Chapter 25 Presley #2
“I just need some money,” he pleaded, sensing my skepticism.
“That’s why I came. I figured if I held Scarlett hostage or something, you’d find a way to get me the money.
Last time I was here, you were with that movie star.
I recognized him. A hundred grand is nothing to a guy like that. Just ask him.”
He accentuated his last sentence by pointing the gun to my face.
“Okay,” I lied. “I can ask Shaw.”
“Good.” His shoulders fell and the gun dropped to his side. “Then it’ll be okay. See, babe? It’ll be okay.”
Scarlett stayed quiet, keeping her eyes locked on her knees.
“Do the Warriors know you took the drugs?” Were they on their way here? Had they followed him?
“No.” Jeremiah’s face paled. “They think it was someone else.”
Oh, God. “Who?”
His eyes flicked to Scarlett.
“What?” I shrieked. “You told them it was Scarlett?”
She gasped, then schooled her reaction. Her body froze, and her gaze turned to ice. She shut down like she’d done a million times before.
“They would have killed me on the spot. But she was already gone. If I go back with the money, I can convince them to leave her alone. We’ll let it ride for a while and I’ll see if I can get out of the club in a few years. This will blow over.”
Jeremiah was delusional. Men like Tucker Talbot didn’t believe in letting things blow over. Members didn’t leave his club—alive. Whether they were compensated or not, someone would pay for the theft.
If we didn’t fix this, that person would be Scarlett. I would lose her to him like I’d lost Draven.
“Okay. Let’s figure this out. Where is the money?”
“I lost it.”
“Gambling.” Fuck. I should have known. “You lost it playing poker.”
Guilt crossed his face for the briefest moment, then his features hardened. “Make the call, Presley. Get me that fucking money. Or your sister is dead.”
I gritted my teeth and pushed up from the floor, dropping Scarlett’s hand. “I hate you for this.”
The fury slipped out with the words.
He lifted his chin, the obstinate gesture twisting his features. “Make. The. Call.”
He looked nothing like the boy who’d helped me escape my own personal hell. He looked nothing like the man I’d wanted to marry.
I swiped my phone off the end table, but before I could bring up Shaw’s number, the doorbell rang.
The room stilled.
“Clifton Forge Police,” Luke called from beyond the front door. “We got a call. Just want to make sure everything’s okay.”
With one long stride, Jeremiah crossed the distance between us and gripped my arm, hauling me across the floor. “Tell him we’re fine. Tell him it was a mistake.”
I fought his grip. When I was a kid, I never would have dreamed of fighting my father, but I wasn’t that scared little girl anymore. “Let me go.”
He pressed the barrel of the gun to my head, urging me forward. “Do it, Pres. Or I’ll hurt Scarlett.”
I met his glare. “Who are you?”
He pressed the gun harder. “Get rid of him.”
I sucked in a breath, then slowly walked to the door.
Jeremiah trailed close behind, shifting so the barrel of the gun was in my ribs. He nodded toward the knob.
I cracked the door. “Hey, Luke.”
“Hi, Pres. Can I come in?”
“Now’s not a good time. I know my sister called you guys on accident, but we’re fine. Sorry about that. We’re just talking.”
Luke’s eyes darted to the side where Jeremiah stood behind the door.
I gave him a slight nod.
“You sure you’re okay?” Luke stared at me like he was trying to communicate something, but I had no clue what he was saying behind his serious gaze. He was wearing a bulletproof vest and no coat. His arms had to be cold.
“I’m okay. Thanks for checking on me. Good night.” I closed the door quietly.
Jeremiah stretched past me to flip the lock.
We stood there, barely breathing, as Luke’s footsteps echoed across the porch.
“He won’t leave,” I whispered, turning to Jeremiah, hoping I could reason with him. “He knows something is wrong. Until he sees for himself that I’m fine, he won’t leave. Put the gun down, Jeremiah. Please. Let’s sit down and talk. This isn’t you.”
Jeremiah’s hard expression held fast. I was sure he’d hit me next, but then his chin dropped along with the gun. “I fucked up.”
When his eyes lifted to mine, he looked so broken. Had he always been this lost? Had I missed this in our time together?
His home life hadn’t been horrendous like ours, but it hadn’t been good either. His parents had neglected him, and when Scarlett had come along, she’d given him the attention he’d craved. He’d given her his devotion in return.
But it wasn’t love.
I knew love. I saw it in Shaw’s smile. I felt it in his touch. I heard it in his voice.
The second I got out of this mess, I’d tell the world.
I was in love with Shaw Valance.
“Go.” Jeremiah nodded for me to walk down the hall. He followed, not closely, with shuffled footsteps. The urgency from his dramatic entrance was gone. The desperation was waning too.
I reached the mouth of the entryway, ready to turn for the living room, when a hand gripped my elbow and yanked me sideways.
“Ah—” My scream was cut short as Shaw stepped in front of me, shielding me as he leveled a gun at Jeremiah’s face.
“Put the gun down,” Shaw ordered, his voice steady. “It’s over.”
Jeremiah looked at the weapon in his hand and his entire frame fell. “They’ll kill me.”
My eyes darted past Shaw, searching for Scarlett. She wasn’t on the floor anymore. Instead, she was standing behind Dash, who had his own weapon trained on Jeremiah.
“Yeah,” Dash said. “They will.”
Jeremiah’s eyes turned up, hazy and unfocused. He scanned the room until he found my sister. “I’m sorry.”
“It’ll be okay.” She sniffled. “We can fix this.”
He looked at me, then back to her. “I loved you.”
My hands gripped the back of Shaw’s sweater as time slowed.
Tears streamed down Scarlett’s cheeks.
Dash took one step forward.
Shaw yelled, “Stop.”
Jeremiah lifted the gun to his mouth.
And I screamed.