Carver shook his head.“Mr.Sampson is at the rehab center.I called tocheck.”
That left only onepossibility.
“If they had Heath, she would’ve gone.”I knew it down to my bones, because that’s how loyalAriwas.
Carver’s phone rang, and he glanced down at it before picking up.“What?Wait, at the Sampson house?”His gaze cut to mine.“We’re onourway.”
“What the hell isgoingon?”
“Got a guy monitoring police radio.Call just came in from a neighbor about the Sampson house.Said she was worried about a possible domestic disturbance because of theyelling.”
“That has to be them.”My heart jumped into my throat.“Let’smove.”
I’m coming foryou,Ari.
62
Ariel
Neighborhood dogs barked outside,maybe because my screaming had set them off.Or maybe it had been the sound of Carlos’s fist connecting with my jaw to silence me, or the sound of my head smashing into the edge of a table or the lamp shattering as it hitthetile.
“Shut up.Your brother doesn’t deserve your sympathy.Worthless piece of shit.He showed you that picture of me, used it to push you away.That’s why your father is lying where he is.To teach him a lesson.Look where his actions gotyouall.”
I curled into a ball, shielding myself from another blow.“Where’s my dad?”My voice was raw, destroyed fromcrying.
Carlos dragged me back up to my feet, this time by a fistful of hair, and my scalp burned as a chunk ripped free.“Same place he’s been all day.You think security would make a difference if I wanted him dead?I didn’t need him.I knew you’d come.”He shook his head.“Oblivious, trustingAriel.”
He was right.I was.I’d missed it all, and my brain struggled to piece together what I’d learned.My brother stole money from the cartel to pay back gambling debts.He’d worked for them, had been responsible for the explosion that killed RonanHennessy.
“Now, we wait to get your boyfriend here, and I can eliminate another Hennessy before he causes me any moretrouble.”
The disgusted tone of Carlos’s voice made it sound personal, which I didn’t understand.Had Ronan somehow double-crossed the cartel?Was that what he’d done to earnhisend?
“Why?”
“You want to know just how tarnished a bloodline Rhett Hennessy comes from?His father was dirty for over a decade.He facilitated all cartel business in the city for years.Then the oldest son decided to make taking down the cartel his top priority.Like that would keep drugs off the streets.”Carlos laughed.“It’s a losing battle.The cops will never win.We have money, power, and resources they’ll never fully comprehend.We will always win, always get what we want.And we’ll always take out anyone who gets inourway.”
My jaw and head throbbed, but my heart ached for Rhett.This wouldwreckhim.
“You killedRobin?”
Carlos snorted in disgust.“Like I would lower myself.I have more important things to do.”He paused.“But I ordered it.Too bad the father finally found his conscience and had tojoinhim.”
Coming closer, he nudged me with the toe of his expensive shoe.“How do you think your boyfriend is going to feel about you when he learns your brother killed his father?It’s a good thing you won’t be here to find out.You’re going to make me the most powerful man in the world instead.You’re going to give that facial-recognition software to all the police departments in the country, and then we’re going to use it against them because you’re giving us a back door.We will know their every movement as ithappens.”
He was crazy.Insane.
“I’llnever—”
My declaration was cut off by a knock at thefrontdoor.
“Is someone in there?Ariel?Heath?”Mrs.Thurman’s shaky voice called.“I called the police, just in case something waswrong.”
Carlos waved a hand toward the door and one of the goons moved toward it, pulling out the same gun that had killed Heath.Heath.My heart achedforhim.
I couldn’t save him.He’d been beyondsaving.
But I cansaveher.