Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 88580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
He replays, over and over, ignoring me completely.
I stand, not sure what to say, standing there feeling awkward until I finally shuffle to the door. As I grab the handle, Adler speaks one more time.
“Don’t be late, Casey. And please, from now on, call me Adler. Although I do like the way you say Mr. Costa.”
I gape at him, stunned at his tone, but he’s still staring at the monitor, watching my brother kill himself over and over, until I force myself to leave.
Chapter 3
Casey
It’s a twenty-minute drive from AC to Pomona. Cars still scare the heck out of me, but only when I’m walking—luckily, when I’m in one, they’re fine. My therapist says it’s something-something-state-dependent, but as long as it means I can keep driving, I don’t question it.
Mom’s out working at the diner, Shane’s missing, and Dad’s sitting in the living room like always. He’s thickset, gray hair, lots of wrinkles. Both knees are in braces, and he grunts as me as I come through. “You gonna start dinner?” he asks by way of greeting. Dad hasn’t been able to work for a long time after he hurt his back when he was a stonemason, and now he collects disability. It’s not much, but it helps.
“Sure,” I say and hurry into the kitchen. We live in a three-bedroom cottage, and when everyone’s home, it feels like we’re all jammed on top of each other.
I start breading chicken, heating up oil, and boiling water for pasta. My back’s killing me, my thighs feel like someone stabbed metal rods into my bone, but if I complain or try to get out of this, Dad will shout at me for an hour, so I might as well get it done.
Fortunately, right now I’m happy to have something to keep my mind off my conversation with Adler.
The whole thing is impossible. I keep coming back to Shane. I can’t believe he’d be that stupid, and what was he even doing in the Sunrise that late? He doesn’t gamble—thankfully that’s one vice he’s not interested in—and his friends mostly hang out at our rival casino, the Oceanview. It makes no sense that he’d be in the Sunrise, all alone, looking like he came in there planning on robbing the place.
But it was a crime of opportunity, wasn’t it? He saw the chips were unattended and he grabbed them. My brother’s quick, he used to be really good at sleight of hand magic, but he looked like he was dressed to cause mischief that night.
He knows better than to mess with the Sunrise or any of the major hotels. He knows what Adler Costa does to people that cross him.
What was he doing in the Sunrise, and why was he so stupid that night?
I can’t stop thinking about it as I finish prepping the meal. Once the chicken’s mostly done and the pasta’s in to boil, I heat up some red sauce to finish it all off. My phone starts ringing, and I’m tempted to let it go to voicemail, but it’s Roxie.
“Hey,” she says and I can hear the buzz of the casino in the background. “I’m on my fifteen. What the hell happened?”
“I’m home making dinner,” I say, trying to sound casual.
But Roxie’s not having any of that. “Don’t you make me start screaming, I swear to god, because I will. You had a meeting with freaking Trish, freaking Will, freaking Zach, and the freaking beyond divinely beautiful Adler Costa himself. Why the hell did the four heads of the hydra want to talk to you?” She’s out of breath when she finishes, but she quickly adds, “No offense, I love you.”
I close my eyes. I shouldn’t be surprised. Gossip travels around a casino like venereal disease around a retirement village in Florida. Lots of people saw me enter that room, and they all must’ve seen Trish, Will, and Zach leave.
“It was nothing, just a family thing,” I say, hoping she’ll drop it when she realizes I don’t want to go into details.
“I swear I’ll hang you out a window by your freaking tits if you don’t start talking right now! I have ten minutes left, don’t you dare let me waste this break on nothing.”
I groan, closing my eyes, and reluctantly tell her the story. I’d trust Roxie with my life—we’ve known each other since the day I started and she’s my best friend in the world—but saying anything to anyone about Shane is a risk.
When I’m done, Roxie is uncharacteristically silent.
“I knew your brother was a piece of shit, but I didn’t realize he had an actual death wish,” she says softly.
I sigh in response. “I’m honestly having a hard time believing it myself.”
“What are you gonna do?” She’s not joking around anymore. The concern in her tone is palpable.
“I’m going to Adler’s apartment in a few hours to discuss my options.”