We’re all here.”

That means Theo got here before us. That’s good.

The sisters greet each other, but there’s tension in the air. Ash glances out of the corner of her eye at our clasped hands, saying nothing for now.

Theo is Theo—spare with his words and manner.

We sit down, and I get straight to the point. “We’re in trouble. Someone wants Zoe dead.”

“What?” Ash blurts out first, her hands closing into fists. Her eyes are wide.

Ryker and Theo exchange a look, instantly suspecting Veirix and Damien. I reassure them, “It’s not that. It’s something else.”

“What do you mean, ‘it’s not that’?” Ash presses, still looking at each of us.

Here we go.

Ry takes a deep breath. “Little Killer, I have to tell you something. Last time we were all here, we agreed we needed a mole. Zoe had met Damien earlier and came to me with a proposal.”

Ash’s furious gaze falls on Zoe, who merely raises her head defiantly. Then Ryker’s wife bursts into a laugh that makes my blood run cold.

“Let me clarify,” she speaks slowly. “My sister, my only family, came to you to enter a nest of fucking vipers, killers, drug dealers, mobsters… And you agreed to it?”

Ryker nods. I have to admit, the guy’s got balls not to flinch under her freezing gaze. I’m almost certain if she had a knife within reach, she wouldn’t hesitate to use it.