Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
The day he’d been murdered, I’d found him there, in his throne of a desk chair, a neat red hole in the center of his forehead. I’d screamed for help, but I’d been the only one home. In a fog, I’d called emergency services, wondering if it was all just a bad dream. The indomitable Prentice Sawyer couldn’t be dead. But he was. Relief tainted by guilt still overshadowed my grief.
For weeks after, the memory of my father’s body, so still and cold, had given me nightmares. Until Griffen came home, I would have sworn I’d never set foot in the office again. In those first few months after his return, we’d helped him redecorate by way of a bonfire in the yard, disposing of Prentice’s heavy, dark curtains, his hunting trophies, and that hated throne of a desk chair.
Now, the office bore little resemblance to the forbidding room it had been before. The tall windows filled it with light, and more often than not, the sound of laughter drifted down the hall. I pushed the door open to find Griffen behind his desk, as usual, his dark blond hair falling in his eyes, papers spread out in front of him. He usually worked with his wife, Hope, and our brother, Royal, but this morning it was just him. My heart warmed at the smile he gave me when I walked into the room.
Griffen and I had come a long way. Our adult relationship had started with me throwing up all over his wife. Though Griffen could be a hard-ass, he was also patient. And like Darcy, he’d met my belligerence with love until I didn’t want to fight him anymore.
I’d like to think I would have gotten myself on my feet on my own. And maybe, probably, I would have. Eventually. Griffen had sped up the process with a combination of his “take no bullshit” attitude and big brother hugs.
“What was that a little while ago?” he asked, leaving me confused until he clarified. “I could hear you in the library. Problem with Ford?”
“No, no,” I was quick to reassure. “Brax. He—” I stopped and mentally ran through the encounter. I debated what to share; Griffen didn’t need to hear me whine about my asshole of a half-brother. He knew what Brax was like. “He picked up Shadow and wouldn’t give her back. I think he came out of the billiards room. I think he was talking to Ford.” I sat in the chair opposite Griffen’s desk, scratching under Shadow’s chin, thinking out loud. “He’s been home a lot more since Ford got back. That’s weird. Isn’t that weird?”
Griffen shrugged. “I don’t know. I was gone a long time. I’m not sure I know what counts as weird around here anymore, but Brax always idolized Ford. You know he and I were never close. Maybe he feels more welcome now that Ford’s back.”
“Maybe,” I said. That didn’t feel right to me.
Griffen’s eyes softened. “Sterling,” he said gently, “I’m not sure you’re rational on the subject of Brax.”
I couldn’t argue his point. I most definitely was not rational about Brax, and we both knew it. But that didn’t mean I was wrong. I let it go anyway.
“Have you talked to Ford?” I inquired. I wasn’t the only one with brother hang-ups.
“About what?” Griffen asked flatly.
I decided to let that go too. It wasn’t for me to broker a peace between my two oldest brothers. The only one who could do that was Ford, and we didn’t have the kind of relationship that left me comfortable enough to interfere.
“Are you going to tell me about your trip to Willow Springs with Powell?” Griffen asked, interrupting my thoughts.
My eyebrows drew together, and I glared at my oldest brother. “How do you know I went to Willow Springs with Forrest? Do you and Hawk have a tracking device on me?”
“No comment,” was Griffen’s answer. That meant yes.
“That’s weird,” I said. “You guys are weird. You know that, right?”
“Not weird,” Griffen said. “Careful. And I think you’ll agree we’ve got reason for it.”
I couldn’t argue with that either. My father had been murdered, and his killer was still out there. And Prentice wasn’t the only one. Griffen’s former fiancée, Vanessa, who’d also been Ford’s ex-wife, had been murdered. Shot in the forehead, just like Prentice. Aside from those two murders, there had been plenty else going on. Someone had tried to kill Griffen twice. There’d been sabotage at the inn. JT, Royal’s girlfriend’s BFF, had been stabbed. The drama over the stolen Vitellius had involved everyone from the Irish mob to my cousin Bryce.
Then, my sister Parker’s husband had tried to murder her. Our housekeeper, Savannah, who was now married to Finn, had a former mother-in-law try to kidnap her son, Nicky. Just a few months ago, my sister Quinn had been kidnapped. I still hadn’t gotten the full story of why her kidnapper wasn’t in prison where he belonged. She and Hawk claimed he’d gotten away. I had a feeling Griffen knew the truth. So far, he was the only one.