Chapter 17 #2
“And yet,” he continues, “I have no answers.” The way he says it, like it’s a personal insult, is infuriating.
“I’m working on some leads.”
“Working?” he snaps. “Miguel is dead, Roman. Under what was supposed to be your pack supervision. And you’re ‘working on some leads’?”
My jaw tightens. Miguel wasn’t just one of his business partners' sons. He was the ticket to getting everything he wanted from his father. Miguel was supposed to be taking over for Arthur next year, and my father no doubt had plans to use that to his advantage. And now he doesn’t have that.
“I told you,” I say, keeping my tone flat, “the scene was in a blind spot of cameras. Whoever did this knew that and what they were doing.” Not to mention she knew no one would suspect a tiny little Beta to kill a grown Alpha male with a knife to the neck.
“Then find them,” he growls, and I can almost feel the Alpha command roll over my skin.
Just like when I was a young boy and I would run to him and my mother, tears in my eyes.
He would use his Alpha bark to “toughen me up," as he called it. My mother, an Omega, would stand there, tears in her eyes, because her instincts were to protect me. To cuddle her small child in tears but couldn’t move a muscle without her command. I’m glad she finally ran away from him years later, even though she had to leave me behind.
Silence fills the car except for the hum of the engine and our breathing.
“I’m expanding the search,” I add. “Harrison is running more facial recognition on everyone who entered the club. And viewing security from surrounding blocks. We are going to find who did this. ”I lie, knowing we already have her.
“And?” he presses.
“And nothing yet.” His exhale is sharp through the speaker.
“You’re slipping, boy. This is why you are not ready for more responsibility. You can’t even manage a simple babysitting job.”
“I’m not slipping," I grind.
“Then prove it.” There it is. The test is beneath the accusation. He doesn’t just want the killer. He wants to see how far I’m willing to go to get a job done. I’m no saint, not with how my father raised me, but there are still lines I won’t cross. My mother taught me that.
“I’ll have something soon,” I tell him. Knowing I need to come up with a better plan because handing over Karma is not an option.
“You have a few more days,” he says coldly. “After that, I send Dominic.”
My grip tightens slightly on the wheel.
Dominic. My father’s favorite ‘business partner’ and the local corrupt cop. Loyal to my father like a dog to its owner. Brutal in ways that make me question how he got his position in the first place.
“That won’t be necessary,” I say carefully.
“If you and your pack can’t uncover the truth,” my father continues, ignoring me, “Dominic will.”
“I said I’ll handle it,” I bite off.
“You have one week,” he repeats. “If I don't have a head in a box or a simple name by then, Dominic goes in. And he won’t care who he has to break to get the answers I want.” The line goes quiet for a beat. Then, “And Roman?”
I don’t answer.
“Don’t make me question where your loyalties lie.”
The call ends. Just like that. I stare at the dark road ahead, jaw tight.
One week.
My conversation with Mr. X replays in my head. "…before you make any decisions on what to do with Karma, try to understand her. She has good reason for what she does, and right now I think you and your pack might need her as much as she needs someone else in her corner.”
Does she know more about my father? Is that how she knows me? A muscle in my cheek twitches. Then the real question isn’t who killed Miguel. It’s why my father is so desperate for the answer. And why he’s pushing so hard.
I press harder on the gas.
One week.
I drop my keys on the entry table and shrug off my jacket as I head straight for Harrison’s office.
The house is mostly quiet except for the guys' low voices. The door’s half open as I approach.
Inside, blue light from multiple monitors paints the room in sharp shadows.
Harrison sits at the main desk, reading glasses low on his nose, fingers flying over a keyboard.
Theo leans back in the chair to his right, boots propped on a filing cabinet, scrolling through something on a tablet.
Neither of them looks surprised when I step in.
“You’re back,” Harrison mutters without glancing up. “How was the meeting?”
I shut the door behind me. “We need to talk.” That gets Theo’s attention. He lowers his feet slowly, turning to face me with a serious look on his face. “I think Karma was telling the truth. X all but confirmed it. He also knows way more than he is willing to share.”
Harrison’s typing stops. Theo smirks like he never doubted it.
Theo’s brows pull together. “Confirmed how?”
“He warned me not to get on her bad side.” I pause. “Told me she’s survived worse situations. But he knew we had her and didn’t seem all that worried for her. Like he knows she can take care of herself.”
Harrison leans back slowly in his chair, processing. So, I continue on with my thought process. “I think we have been looking for answers about her the wrong way. I think she knows me because of my father, maybe. Another thing X somewhat hinted at, I think.” Harrison frowns.
Harrison exhales through his teeth. “Yeah. About that.”
My eyes snap to him. “What?”
“She told Theo something earlier when he went to check on her.” Theo shoots him a look then rolls his eyes. But Harrison ignores him. “He needs to know. Especially after what I just found out.”
I fold my arms. “Know what?” I growl. Over not knowing shit that's going on lately.
Theo rubs the back of his neck once before answering. “She said she does what she does because of someone named Rosie.”
The name hits somewhere deep in my soul, but I don’t outwardly react. “Rosie?” I question, hoping I heard him wrong. Harrison’s jaw tightens before nodding and turning his screen towards me.
“She was a local girl,” he says quietly. “Died when you were in high school. She killed herself. The news states she left a note. She came out as a Beta but wanted to be an Omega. Apparently couldn’t live with that fact.”
Something cold slides down my spine as I stare at a face. I never thought I would forget, but somehow I have. Those eyes. How did I forget those eyes?
Theo and Harrison exchange a glance at my sudden silence. I ignore them. “What does she have to do with Karma?" My eyes trace the face on the screen like I’m seeing her for the first time again.
Theo leans forward now, elbows on his knees. “She wouldn’t say anything else after that.”
My pulse slows, like I’m suddenly in a haze. The room feels smaller as the silence stretches.
Rosie.
My Rosie.
My mind drags through old hallways, lockers slamming, and whispered rumors. Faces blur together. Did I go to school with Karma? Did she know her? How?
“I want everything,” I say finally, my heart now beating too fast for my chest to hold. “News reports on the case. Pull up my yearbook photos and compare them to Karma. If she is claiming to know Rosie, then that could be how she knows me.”
Harrison and Theo stare at me for a moment.
“Did you know this Rosie girl?” Harris asks, but my mind is racing as fast as my heart now.
Without answering, I spin on my heel and rush from the room, up the stairs, and to the guest room.
A thunder of footsteps follows behind me.
Without a second thought, I rip open the door, and there she is.
Karma, wait. Rosie? Sitting cross-legged on the bed with a smile on her face.
The racing in my chest comes to a complete halt as it ticks. The eyes. The greenest I’ve ever seen. The red hair. Her scent. It’s the one I thought would haunt me for the rest of my life because back then I thought it meant something else.
“I see you finally figured it out, Roman Shaw. How time flies…” she says, taunting me, but I can’t deny it when the evidence is suddenly clear as day.
“No. They said you killed yourself. I went to your funeral.”
"Rome, what are you talking about?” Harrison asks, stepping beside me.
I shake my head in disbelief. “Rosie?” I ask. My voice is breaking with emotion beyond my control. This isn’t possible.
Then, as if this were all a game to her, she laughs, stands on the bed, and curtsies. “Back from the dead.”