Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 95080 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95080 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“I don’t think so. It feels more personal than that.”
“And what are you basing that on?”
“The attacks themselves,” Alex answered for him. “Hitting someone, stabbing them, that’s rage at work. Whoever is doing this is furious at Tracy and Celia but also at Breckin.”
“It’s a mess,” Cord grumbled. “Given the proximity of the last two attacks, I get the feeling that Tracy and Celia are somehow tied together. I’m not sure how Tim Stanson fits into the picture.”
“And Sean Granger,” I said without thinking.
Everyone was quiet for a moment.
“Hold on now, who?” Cord asked me.
“Yeah, who is right,” Evan groused from the other end of the couch. “You can’t just throw in a new character without any background.”
“What are you talking about?” Alex wanted to know.
“That’s just poor plotting,” Evan insisted.
Alex looked so confused.
“Evan’s right,” I agreed. “I just blurted that out without any context.”
Poor Alex. He glanced from me to Evan, then back to me.
“I’ll explain.” I leaned forward so I could meet Evan’s gaze.
“Go ahead,” he encouraged me.
“He’s the guy Breckin slept with.”
“Before Celia or after?”
“After.”
“Okay,” Evan said. “Thank you for putting this guy into the story in a way that makes sense. Now, who is he?”
“He’s a friend of Breckin’s.”
“But not yours, right? He was never yours even before?”
“No.”
“That part’s good,” Evan commented, then looked at Cord, who, for some reason, was now standing. “Are you all right?”
Cord ignored Evan, instead glaring at me.
“What?”
“Who the hell is Sean Granger?”
Before I could respond, Alex took hold of my bicep. “Is that the guy I met at your house once? Breckin’s doctor friend?”
“Yeah. That’s him.”
“The one he worked with at the hospital?”
“Correct.”
“That’s Sean Granger?”
“Yessir.”
“Holy shit, Trace,” Alex groaned, leaning forward and putting his face in his hands. “I played basketball with him and Breckin.”
I glanced at my father. “He’s sorry for cursing, Dad,” I apologized on Alex’s behalf.
“I think we’re not going to worry about any colorful language right now,” my father assured me.
“It’s quite normal to feel betrayed yourself after an affair that affects those you love,” Evan told Alex. “Especially if you were friends with those who hurt them.”
“Can you shut the—”
“Oh!” I grinned, excited. “That was from that movie where you played the homicidal psychiatrist. What was it called? Dark Therapy?”
“Bad Therapy,” he corrected me.
“Must be nice when you can slide some movie dialogue into everyday life.”
“Right?”
“Boys, let’s focus on Cord now,” my father chided us.
Looking at Cord, I noted the fisted hands, clenched jaw, and heard how carefully he was breathing in and out.
“Would you prefer I fell apart?” I asked Cord. “When I was in the hospital, you said you didn’t want me to do that. Do you remember?”
“I would just like you—and your drama coach—to focus.”
“Rude,” Evan muttered.
“And aggressive,” I seconded.
“What you’re telling me is that I have a new suspect I didn’t even fuckin’ know about until right now!”
Evan gasped.
I gasped.
Alex sat up. “Dad said colorful language was all right at the moment,” he said, clipping every word, “so knock it off, you two, and take this shit seriously!”
“Are you hungry?” Evan asked him. “Because we both know this is serious, and we’re processing that, but you’re being extra special douchey right now.”
Alex didn’t even look at him. “He slept with Sean?”
“Granger,” both Evan and I said at the same time.
“I apologize for swearing,” Cord said to my father, “but really, how do you deal?”
My father chuckled, leaned forward, and gave Cord a gentle pat on the cheek. “We all process things differently, and I promise you, Tracy is taking this seriously.”
Cord gave me his attention then.
“Sean Granger cannot be a suspect,” I assured him. “He works with Doctors Without Borders, and he left the country right after he and Breckin had their…thing. You can check with the organization, but no way he’s your guy.”
“How do you know he left?”
“Breckin told me when he explained it was a one-off.”
Cord nodded. “He said that to you? That’s how he characterized what he did?”
“No. He said it was a mistake and that he was sorry, and then something about Sean leaving soon anyway, so I could put him out of my mind.”
“Like Sean was the bad guy in all of it.”
“More like he was out of the picture,” I said, scowling at him. “I’m telling you it’s not him. He’s far, far away.”
“It’s probably why he hasn’t been attacked,” Evan concluded.
All eyes turned to Evan.
“What? That makes sense, doesn’t it?”
“It does,” Cord agreed. “If it’s true.”
He got up then, pulled out his phone, and made a call.
“You two are driving him nuts,” Alex snapped.
“Better than being an ass because you’re feeling guilty about something you had absolutely no control over,” Evan volleyed back.
Alex stared at him.
“Just because you’re in law enforcement doesn’t mean you have some sixth sense about people. Cut yourself some slack.”
“Yeah,” I seconded, bumping Alex with my shoulder. “I didn’t know Sean was going to sleep with my partner either. Get over it.”