You’ll be welcomed with open arms. We’re going to do great things together.
The more I read, the more my dread grew, until my eyes started to blur. I swiped at them and forced myself to read all the way to the end.
It wasn’t hard to guess who Dad would have given a code name like “Teeth” to. I’d seen the shark-jaws logo on the post outside, and the content of the messages brought all the other pieces together.
Dad had been talking to someone from the Red Shark’s organization for months. Dad had invited them into the Bend, offered them an alliance and territory to expand his own power. That must have been why he’d asked Kervos and others for documentation on their business activities—so he could show these guys how profitable associating with him would be.
My father was the reason the Red Shark’s people were here, causing so much more violence than the Bend had already faced.
I slumped back against the wall, dropping the phone to my side. An ache spread through my chest. I didn’t want to believe it, but how could I deny what I’d just seen?
Dad hadn’t said anything in the texts about taking out Colt or about needing to go up against the Steel Knights. I had to assume he’d meant to bring Colt in on the arrangement once we were married. Obviously he hadn’t discussed the newcomers he was encouraging to take a stake in our territory with my former fiancé beforehand, though.
But somehow Colt had caught wind of the negotiations and assumed Dad meant to betray him with the new alliance. He’d lashed out first… and now here we were, a whole lot of pain and blood later. Most of it from innocent people who’d had no idea about any of this mess.
“For fuck’s sake, Dad,” I murmured in a choked voice. It figured he’d set a complete catastrophe in motion and manage to get taken out of the picture before he had to deal with any of the consequences.
No, that fell on me.
What the hell was I supposed to do? How could I look anyone in the Bend in the eye, all these people who’d had their homes, businesses, and loved ones destroyed because of Dad’s stupid decision…?
I stayed crouched there in his office for longer than I’d meant to, my head spinning. I just couldn’t get a grip on myself.
I needed to hear someone else’s voice, to talk it through with someone who could help me see where the fuck I went from here. And I only had one person I could reach out to, risky as it might be.
Desperately hoping that Ezra hadn’t discovered Wylder’s extra phone, I got out my own and tapped out a text to him with shaky fingers. I need to see you. ASAP. Please tell me you’re okay.
My chest constricted more with every passing minute while I waited for a response. Then a new text appeared. All important parts still intact. What’s going on?
I just need to talk to you face to face, if you can manage it. Is there somewhere safe we can meet?
The next answer came much faster. The picnic table near the fountain in Calliver Park. I’ve got something to talk to you about too. Give me an hour.
Thank God. I dragged in a breath and managed to push myself off the floor now that I had a destination in mind.
I left the house the same way I’d come in, feeling like a zombie. Each beat of my heart drove the knowledge I’d just discovered in deeper like a knife in my gut.
It was Dad’s fault I’d lost my entire family. Dad’s fault my whole life had been ruined—not that I regretted missing out on marrying Colt, but everything else… Dad’s fault the Bend was in chaos, ordinary people afraid to even walk down the street. Dad’s fault those streets were being painted with blood.
And with Dad gone, who could anyone point the finger at but his heir?
I slunk across rooftops and through alleys, making my way to the park, which lay near the border where the Bend turned into Paradise City proper. It was surrounded by a wrought-iron fence with a gate that was locked at night, but a few metal bars weren’t enough to keep me out. I climbed inside, wove through the trees until I spotted the picnic bench by the limestone fountain with its sculpture of a trio of leaping dolphins, and melted into the shadows to wait.
It didn’t take long before the soft rasp of careful footsteps reached my ears. Wylder stopped right by the tree I’d hidden behind. “You can come out now, Mercy.”
I stepped out, raising an eyebrow at him. “How did you know I was here?”
“Intuition?” Wylder said.
I smiled. “Or just pure luck.”
“It’s weird, but I can always tell where you are,” Wylder said, taking a step towards me. He looked me over. “Are you all right, Kitty Cat?”
My heart raced at the concern in his words. “Kind of. Not really. Everything’s…” I made a vague gesture, unsure of how to put all the turmoil inside me into words. All I wanted to do was run my fingers through his soft auburn hair and pull him closer for a kiss.
But even though he smiled back at me, it didn’t quite reach his eyes. My own smile faltered. “Are you all right? What happened with your dad? You said there was something you had to talk to me about.”
Wylder stiffened a tiny bit, but only for a moment. Then he shook his head. “We can get to that later. Something’s obviously wrong. What’s going on, Mercy?”