Chapter 4
C assie
Lottie’s quiet guidance made the backdrop for us preparing dinner. She loved to cook, I just liked being close to her. We were both happy.
After I’d slept the morning away, and our family meeting had ended, the kids had returned from school. I’d received hugs and heard their stories, all while keeping an eye out for Riordan as Sin took him around our property, giving him a tour of the security features.
The gate. The perimeter fencing. The one place where a footpath led through a broken wall, cameras all over it to capture anyone using the intended easy access point. Our little trap for any trespassers.
On their drive out to the far reaches of our estate, I’d held my breath. There was nothing stopping him from doing a runner. To be honest, I wouldn’t blame him. That didn’t change the urgency which had directed my act of stealing him away, or the need for him to come back.
My heart had restarted when they returned to the house, and the two of them were now sequestered away in the great hall.
“Cassie, are ye listening?”
I blinked and focused on Lottie’s concerned face. Then I hung my head. “No. Sorry. I was away with the fairies.”
Patient indulgence tugged at her lips. She dusted her fingers on her cute floral apron and joined me at the tall stools on the breakfast island. She claimed my hands in hers.
“Repeat after me. We do not kidnap people we like.”
I rolled my eyes but dutifully repeated the words.
Lottie inclined her head. “The best way to share our feelings is to talk about them.”
Again, I copied her.
“Good. Now let’s combine those.”
I tried it out. “Kidnapping is the best way to show a man you love him.”
Her mouth fell open. I grinned at the reaction, nothing so fun as shocking my family.
Behind me, someone cleared their throat.
Oh fuck .
Wincing, I turned around. Riordan leaned on the kitchen doorframe, tall, dark, delicious, and with an expression telling me he’d heard exactly what I’d said. Goddamn it.
“Cassie. Your brother tells me you can access the house camera feeds on your phone. Do they work?”
I collected my phone from the counter, unlocked it, and opened the app with our alert system and camera views. Then I held it up for him to see.
He prowled closer to check and gave a short nod of acknowledgement.
“Want me to put it on your phone?” I offered.
“Don’t go giving access to just anyone. That’s hardly safe,” he chided.
“You’re not just anyone.”
Riordan’s serious gaze held mine for a beat, and he poked his tongue into his cheek. “Right. I forgot that for a moment of insanity. Silly me.”
He stalked away. I collapsed onto the work surface and buried my face in my hands.
“Seriously, is that how he heard the first I love you?”
Lottie rubbed my back. “Don’t worry. He’ll know it was a joke.” A pause followed, and her tone changed. “It was a joke, right?”
“I don’t know. Probably? It is if I’m to believe Elsa from Frozen who says I can’t marry a man I just met.” From my pit of misery, I only lifted my head when the silence became too great to bear.
Lottie examined me for several seconds. “Should I be concerned?”
“About my mental health? Ye tell me.”
“There’s been some big events in your life recently, and it would be understandable if they’d rattled ye, even without that threat. It could be a good idea to go over the write-ups from your sessions with Doctor Hillier.”
As a teenager, I’d seen a therapist who’d helped me handle the overwhelming feelings that plagued me every day. She’d told me I had post-traumatic stress disorder alongside attachment issues. I had techniques to manage my triggers and low points, but facing that shite felt like such a drag.
I groaned and pulled a face. “Ye steal one man and everyone thinks you’re crazy.”
“I never said that. What I mean is your tough time at college led to the abandonment of your studies, followed by a fair amount of soul-searching over what to do with your life. Then there was the living at Arran’s warehouse.”
“It’s no mystery why I was there,” I grumbled.
“Because of your ma. I know. Ye wanted to understand what her life had been like to clue in to what yours could be. Just remember, you’re your own person, and a strong one at that. Ye have choices she never did.”
I pondered this, watching Lottie potter around with the last of the dinner prep. “Even though I’ve never found anyone who met her, I bet it’s safe to say she never kidnapped a man.”
The returning smile was soft. “I think you’re probably right. I wish we didn’t have to go tomorrow, but it can’t be helped. When we’re back, we can have a long talk.”
Lottie had a hospital appointment in Edinburgh and was also suffering motion sickness, so didn’t want to do the long drive twice in one day. I hadn’t pressed for more details, knowing she’d share when ready. But yeah, definitely preggo.
“Promise me you’ll go over those therapy notes?”
I jumped up, hugged her, and gave her my yes, then returned to my sous chef duties.
With dinner plated up, I hollered for the family to come in. Sin and Lottie’s two younger kids, Daphne and Magnus, plus Wren, Camden and Breeze’s dainty little daughter, were the only three home. Their older siblings and cousins were spending the week at school camp, and all the younger kids were away with their parents.
It still made for a noisy meal, and I slid glances at a silent Riordan who ate his chicken like he was starved but made no effort to talk. No matter. We took some getting used to, and this was an easy way into our family dynamic.
When we were done, Sin took on clean-up duties, refusing Riordan’s offer of help. Lottie directed the children into the great hall so they could run around and burn off their instant energy boost, heavy autumn rain preventing them from doing so outside.
It left me and Riordan alone, with Sin the other end of the kitchen, clattering pans. My captive stood as if to leave.
“I need to ring your sisters.”
He stalled. “Why?”
“So I can explain what I did?”
His forehead lined. “Is that necessary?”
“Girl code. I stole their brother. They should hear it from me, if Arran hasn’t spilled already.”
To my surprise, instead of a snarl, he uttered a bark of a laugh and dropped back down to his seat. “This will be good. Before you do that, I need to know how long I have to stay.”
I shrugged. “With me? Forever. In this house, maybe a couple of days?”
At the end of the kitchen, Sin swung open the door of the utility room and disappeared inside.
Riordan watched him go then returned his gaze to me. “How can you say things like that?”
My breathing quickened. This was an opportunity to explain myself. To make him understand the shock I’d got on first sight of him, down on the floor of the warehouse’s nightclub when he’d been in the middle of a fight to protect Genevieve.
Riordan had stormed the warehouse, assuming his sister was in danger. Jamieson, the youngest of my brothers, had been the one to finally restrain him. I’d been dancing on a pillar and had remained there, admiring his protective instinct and the way his t-shirt rode up his taut stomach in the scrap. The happiest feeling had filled me at the realisation of what I wanted him to be. The big mine statement my brain had made.
Instant, complete, and forever.
But I couldn’t find the words.
The moment passed, and Riordan gave up the attempt. “You think it will only take Arran a matter of days to wrap up whatever he is doing?”
“It’s a targeted hit. He’s going after Bronson. With just a few key players, maybe even just him and Shade, they can take that arsehole down.”
He squinted at me. “How do you know that?”
“I don’t for sure, but that’s exactly what I’d do if this was my plan.” I rubbed my hands together, the summary of this far easier to construct than any of my own feelings. “Arran has evidence now that links into what we already knew about the killer, giving Bronson the metaphorical smoking gun. He leapt to action, which tells me he already suspected the man and this was the final puzzle piece. He’s not going to wait around.”
“What kind of man is Bronson?”
“An arrogant fuck, and nowhere near as protected as Red, the leader of the gang. Your sister came face to face with him when she strayed into their territory. He’s a frontline kind of man, therefore easier to grab. Red will be pissed off, but Arran’s evidence will stay his hand because he doesn’t want the murders to continue either. It’s bad for business. Besides, he can’t bring a war in the same way that Arran can’t—there’s too much press attention. Too many cops on the street. It would be begging for trouble.”
Riordan settled his chin on his hands, that gaze turning curious. “What happens once Bronson’s taken?”
He was listening to me. Actually listening. A fizz of energy sparkled through me at his attention.
“Methods,” I made inverted commas in the air with my fingers, “will be used to get the truth out of him. But it’s possible he’s our man. None of our other suspects could have killed all the women. We kept hitting blanks and alibis. Bronson wasn’t even on the list, only Red, so that was an oversight, which I’m kicking myself about. The first course of action in interrogating him will be to work out his motive. It should be fun.”
Riordan folded his arms and sat back. “Shame you won’t get to see.”
I blinked. “Of course I will. I’ll be there with bells on.”
“In the room with a killer? One who threatened your life?”
I could’ve laughed. If he thought me intimidated, he was wrong. “Aren’t ye sweet, worrying about me? I come from a family of criminals. I’ve been waiting to make my first kill in the name of protecting something I care about. Which in this scenario is the warehouse and all the women who work there. Fuck that guy for killing Alisha. Fuck him for killing Cherry, Natasha, and Amelia. Don’t ye think it poetic that a woman will end his miserable life?”
Riordan only stared.
With a grim smile, I lifted my phone. “Now to make my confession.”
At Riordan’s sigh, I dialled my Skeleton Girls Detective Agency chat group to add Genevieve and Everly to a call, their two concerned faces appearing almost instantly on my screen. Genevieve’s blonde hair contrasted Everly’s brunette that matched Riordan’s chocolate shades.
“I have something to tell ye both.”
I didn’t hide my mistakes. Being open and honest was important to me for more reasons than I could list, but right before I could give up my crime, Riordan reached out and claimed my phone from my hand.
His determined expression quickened my pulse. My stomach flipped at the touch of his fingers to mine. I held my breath in anticipation of whatever he was about to say.