Page 60 of Envy
He stills, the clicking of keys going silent as his gaze shifts to Evie. She’s peeling an orange beside Tempest, leaning in close as she hangs on every word my sister says. Another piece of my armor melts, knowing just how long Tempest has waited for a friend like her.
“She seems to think it is,” I say slowly, watching my little fox. Her mouth closes around a slice, a bead of juice catching on her lip just before her tongue licks it clean. I adjust my pants, and force myself to focus. “That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about. You forwarded his calls to a ghost number, right?”
Noctis nods. “Yep. That motherfucker’s definitely obsessed in a creepy sort of way. The mailbox I linked to it filled in a day.”
My knucklescrackas I flex my hands, wishing I had his face in front of me to pummel. His bones to break. “Has anyone listened to the messages yet? Evie’s afraid of that fucker, which already makes him a problem in need of solving.”
“No, but I’ve done a full sweep on him. He’s an entitled prickhiding behind the guise of the church, but he’s clean. Never even had a parking violation.”
“He wouldn’t, though, would he?” I ask, meeting Noctis’s skeptical stare. “Not if the cops are on his side. Not if his daddy’s rich and the church thinks he’s a golden boy.”
Noctis starts to shake his head, then pauses. “I’ll go through the voicemails and see what I can find. Between what Erik said about Tempest feeling uneasy with Evie’s family, and the possibility of her brother having enough influence to get us arrested, it’s worth another look. But I still feel like we’re missing something.”
“Something new?” I ask after a moment. “We’ve closed all leads. Unless you think Shane?—”
“No,” Noctis cuts in. “Mavros and I were reviewing recent reports of missing women, including the ones that fit the southern circuit’s profile, and a lot of shit is pointing to someone sounding a lot like Mark.”
It takes me a second, but when it clicks, I have to fight to keep my voice low. “Mark, as in the asshole whose brain I put a bullet through weeks ago?”
After I used his short bout of suffocation to get Evie off.That motherfucker was granted the best last minutes of his life, buried so deep in my girl’s pussy he couldn’t breathe. My jaw clenches as the familiar tendrils of jealousy claw up my spine.
“Maybe I just want it to be him.” Noctis sighs, shaking his head as his eyes dart across the screen. “It would mean we already took care of the leak.”
“But that wouldn’t explain why the cops were bold enough to make a move on us with no evidence,” I counter.
Noctis nods, frustration tightening his features. He doesn’t care how long it takes. Once he’s caught the scent of something, he’ll track it until the trail ends in a kill.
“Maybe look into Evie’s parents. And their church,” I addafter a beat, eyes narrowing as Erik takes a seat beside Tempest and Evie.
There’s nothing wrong with the way he’s speaking to them, but something about the exchange, about the way Evie smiles fondly when looking between Erik and my sister, or maybe the way Tempest laughs, bright and open over her freshly refilled coffee mug that sends pricks of alarm vibrating beneath my skin. Not envy or even concern… but a protectiveness, all the same.
“Sure thing,” Noctis says just as Evie’s phone lights up next to her.
The laughter in her eyes dims. Her beautiful lips, tilted in a soft smile moments ago, tug down as she swipes to read the message.
And then her eyes find mine.
40
EVIE
Idon’t know why Dean Whitehouser would request a meeting with me. I’m even less sure how he got my personal number, but here I am, backpack slung over my shoulders, phone tucked into the pocket of a new pair of jeans. I considered wearing my family approved skirt-and-blouse combo, but I figure this probably has something to do with my parents not paying tuition. I might as well start embracing this new chapter of my life head-on.
“It’s abuse of power,” Tempest says, keeping stride with me as we pass the turtle pond and head toward the library. “The dean texting you. He can’t just access your personal information like that. Silas already has Noctis on it.”
“I’m sure he does,” I reply, a huffed laugh breaking through my worry. “Along with a full investigation into my family, my ex-church, and probably the first celebrity I ever had a crush on.”
Tempest raises a brow. “I thought you weren’t allowed to watch television, let alone movies with celebrities hot enough to crush on.”
“Ralph is pretty hot.” I shrug, my lips quirking into a grin. “Ithink it’s the way he’s allowed to wreck things, and everyone still loves him for it. Or maybe it’s the large hands.”
“The cartoon character?” Tempest laughs.
My grin widens. “Like you said, I had to work with what I had.”
She draws me into a hug as the administrative office comes into view. “I’ve got your tuition covered for next semester. Adrian already approved the liquidation of assets and is setting up an account for you to use.”
“Only as a loan,” I insist, already feeling the bite of shame.