“Are you fucking kidding me?!” I yell so loud I scare both the dogs. I hear a weak bark from Joe in the hallway. I rub my forehead and sit down on the bed. “So this motherfucker is legally fined for breaking federal regulations and he gives Kelsey a little fright and then sends a guy to kill me? His piece of shit kid makes four times what they had to pay in instagram ads in like an hour. And like half that money went to beeconservation.”
“Hey, I’m with you. It’s a pretty fucking extreme overreaction. That’s not the badpart.”
“Fucking hell. What? Just tellme.”
“One of Dorrit’s security people caught on to Tillery snooping and they threatened his family. So Tillerytalked.”
“What do you mean he talked?” I’m pretty sure I’m going tovomit.
“He told them he was looking into Dorrit foryou.”
Yeah, definitely going tovomit.
“But this is good,” Scottsays.
“Please tell me what’s good aboutit.”
“Well now we have proof Dorrit wasinvolved.”
“Or do we just have proof that I think that Dorrit was involved? And even if Tillery has proof that Dorrit sent that guy to take me out, will Tillery testify tothat?”
“No. He won’t. They spooked him pretty good. But, this doesn’t need to go thatfar.”
“Oh? It hasn’t gone far enoughalready?”
“You know that’s not what I’m saying. We talk to Dorrit. We tell him message received loud and clear. He’s pissed. We get it, but now he needs to backoff.”
“Yeah. I’m sure that’llwork.”
“It will if we give him what hewants.”
“Scott. Stop being a lawyer for five minutes and tell me what I give a man who tries to kill me for some shit he and his shitty kiddid?”
“I’ll figure something out. Just hang tight,” Scott says like he’s got everything in hand when really I’m in just as much danger asever.
“Hey, man. Hanging tight is all I’ve beendoing.”
“Just fucking relax, alright,” hesnaps.
I close my eyes and press my tongue to the roof of my mouth. I remember that trick Claudia’s old therapist shared with her. I start counting to ten. I get to six when Scott realizes I’m notresponding.
“Hey. I’m sorry. Alright? I know it’s not the same thing, but this shit has me stressed out too. I am worried aboutyou.”
“Yeah, but do me a favor and don’t tell me to relax. You may be stressed, but you don’t have a little hit out on you. Okay? And it sounds like Tillery left out the little part whereyouhired him. You may be stressed, but the target is on myback.”
“I’m sorry. For real. What did you want to talk to me about? Were you trying to get more information about Tillery or was it something else? Si was texting me yesterday like you fell down a well and he and the five Lassies couldn’t get youout.”
I pull the sheet over me and let out another sigh. As much as I’d love to get into it with Scott about Silas, I don’t have the energy. And for some reason, my life being threatened should take priority over trying to mend their twenty years of siblingbeef.
“I don’t know what Silas was texting you about,” I say. “He probably wanted to know how much longer I was going to be invading hisspace.”
“Man, fuck him. That’s a five bedroom house. Plus I replaced the pull-out in the living room a few years ago. Shit, you could squat in my bedroom for at least a year and he wouldn’t notice. There might be squatters in there now. Where are you sleepinganyway?”
“He gave me his bed. He’s been sleeping on thecouch.”
“Surprised he’s not sleeping up in the barns, he loves that place so fucking much. You meet his horseyet?”
“Uh, no. I’ve been working the whole time I’ve been here. I just met Ginny and Maya. And your cousin? Mason?” I leave out the part where I FaceTimed with his parents. And the part where Silas and I are sharing a bed and bodily fluids. I cannot have this conversation with Scott rightnow.