Sins, Lies & Spies (Black Brothers #2)(29)
Every time things took a turn for the worst, Archer had my back, but now he had Langley. I knew Archer would always be there for me, but it wasn’t the same. I didn’t begrudge her. She loved my brother, and he loved her. She melted his icy reserve, and I’d never seen him so happy. Watching them made me consider maybe I wanted more than a string of casual flings.
I rubbed my hand down the side of my face, trying to shake off the thought, when a scream pierced the air. Fear surged through my veins. A thud of pain shot through my heart. Without a second thought, I jumped out of my car, not even bothering to fully close the door behind me.
My feet pounded against the pavement. The space between Trinity’s townhome and me seemed like a mile instead of twenty feet. When I reached the top of the steps, I ripped my gun from the holster strapped to my ankle and kicked the door open.
The minute I stepped foot inside her townhome, Trinity wrapped her body around mine. I circled one arm around her waist, shoving her behind me, my gun pointed into the dimly lit interior.
“Look, Knox,” she said, her voice shaky and her body trembling. Tears streamed down her face.
I scanned the room, and my blood turned into ice. “What the hell,” I hissed, my hands clenching into tight fists. An ochre colored cat with a brown tipped tail dangled from a rope strung from the kitchen light fixture. Who the f*ck did sick shit like that? “That’s your cat, isn’t it?” I asked, struggling to keep my voice calm when I wanted to tear apart the person responsible for this.
“Yes. Well, kind of.” Her eyes drifted shut, and a visible tremor ran through her body. “It’s Max. I found him when I moved to D.C. He kept coming around my place, and eventually he became mine by default.”
“Did you touch anything?”
“No.” She buried her head in my chest. “I flipped on the light switch next to the front door and tossed my purse on the sofa. That’s it.” A fractured breath tumbled from her lips. “Somebody killed my cat. What kind of person does that? Why would you hurt a harmless animal?”
“I don’t know, babe.” I swallowed hard. “Why don’t you go sit in my car? I’m going to take a look around, and I’ll meet you outside in a few minutes.” She didn’t need to see this. She shouldn’t have to deal with this shit.
“No.” Her lips pursed into a tight line. She stepped away from me and my hand slid from her waist. “I’d rather stay here with you. I don’t want to be alone.”
I heaved out a breath and shoved my gun into the holster at my ankle. “Fine, but stay right here, and don’t touch anything.”
Not waiting for her answer, I stalked through the living room, pausing in front of the small round kitchen table. A sweet yet rancid smell coated my nostrils. Breathing through my mouth, I popped open the switchblade on my key chain and raised my arm to cut down her cat. Spotting a folded white piece of paper on the table, I paused mid-reach. Instead, I lowered my hand and flipped open the paper with the tip of my blade. I saw a typewritten note in all caps:
SILENCE IS GOLDEN. SOME SECRETS ARE WORTH KILLING FOR. WHO WILL BE NEXT? WILL YOU LOSE FAITH?
I read the note over and over. My throat dried up, and my hands trembled. Cursing under my breath, I backpedaled a few steps.
“What’s it say?” Trinity said, her voice low and hushed.
My lips curled with distaste. “That some secrets are worth killing for.”
Her face paled, and she swayed. “Oh my God. Do you think—” Her voice faded, and her chin dipped, resting against her chest.
“Do you trust Benton?”
“Yes.” Her head jerked up. “He wouldn’t do this. It doesn’t make any sense. He found me. He helped me move closer to him. Maybe Miles.” She shook her head. “No. I can’t see him doing this either. Besides, both of them were at the party. Neither of them would’ve had the opportunity.”
My gut told me whoever killed her cat and left the note wasn’t messing around, and despite what Trinity said, I had no intention of ruling out Benton or Miles. Both of them had an interest in keeping Trinity’s connection to Benton a secret. Benton likely wanted to protect his family’s reputation and his political career. Miles needed the information as leverage to control Benton’s votes in the House of Representatives. I peered around her townhome, looking for more clues. I’d only been inside her place once, but everything appeared to be undisturbed except the cat and the note.
Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I moved to the front door. I needed to think before I acted. I needed evidence, even though my irrational side wanted to put Miles and Benton in a room together and beat the shit out of them until the truth came out. One of them was responsible for this.
“Where are you going?” Trinity asked, her voice sounding lost.
“To make some calls.”
Her heels clicked across the floor, and she tugged on the back of my suit jacket. “Don’t call the police.”
I spun around. “Why not?” I didn’t have any intention of involving the police, but I wanted to know her rationale.
Her neck tensed in defiance. “They’ll ask me questions about my past. Unless I lie, I’ll have to reveal my connection to Derrick, and I promised him I wouldn’t do it. I gave him my word. I shouldn’t have told you either.”