51. Olivia #2
Somewhere out there, Raphael Viotto is lurking in the shadows, doing shady business beneath everyone’s noses.
I know my uncles would never take him back, that’s for sure.
My father is like a cockroach, waiting in the trash.
He’ll come out one day, but I hope he never does.
I hope he’s dead in a ditch where no one mourned him.
Ever. Maybe my uncles finally took him out.
They wanted him dead, anyway. Only a few in the family decided he should serve out his sentence here in Greenwood.
Instead, they forced us to move here, where my life only got worse living under my dad’s roof.
The abuse got worse. The only ray of sunshine was the three boys whom I swore tried to kill me.
Funny how that all works out.
JJ rubs at his chest. “I’m not sure what he gained.
Sympathy, maybe? He’s been revered as a cornerstone of this town since it happened.
People respect him. Look up to him for loans and business investments.
Your family’s death cemented him in a way that I’ve never seen before.
The community rallies around him. Hell, even your uncles reached out after it happened and became quiet allies.
It’s why we have more casinos, too. He greased the commissioner’s palms and bonded over the tragedy. ” JJ visibly recoils and shudders.
“So, what you’re saying is that asshole has benefited greatly since we all died a fiery death.
” I can’t get over his words, though. When he stood over me with the knife as three men held me down and made me watch my mother and sister die.
“He said that we were paying for our crimes, though. When it happened…” I trail off, looking deep into JJ’s brown eyes as they glisten with moisture.
“I’m sorry, Spitfire,” he whispers, running his thumb down my cheek. “I will continue to get to the bottom of what happened that night. I won’t rest until the people who actually hurt you and killed them meet their fucking maker.”
I nod, rolling my lips in. “It’s this town. It’s nothing but trouble.”
“Agreed,” JJ mutters, stepping back as people loudly walk by the entrance of the alleyway. “But with you here, you’ll clean the streets up, won’t you?” He smirks.
“I fucking hope so. Listen, I should probably get back to my dorm. I’m sure Simon is wondering what the hell I got up to last night.”
“Does he know?” JJ asks, pointing to me.
“What’s underneath?” I ask, pulling at my sweatpants.
“Of course. But who am I, and what am I doing here? No. Only you and them,” I huff, waving a hand in the direction of Syndicate Row.
“Thanks for coming to save me.” I never did thank him for bursting into Malic’s house and disrupting the chaos my life could have been.
“Always, Liv,” he whispers softly. “224.”
Heat billows through my veins at his words. “224,” I softly say with a crack in my voice.
“Spitfire,” he says as I step away from him, heading to my dorm.
“Yeah?”
“Tonight, you need to be prepared. It’s initiation night.
” He raises a brow. “Wear your Oliver clothes. The binder and everything to bed. Someone will enter your room between midnight and three; they’ll put a hood over your head and take you to a secret location.
” He nibbles his lip. “It’s in the caves. You remember?”
I snort. “Do I remember? Of course, I do.”
“Whoa!” My voice echoes through the dark abyss as my flashlight beams off the sides of a large cavern beneath the Coliseum. “Is this…?” I turn to look at Mack, who grins, staring up at the tall ceilings with wide, excited eyes.
“It’s caves! This has to be the place old Captain Greenwood put his treasure, right?”
“Dude, be careful,” JJ grumbles, climbing in behind us with his own flashlight.
“This is so cool,” Mack exclaims, crawling further ahead. “I bet it’s buried under here somewhere. That treasure is ours!”
JJ’s nose crinkles. “It doesn’t look like anyone has been down here in years.” He swipes a few cobwebs away from his face and coughs. “And it’s dusty.”
“Smells musty, too,” Huxley grumbles, reluctantly following us as we make our way further and further into the darkness with only our flashlights to guide us.
“Holy shit,” Mack’s voice echoes for miles as he stands tall in the large space, looking around. “This place should become our new hideout.”
“How about no,” Huxley mumbles. “We’ll probably catch a disease down here or something. Or pneumonia.” He rubs at his chest. “Or we’ll get lost.”
“You’re such a sourpuss, dude,” Mack gripes. “This is the find of the century, and you’re bitching about pneumonia? Pu-lease.” Mack swipes a hand through the air. “I can see it now. A couch over there. We’ll hide out here until everyone forgets we exist.”
“We could definitely make something of this place…” JJ trails off, looking up at the high ceiling again in amazement. “How many people know it exists?”
“Probably nobody,” I agree, taking a step further while shining my flashlight at the cave walls.
My heart beats quickly in my chest as we continue to explore the cave system.
It’s not as big as we thought, but there are a few separate chambers surrounding the large space we first found.
But they’re all connected, and we could easily get lost within the darkness.
After an hour of exploring and Hux complaining, we find a second entrance, leading to a large structure in the graveyard.
“It’s like one big loop,” Mack whispers as we step out of the wall of an ancient mausoleum lined with four family graves. “This is so fucking cool!” he shouts in the small building, bumping shoulders with me.
“Kind of freaky,” I mumble, looking at the four name plates attached to the wall. “It led us into a grave.”
“It’s a mausoleum,” Hux says, shuddering as his eyes dart around. “It’s probably haunted.”
“It’s not haunted, dude,” Mack says with a grin, practically bouncing in place. “It’s a fucking adventure; that’s what it is.” He puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. “But if it is haunted, I’ll protect you, Livy.” He winks.
“Jesus, it’s a piece of hair,” JJ mumbles, pointing to a large strand of black hair with a red bow behind a glass case. “Mary Greenwood,” he says, furrowing his brows, and then turns. “Jessa Greenwood. Johnny Greenwood. Jacob Greenwood.”
“They’re the descendants of John Greenwood. His grandkids,” Huxley says, studying an aging plaque hung above the door of the ancient mausoleum. “How have we never seen this before?” His brows furrow.
“I wonder if it’s hidden somehow?” JJ asks, shrugging.
“Weird…” Mack trails off. “You think we can break through that door and leave?”
“Only one way to find out,” I say, leaning heavily against the heavy door and twisting the ancient handle.
“Let me help,” Hux says, helping me lean against it until it creaks open a crack and bright sunlight beams through.
Once we’ve exited the old building and shut the door, we stand outside it, staring. “So, this should be our little secret, right?” I say, looking between the three boys.
“Uh, duh! In our time of need, we come to this spot and meet in the caves.”
The caves never truly became a place we spent time in; they were just a fun discovery.
Once Mack realized the fabled Greenwood treasure would never be found there, he dropped it, and we moved on.
Only visiting when we wanted an adventure underground.
The treehouse in the middle of the woods was always our sanctuary.
Our home away from home. Especially for me.
It was a shorter distance to get there from my bedroom window than to the caves.
I could easily climb the ladder and hide out until my father gave up trying to reach me.
“So, the caves?” I ask as he takes a step away from me toward the opposite end of the alleyway.
A small grin tugs at the edges of his lips. “Yeah. The caves. Mack found good use for them after all. He’s still convinced that’s where the treasure is hidden despite looking almost everywhere in that cave system. He’ll never give up until he finds the gold.”
I nod. “I’ll be ready for it. Uh, thanks for the warning,” I say, wanting to ask more questions about what to expect, but JJ lifts his hand before walking off into the sunshine. At the edge of the alley, I watch as he walks along the sidewalk and then disappears toward the property line.
I blow out a breath when I exit the small alleyway.
My mind replays the day’s events. Oh, and the night, too.
Pulling out my phone, I look through the missed messages and calls.
Simon called a few times, which is odd. Usually he texts, which means he probably wants the tea about last night.
As I scroll more, my heart drops into my stomach when Jonathan’s name flashes across the screen several times.
Three missed calls, and seven missed text messages.
Shit. I rub my temples. This is not a good development.
He rarely calls or texts during cases like this.
Whatever.
Instead of worrying about Jonathan, I type out a quick message to my favorite grumpy asshole.
Oli: Any news on the USB?
Carter: Fucking hi to you too…
Oli: Hello Carter. How is your day? Is it fucking amazing?
I roll my eyes as his texting bubble pops up.