Chapter 44
Forty-Four
Sabine
The apartment complex is a rundown two-story brick building at the end of a cul-de-sac. The kind of neighborhood where you wouldn’t want to be out past sundown. It strikes me as odd, considering how much Astor pays his employees, but then I remember that Leo spends most of his time bouncing between, and living in, Astor’s many mansions. Why pay for something that nice when you spend most of your time in luxury, anyway?
The neighborhood is quiet, with only the roar of rain to break the eerie silence. Every room in the complex is dark, and not a single light is on in the surrounding homes. Everyone is asleep in their beds—where we should be.
We pull into the small lot.
“Oh no.” I shake my head.
“What?”
“That’s Brittney’s Nissan.”
Astor squints through the rain at the car parked at the end of the lot. “What is she doing here?”
“She and Leo have a connection—they had a one-night stand recently. She’s having trouble letting go, to say the least.”
“She told you that?”
“Yeah. We’ve become friendly. She is a sweet, young woman trying to find her way.”
“Wow, the guy gets around, doesn’t he?”
I nod. “She’s probably here because of the fight earlier, to tell him about it, maybe.”
“Well, shit.” Astor looks at the clock. “He shouldn’t be home yet. According to the person I spoke to at the bar, he’s closing tonight.”
“Let me see if she’s in her car. Park there, and I’ll be right back.”
“No, let me do it.”
I snort. “No thanks, Incredible Hulk, I’m pretty sure she never wants to see you again. Stay here. She’s comfortable with me.”
Astor grabs a poncho from the back of his car and hands it to me. I slip it on. “I’ll be right back.”
Dipping my face against the rain, I pull up the hood and jog across the parking lot.
Brittney is sitting behind the steering wheel scrolling on her phone. She nearly catapults through the roof of her car when I knock on the window.
Shocked to see me, she rolls down the window. When I try to shield the rain from dripping into her car, she rolls her eyes. “Don’t worry about it, seriously. What are you doing here?”
“What are you doing here?”
“I . . . I” she stammers. “I came here to tell Leo about what happened. I heard Astor scream Leo’s name, and I, well, I came here to warn him.”
“Of what?”
“That something huge happened and Astor appeared very upset with him. What happened, Sabine?”
“A lot. But I can’t go into all that right now.”
“I didn’t have your number; I wanted to call you. I’ve never seen someone so mad. I’ve never seen a fight like that.”
I sigh. “I know, it was awful. I’m so sorry you had to see that.” I glance over my shoulder. So, um, have you told Leo? Have you seen him?”
“No.”
Phew.
She continues, “I went to the bar, but he was on a break, so I came here to wait for him until he gets home.”
My heart breaks for her. She is madly in love with this guy.
“Where’s Jackie?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I called her after I left, asking what to do, and she told me to go home and not return to the beach house until she gives me the okay.”
“Do you know if she called the cops?”
“I don’t think so. She seems like the type of person to stay out of other people’s drama, you know what I mean?”
“Brittney, listen, I need you to go home right now. Please.”
“What’s going on? What’s going to happen?”
“Honestly, I don’t know, but it’s best for you to leave.”
She glances in the rearview mirror at Astor’s car idling behind us.
“Honey,” I say desperately, “I need you to make a good decision tonight.”
“Go home,” she mumbles.
“Yes. On multiple levels, that’s the best decision right now. One, what is Leo going to think of you waiting for him all night? And two, whatever Astor has to say to Leo is not your business. Okay? Here,” I open my palm. “Give me your cell phone.”
I program my number into her contacts. “That’s my personal cell. I’ll call or text you later and I’ll let you know when to come back, if you’re even willing to come back to work.” I wink.
“Okay.” She nods reluctantly. “Thank you.”
“Be careful.”
“You, too.”
As I watch her pull onto the street, I get a weird feeling of something that resembles parental concern.