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Ava

It feels like someone has their hands around my throat.

I can’t breathe.

I’m trying but I can’t seem to get it right.

And yet, I can hear the air rushing in and out of my lungs. I can hear the sobs coming from my mouth as I run towards the block of apartments. The apartments where he lives. Or used to live. I fight back another sob as the realization hits again. My eyes are stinging. My chest is so tight it hurts.

Red lights are flashing. Uniformed officers are moving in and out of the building, which has been cordoned off.

“Ava!” A woman screams my name. She is on the pavement, about thirty feet away from where the action is.

Her eyes are wide. Her face is too pale.

She’s much thinner than I remember. A waif, really.

It’s been a good couple of months since I last saw her.

Even from across the street I can see that her eyes are red-rimmed.

Tears are streaming down her face. Her hair is an unkempt, stringy mess.

It doesn’t look like she’s washed it in weeks.

What a thing to notice at a time like this.

It’s clear that nothing has changed since I left.

That’s not true.

Everything has changed.

Everything.

“Lee,” I choke out. “What happened?” I yell, my voice is shrill.

Thankfully, I still have the good sense to check for oncoming traffic.

My purse strap almost falls from my shoulder as I pick up a panicked jog.

Gripping the leather in my hands, I close the distance.

Shit. I’m crying now as well. Tears are coursing down my face.

Lee is sobbing in earnest. She’s shaking her head and saying something I can’t quite make out. Between the sirens, our combined racking sobs and my thumping heart, it’s hard to hear anything else. Her eyes have this look. It’s terrible. It makes me pick up the pace even more.

“I found him…” I finally hear her choked words. “I found him…I found him…” she keeps saying the same thing over and over. It looks like she’s about to lose it. Her eyes are wild now. Filled with…fear. Why fear?

I grip her wrists in both my hands and force her to look me in the eyes. She flinches as our gazes lock. Her nose is running. Her eyes are not just red but puffy as well. Tears are still streaming down her face. I can sense that a sob is lodged in her throat.

“What happened to him? What happened to my brother?”

Lee shakes her head. “He…he…”

I squeeze her arms. Not hard enough to bruise but enough to anchor her. To keep her focused. “What happened to Bruce? How did he die?” I choke on the last word. I still can’t believe this. My little brother is dead. Gone.

Her face crumples and fresh tears fall.

“Did he OD? He overdosed, didn’t he?” My fingers are digging into her arms now.

I need answers. I make a noise of frustration.

There is underlying anger there too. “Forget it! I’ll find out soon enough anyway.

” I turn to walk to the closest uniformed person I can find.

A middle-aged man. He looks to be guarding the entrance to the building. There is less activity outside.

“He killed himself,” Lee says behind me, her words making my blood run cold.

I turn, facing her. Lee is chewing on the quick of her nail.

It’s bleeding but she doesn’t seem to notice.

Her eyes are directed at the asphalt at her feet.

“An H overdose but it wasn’t an accident.

” Her big blue eyes lock with mine. “He left a letter,” she mutters.

“It was addressed to you. An apology.” A tear trickles down her face.

“He didn’t know what else to do.” She starts to cry all over again.

“Why?” I shake my head, unable to comprehend what I am hearing.

“Why would he do such a thing? I thought the two of you were doing better.” I’m frowning, unable to comprehend.

“Bruce told me he had a job. He said he was working for a local courier company. I…” Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I stop talking. My mouth falls open.

Lee is laughing. She’s damn-well laughing.

The laugh quickly turns into an all-out bawl.

She is shaking her head so hard her greasy hair is swishing.

“A courier. Yeah, that’s exactly what Bruce was, only it wasn’t regular packages he was transporting.

He was—” Her eyes lift, and she stares at something over my shoulder.

Whatever it is has Lee freezing. It has her eyes widening in…

terror. This strange reaction again…why?

Her lip trembles. Her face drains of any vestiges of color. “I’m sorry.” Her voice is high-pitched.

I can’t be sure if she’s talking to me. I don’t think she is. Lee turns and runs. She stumbles and almost falls. Once she finds her feet, she picks up the pace again. The police officer calls after her but she isn’t listening. Something has her spooked. Something or someone.

The hairs on the back of my neck stand up. My whole body becomes rigid. I slowly turn. I almost take a step back but catch myself. “Mr Herms?” I sound incredulous. “What are you doing here?”

He smiles. It’s warm and kind but I’m not taken in.

I don’t know very much about this man, but I do know his type.

Herms owns the casino I work for. With inky black hair and startling blue eyes, he’s extremely attractive.

He is rolling in money. Has women falling at his feet.

He’s also taken a keen interest in me of late.

I don’t know why, but I don’t like it. My heart should beat faster when he flirts with me.

I should have jumped at the chance when he asked me out some weeks back.

It’s not just about losing my job, there is something about him I don’t like.

Herms is a player. He’s used to getting what he wants, when he wants it.

My boss arches a brow. “I heard that an employee just lost a family member. I thought I would come see if you needed anything.”

My eyes prick with fresh tears as I remember why I’m here.

That Bruce… I swallow thickly, trying hard to dislodge the lump of emotion forming in my throat.

For a moment I’d forgotten why I was here.

I’m reeling inside, working hard to keep my feelings under wraps.

I don’t want this man to be privy to any of it.

His explanation doesn’t sit right with me.

There is no way Sly Herms, owner of The Winged Palace Casino, drops everything whenever one of his staff members has a family crisis.

No damned way! I want to tell him that he’s full of crap, but I bite my tongue.

I nod once. “Thank you but I can manage. I will need a few days to…” I clear my throat.

wishing he would leave, “to make arrangements.”

“Of course, take all the time you need.”

“Thank you. I need to go…I…” Shit! A tear runs down my cheek. I catch it with the tips of my fingers, sniffing and blinking to stop myself from crying.

“Here…” Herms pulls a crisp handkerchief from his suit pocket. Always dressed to the nines in expensive, designer suits, tailored to fit his built frame.

I take the hankie, mumbling my thanks.

“You shouldn’t have to deal with this alone.” He shakes his head, those deep blue eyes never leaving mine. How do I make him go away? It makes absolutely no sense that he is here. I don’t want him here.

I need to speak to someone. I need to see my brother. I need answers. More tears run down my cheeks.

“Let me…” the casino owner begins but is interrupted.

“Ava…oh my god! I can’t believe this.” It’s my best friend, Trudy.

She’d been my first call after I got the news, and it’s no surprise she dropped everything and raced to be here with me.

She hooks an arm around me. “I’m so sorry.

” Unable to hold back any longer, I cling to her and sob.

It’s a good couple of minutes before I’m able to come up for air.

“You poor thing. I’m so sorry.” Trudy’s cheeks are wet too.

She’s known my brother for almost as long as I have.

“Thank you for coming.” My voice is choked.

“How did this happen? Did he…?”

“He killed himself.” I bite onto my lower lip, shaking my head. “Lee said she found him.”

Trudy gasps, covering her mouth. “I can’t believe it. Are they sure it was suicide?”

“I think so…I haven’t spoken to anyone official yet.” I look to the door where the officer is positioned. There are two more standing outside, looking our way.

“I haven’t had a chance.” I look around us, realizing with a sigh that Herms has left. Something else occurs to me at that moment. Lee seemed to recognize him. Not only that, she was afraid of him. So much so that she ran away. Ran. Away. My heart is pounding.

It can’t be. It doesn’t make any kind of sense.

Why would Lee know Sly Herms? How would their paths have ever crossed?

Sly is rich. He’s well-known in these parts.

A celebrity of sorts. By contrast, my brother and Lee barely get by.

They’re drug addicts. The only reason they have this apartment is because of a monthly allowance my mother left for him in her will.

I’m the executor. I use it to pay the rent and amenities.

Otherwise, they’d be living on the street.

I find myself thankful that my mother didn’t live to see this.

She died young. I’m convinced that worrying herself sick over Bruce is what caused her death.

The lies. The cheating. The stealing. The using. More lies.

The last time I talked to Bruce was a few weeks ago.

He said they were clean. Like I haven’t heard that one before.

I’m not being callous or uncaring but it’s difficult to trust a drug addict.

My mother took him back in on more than one occasion.

The last time, he didn’t just steal from her purse, he cleaned out her jewelry and electronics as well.

So, when he told me they were clean, that he had a real job, I didn’t believe him.

From the look of Lee today, I would say I was right.

I still can’t fathom why Lee would know Sly Herms. Maybe she was still high today when she saw him.

Maybe she saw a picture of him on a billboard or in the paper and she just thinks she knows him. Yeah, that has to be it.

Trudy squeezes my arm, bringing me back to the cold, hard reality. “I think we should go and find out what happened.”

I’m fiddling with my ring, it’s what I do when I’m stressed. I nod once and allow myself to be led.

Lord of Fire is out now …