Chapter 16
brENDEN
There are certain advantages to being married to Tallie.
For example, ample opportunities to attend events at the main Sarkissian mansion.
Before her, I stepped foot on these grounds maybe twice in my life. Now it’s like we’re getting invitations every week.
This particular party is a fundraiser for a local assemblyman deeply in Arsen’s pocket.
The crowd is a mix of old money locals and earnest political advocates.
I dislike them all equally. Tallie hangs on my arm looking so fucking radiant in a light blue dress and it kills me, seeing my wife smiling and laughing, when all I want to do is rip her clothes off and fill her to the brim.
Which I shouldn’t do, because of that damn notebook.
“Enjoying yourself?” Annie Sarkissian leans against a table. Her back’s straight, her blond hair back in a sleek tail, her pant suit flattering while also being appropriate.
“Not bad.” I tilt my drink toward her. “You should be the one running for office.”
Annie’s smile is tight. The sound of her crying echoes in my memory.
“Don’t say that.” Tallie hits my arm. “You’ll give her ideas. You have no idea what kind of hell you’d bring down on Baltimore.”
“No worries, lovely sister. I wouldn’t settle for anything less than governor.”
That makes Tallie laugh. I like the way it sounds.
“We’ll be back,” Annie says, leading my wife away toward a group of younger political staffers. “Stay out of trouble while we’re gone.”
I watch them go before my attention drifts. Lucky for me, Sam and Davit aren’t in attendance, though I hear their father Haik’s laughter from across the garden. I grab a passing glass of bourbon and find a corner to brood in.
I’ve never been so conflicted in my life. The job is done, the notebook is stolen and in my possession, but there’s a very short list of what’ll happen once I hand it over, and none of those outcomes are good.
First possibility: Arsen destroys Sam. Maybe Arsen kills the kid, or maybe Arsen uses the unlicensed game to ruin the kid’s prospects. Either way, not good.
Second possibility: Arsen uses the notebook to blackmail Haik.
This one feels more likely based on the way Arsen’s worked in the past. Why kill the kid when he can twist the whole family to his purposes?
It’s no secret that Haik isn’t always Arsen’s biggest fan.
But if Arsen has the material to ruin the whole family?
It’s no small thing, running a poker game without permission.
But the scale is the worst part.
Millions of dollars. Thousands still outstanding in debt. Sam has that hanging over the heads of important kids in powerful families, which means he has some small measure of power. Arsen can’t possibly let that slide, not without getting a piece for himself.
Can I really hand the ledger over? Can I give Arsen that sword to hold to the throat of Tallie’s brother?
What would she do if she found out?
I don’t know why I fucking care. None of this matters, not in the long run. When my plan works out, I’ll be gone, and what happens to Tallie and her family won’t matter anymore. She can go live in fucking Mexico, start a new life, be someone entirely different for all I care.
The bourbon’s smoky as it slides down my throat. Riley’s standing with a group near the far side of the garden, laughing about something with Alexan. When she meets my gaze, I quickly slide away, losing myself in the crowd.
How long can I do this? Keep lying to her and lying to everyone? How long can I hide this from Tallie before it kills me?
“You look stressed.” My wife touches my arm, shuffling closer. “Not exactly how you’re supposed to act at a very nice party like this.”
“Can you do something for me?” We’re partially alone, obscured by a manicured bush made to look like a perfect circle.
“Maybe. Depends. I like this dress, so I won’t ruin it.”
“Actually, the dress is perfect for my needs.” I don’t bother hiding the way I look at her chest. “I need a distraction.”
She tenses right away. “For what?”
“Doesn’t matter. Make some noise. Get eyes on you.”
“You’re going to the house again?”
“There are a few things I need to check on.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Tallie—“
She digs her fingers into my arm. “I’m not going to be your pretty face with some nice tits attached, okay?”
“Fantastic tits, actually. And you’re the one who already used them twice now.”
“Twice?!”
“Once on the bartender—“
“Okay, enough.” She crosses her arms over her chest, blocking my view, unfortunately. “Either I’m coming with you, or I’m going to obnoxiously make sure there’s no way in hell you’re sneaking anywhere.”
I rub my temple as my head starts throbbing. When did this fucking happen? How’d I end up here, married to this stubborn woman, suddenly with a partner in my god damn insanity of a crime?
“We still need a distraction,” I say bitterly, accepting my fate.
Tallie considers, tapping a finger to her lips before grinning. “Stay right here. I’ll be back.”
I watch my wife stride off and consider ditching her. It wouldn’t be hard. I could slip into the tangle of bushes and vines, make my way to a side entrance, and lean on luck to get to my destination.
Instead, I keep waiting until I hear music start up. It’s a piano ballad, the first notes echoing over the crowd, followed by a voice.
A familiar voice.
“Let’s go,” Tallie says, taking my arm.
I hesitate, frowning into the crowd. “Is that Annie?”
“I told her she could sing. She didn’t even hesitate.”
“Are you kidding? She’s putting on a show?”
“My sister is a living, breathing distraction. And she’s got a great voice. Now, come on.”
Tallie’s right, Annie sounds incredible.
She doesn’t drop a single note like she’s been practicing for weeks.
I catch a glimpse of Annie gesturing expansively over the crowd, every eye locked on her as she belts out like she’s standing on stage at a packed concert.
Crazy fucking woman. The music follows us toward the house, and I doubt anyone’s looking in our direction as Tallie nudges me into a door that spits up straight into the kitchen.
“Don’t mind us,” she says, steering me past a few overworked cooks. None of them react in the slightest. I don’t love that we were spotted coming through here, but I doubt any of them will talk, much less remember us. Still, it’s a loose end.
I think of Davit lying on the ground, unconscious, struggling to breathe.
“We’re in.” Tallie sounds triumphant when we’re alone in a dark, quiet hallway. Her enormous smile melts away. “What do we do now?”
“You go back to the party.” I gently nudge her toward the kitchen. “And I do my thing.”
“No way! I set up your distraction. You’re not just sending me back.”
“Tallie, for the love of—“ I take a breath to steady myself. Losing my patience with her won’t help anything, but my god, this woman isn’t thinking clearly. “Do you know what’ll happen if your cousins catch us snooping?”
Her frown deepens. “They won’t be happy.”
“And what do your cousins do when they’re not happy?”
“Bad things?”
“Very fucking bad things.” I pull her close to me and lower my voice. “If we’re lucky, they’ll take us out back and give us the dignity of a quick murder.”
“And if we’re not?”
“Let’s hope we don’t find out. Now please, go back to the party.”
Her determination wavers. I’m tempted to spell out all the nasty torturous bullshit her crazy ass family might put us through if they catch us going through their private space, but I hold off.
She’s scared enough already. Coming this far is impressive, but I don’t need to be cruel. She knows what her notoriously private cousins are like, and she’s smart enough to know she doesn’t want any part of it.
“I’m coming with you.” She pushes me back. “Now stop arguing and let’s get moving before someone asks what we’re doing.”
I groan and look at the ceiling.
Never mind. Turns out, she’s infuriating and doesn’t have a lick of common sense.
This won’t go well for me if I keep trying to push her away.
Eventually someone really will walk through here and I won’t have a good answer for why we’re lurking around and having a fight.
Better to keep her close and to make sure she doesn’t get herself in any more trouble, even if that means dragging her to the brink of painful murder.
“Come on. Stay quiet. Don’t ask questions.”
She mimes zipping her lips. “Which way are we going?” I give her a look and she bursts out in a huge smile. “Kidding. Lead the way.”
I set out down the hall toward the back of the building.
The Sarkissian Mansion is massive. It’s one of those senseless structures that’ve been added on to dozens of times over the years, each new wing not quite lining up with all the others.
There aren’t any blueprints or anything to work from, so I’m going on memory and the few people who worked here that I managed to track down.
None were very forthcoming about their former employers, shockingly enough.
I pick a wing at random and end up surrounded by guest rooms. I head straight into the first I find and shut the door behind me. Tallie looks around, frowning at the frilly curtains, and sits down at the end of the bed. She bounces like she’s testing the mattress.
“Did you bring me in here for an afternoon sex session?”
“No.” I head to the closet. “Stop talking.”
“Because I’m not really in the mood.” She lounges on her side and watches me. “You know, on account of my husband doing weird shit?”
I pay her no mind as my fingers explore the edges of the wood paneling around the door. I kneel and knock on the walls, exploring every inch, every seam, but don’t find anything. I try the fireplace next, getting some old soot on my pants as I crawl in and prod at the bricks.
“Seriously, what are you doing?”
I grunt and nearly hit my head on the way back out. Tallie’s standing right behind me. “Could you just stay quiet?”
“I might be able to help.”
“Doubtful.” I press on into a different guest room and repeat the process, searching the closet, the walls, the fireplace, every inch.