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CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

BLAKE

I drop down in front of Syd, where she’s cradling her face and sobbing. I pick up her phone, glancing quickly at the image before locking the screen and handing if off to Roman who is now standing behind me.

Roman shakes his head as I look up at him, disappointed that Syd had to see her friend like that.

“Oz is on his way, Hopefully, he’ll be able to trace where the call came from,” Ro tells me. “Stay with her while I shower, then we can swap.”

I nod and watch as he disappears into the bathroom. Turning back to Syd, I reach out and grip her wrists. “Syd,” I say as I give testing tug on her hands covering her face. “Syd, look at me.”

Hiccupping sobs grow louder, and I gently peel her fingers from her face. Her eyes are red and puffy, snot drips down from her nose, and she twists her head to wipe her face on her top—my T-shirt I gave her last night.

“I…oh my god, Blake. He killed her, he killed Cressida.” She sucks in a stuttered breath. “What he did to her…”

“I know, I know. I’m so sorry, Syd.” I cup her face, wiping new tears from under her eyes with my thumbs.

“I should have listened to Roman.” She pulls my hands from her face and climbs to her feet. “We need to call the police. Tell them what happened…”

I’m shaking my head as I rise to stand in front of her. “No, Syd. We can’t involve the police.”

Her eyes search my face, trying to understand what I’ve told her. “What do you mean?” she asks, her words cautious like she can’t have heard correctly. “Someone killed my friend and sent me a picture of her… We don’t have a choice. It’s the right thing to do.” She tilts her head, imploring me, begging for some kind of sense.

“It’s too risky.”

“Too risky?” she asks incredulously and pushes away from me. “It’s too risky to not call them, Blake.”

I sigh, wondering how the fuck I’m meant to tell her why we can’t involve the cops.

“Blake, someone killed my friend, attacked my pa and tried to burn me alive. How can we not call them?”

“Because if you do, your father will go to prison,” Ro says, walking towards us with a towel hung low on his hips.

Syd gasps, then narrows her eyes. “For what? You said you got it wrong and it wasn’t him. Surely the fact he was attacked and now Cressida is dead too, while he was in hospital, proves it can’t have been him.”

“Maybe, but?—”

“Maybe? What the fuck is maybe,” Syd yells.

Ignoring her interruption, Ro continues, “But, maybe he had an accomplice. Then there’s the small matter of his real identity.”

“Jesus fucking Christ, Ro,” I grumble. He’s not known for his tact, something I usually admire. But on this occasion, I have a feeling it might have been helpful.

Syd waves her hands in a stop gesture, not wanting to hear any more. “No more riddles, Roman. I’m not as fragile as you seem to think, so you can stop beating around the bush and give it to me straight. Or I’ll walk out the door and find answers myself.”

There was me thinking Ro had been too blunt while Syd feels it’s not blunt enough.

“I’m going to need a cold shower if you keep that up, Syd,” I mutter, not even bothering to hide my blatant arousal—a little difficult as I’m naked. I know for a fact that Roman and I were moments away from finding our release when she burst in here. Blue balls aren’t uncommon between Ro and I due to his penchant for delayed pleasure, but I don’t usually have to deal with a spitfire sporting my clothes and putting Ro in his place.

Syd’s eyes meet mine, then her gaze lazily lowers to my semi. Her eyes spark, and the tip of her tongue swipes across her lower lip. It takes every ounce of restraint not to fist my cock, bringing it to full mast, and steer this moment in a completely different direction.

Syd straightens and shocks the shit out of me.

“Yeah, that’s not happening until I get some answers,” she says, and given the blush that creeps over her cheeks, she’s shocked herself too.

I smirk and Ro laughs. Sensing her confidence waning, I say, “Let me take that shower before Oz gets here, then we’ll talk.” I step forward and trace my fingertips along her cheek. “I’m sorry about your friend, but we will get this guy,” I tell her, then head for the bathroom.

As I reach Ro, he peels the towel from his body and hands it to me. I hear Syd gasp, then it transforms into a small moan as Ro grips my chin and plants a savage kiss on my lips. It’s a promise to finish what we started later.

I hurry through a tepid shower, not that it helped, and by the time I step out and dry off, I’m already rock fucking hard again.

“Jesus!” I groan as my boxers rub against my cock. I’ve no idea how the hell I’m supposed to get through a serious conversation with all this pent-up desire.

I find Ro and Syd downstairs in the kitchen, each of them holding a cup of tea, and one for me next to Syd where she sits on a stool. She’s no longer wearing just my clothes but a combination of Ro’s T-shirt and my joggers. A sense of possessiveness fires through me, and I see the same look in Ro’s eyes. Despite his growly countenance, I know he’s feeling it too.

Syd takes a sip of her tea as I approach, and I can see her leg shaking. The adrenaline that was driving her earlier as let up and now her emotions are getting the better of her. Before I can offer her comfort, Oz arrives.

“This better be good, getting me up this early…” His words trail off as he notices Sydney. He looks between Ro and I, then takes in Syd again. He walks forward, and I tense, unsure what his reaction will be. “Sydney Kincaid, nice to meet you,” he says, offering his hand for her to shake.

She tentatively extends a hand, shaking his. “Oz, right?” she hedges.

“I see these two have been bigging me up. Now, I’m guessing you’re the reason I’ve been dragged from my warm bed at this time in the morning?”

Ro steps forward, pulling Syd’s phone from his pocket. “The last call, I need you to trace it. There’s also an image in the messages I need you to look at too. I want some fucking idea of where it was taken, or at least as close as you can get.”

Oz’s takes the phone, checking the image first. “Fuck! Really? Didn’t think to warn me first? Who is she?”

“She’s my…was my friend,” Syd says sullenly. “Her name is Cressida Owens. Her address is in the messages.”

“Well damn! Okay, I’m not making any promises because he’s too smart to have not covered his tracks. Leave it with me. Anything else?”

Ro shakes his head. “We’ll be checking out the address you gave me last night while I wait for some info. Sydney is also going to speak with her father today. But keep looking into that name I gave you.”

“What name?” Syd asks, eyeing Ro suspiciously.

Ro ignores her question until Oz leaves, then he turns to her. “John Smith.”

She barks out a laugh that is somewhere between humour and incredulity. “Pa gave you this name?”

Ro nods. “It’s an alias. But I get the impression your father knows this guy’s real name.”

She downs the rest of her tea, places the cup on the counter, then jumps down from her stool. “I’m assuming that’s why you want me to talk to Pa this morning, right? To find out the person’s real name.” Ro nods. “Then let’s go.”

As we follow her out, I’m starting to think that Ro and I highly underestimated her. I’m looking forward to discovering exactly how much.