Page 68 of Mutual Obsession (Rivals of Blackthorn #2)

As all eyes in the room turn to me—even Kellan stops looking at his computer to stare—my heart races. It’s pounding so hard, it’s ringing in my ears. My breathing speeds up, and if it weren’t for Jake’s hand in mine, grounding me, I’d be lost to panic now.

“Indie,” Bree says softly, pulling my gaze until I’m only looking at her. Her expression is soft and welcoming, and she gives me a small smile as she says, “Don’t apologise, and don’t be scared. Tell us your story.”

As Jake squeezes the hand he’s holding, Miles’ cold fingers grasp hold of my other hand beneath the table. With both men holding me, giving me their support in the only way they can, I feel my strength and courage grow.

I notice that Bree and Liam are both looking at where my hands disappear under the table, no doubt working out that the men on either side of me each have a hold. I don’t see any judgement in their eyes, and it makes me trust them just a little more.

After taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, I begin my story. I start with how I met Gregg and the abuse I suffered at his hands. I tell them about his job, and all the illegal things I witnessed him do.

I then moved on to Gregg’s connection with The Count, and I don’t miss the way all of their attention pricks up at the mention of his name. There’s an element of recognition that’s impossible to miss, and I wonder briefly if they’ve heard of him before.

I guess he’s a big enough bad guy that most people in their world will have heard of him, but that just makes me extra scared. More people knowing about him just means there’s more people that haven’t been able to stop him.

I finish my story by telling them about the night I fled. The incident I witnessed with Gregg, The Count, and the three young boys. I tell them every detail I can remember, before explaining how I’ve been running ever since.

Once my story is over, silence fills the room. The four people opposite are looking at each other, sombre expressions on their faces, as they seem to have a silent conversation with each other.

After a few minutes, Jake breaks the silence and the growing tension in the room. “Why do I get the feeling you’ve heard the name The Count before?”

I lean forward, waiting with bated breath for them to answer the question I didn’t have the courage to voice. The Doughtys glance at each other, continuing their silent conversation, before Liam turns back to address us.

“We don’t know much about The Count specifically, but we’re familiar with the organisation that he’s one of the leaders of—The Aristocracy,” Liam explains, wincing at the name.

Jake bursts out laughing beside me, drawing attention to himself. His laughter is so unexpected, it makes me fucking jump, breaking through the tension in the room.

“You’re kidding? That’s such a shit name.”

Kian barks out a laugh, too. “That’s what I fucking said. These fuckers really are very unoriginal.”

Kellan on the end mutters something that sounds suspiciously like arsehole , before turning his attention back to his computer, but not before rolling his eyes at Kian, who flips him the finger in return.

Bree ignores the two men bickering on either side of her, fixing her penetrating gaze on me in such a way that I squirm under the intensity. “Do you think you’d be able to recognise him if you saw him again? You are probably the only person we know that’s ever seen him.”

I don’t even have to think about it, I nod instantly. “It’s not a face I’d ever forget. I don’t think I’ll ever forget anything about that night.”

Kellan looks up from his computer, smiling like he’s had an idea. “If that’s the case, why don’t we find someone that you can work with and have them sketch him based on your description? I can then digitalise it and use that in my facial recognition software.”

Fuck, why had I never thought of that?

Before I can respond, Liam cuts in. “She hasn’t seen him in almost nine years. How do we know he doesn’t look different now?”

Kellan waves him off. “She can do the sketch based on how he looked then, and I’ll use software to age it.

I can try several variables until we get the right one, but as we know he meets Gregg regularly, using facial recognition on people who are seen with him will narrow down our search pool significantly. ”

Marcus clears his throat. “I know someone who could do the sketch.”

Both Miles and Jake turn to face him, wearing matching confused expressions as Miles says, “Who?”

Marcus shuffles in his seat, looking uncomfortable. “Jenny Osbourne.”

Jake’s brows shoot into his hairline as his eyes grow almost comically wide, whilst Miles’ expression darkens. “Isn’t she the sister of Benny Osbourne?” Jake asks.

Marcus nods in confirmation as Kian asks, “Why does that name sound familiar?”

Miles growls, “Because around five years ago, Benny tried to kill Marcus in an attempt to seize power. We killed him.”

Liam nods as he says, “I remember that. You were in the hospital for a while, if I remember correctly.”

Marcus nods again, remaining silent as Kian says, “Sorry if this is a stupid question, but why the fuck would we use the sister of one of your enemies?”

“Surely she’s pissed you killed her brother?” Kellan adds.

“Not everyone is close to their family,” Marcus responds, sounding harsher than I expected.

Kellan snorts with a smile on his face. “That’s the fucking truth. I have a mother I can’t fucking stand, and I’ve only recently started to tolerate the woman who gave birth to my daughter.”

Liam turns to Kellan, shaking his head with a glare, though there’s a smile on his face at the same time. It’s clear when the two men look at each other that they have a close bond.

Marcus ignores Kellan’s outburst and continues with his explanation.

“Jenny hated her brother. After their father died, he became very controlling of her and put her through a lot.

When we killed Benny, she came to see me after I got out of the hospital.

She apologised for what her brother had done, and asked not to be punished for the crimes her family had committed.

“She’d just won a scholarship to the local art college, and she was worried I’d kick her out of Blackthorn. I was skeptical, but agreed to a trial period. She could stay, as long as she stayed out of trouble. In five years, she’s never gotten in trouble once.

From what I recall, she’s very talented at sketching people, particularly facial features, so I’m sure she’d be great at this.”

Bree nods, like that’s enough of an explanation for her, but Liam doesn’t seem convinced. He turns his piercing gaze to Miles. “Do you know of any reason why we shouldn’t trust her?”

Miles pauses for a second, and I can feel how taut his muscles are beneath my fingers. He lets out a sigh as he seems to reluctantly shake his head.

“Honestly, no. I’ve always remained weary of her, and I’ve never hid that I wasn’t happy with Marcus’ decision, but I’ve kept a close eye on her, and she’s done nothing to spark alarm.

She graduated from art school, and has her own art studio now, teaching others, including kids.

There’s no reason, that I know of, not to use her. ”

Bree smiles as she says, “Well then, it’s settled. I’ll leave you to sort that, Marcus.”

Marcus nods in agreement as Jake clears his throat, drawing everyone’s attention over to him as he shuffles awkwardly in his seat. Although he seems nervous, there’s fire in his eyes, and I can tell whatever he’s about to say is important to him.

“When we locate The Count, do we have permission to take him out?” he asks, sounding more dangerous than ever.

“Gregg the cop, too. He has to go,” Miles quickly adds, spitting Gregg’s name like it tastes bad on his tongue.

Bree turns to her husband, and once again they look like they’re having a silent conversation between themselves. Bree then turns back to us, grimacing. “I really wish I could say yes, but I can’t.”

“What the?—”

“Fuck, no?—”

Both Miles and Jake start to argue, but Bree holds her hand up to silence them, her fierce expression cutting them both off before they can get into their rants.

“If we stand any chance of being able to take down The Aristocracy, we need information. This is the best lead we’ve had in a while, and we can’t lose that by letting you kill him,” Bree explains, and although it’s clear she’s made up her mind, she doesn’t look happy about it either.

Marcus jumps into the conversation before the other guys have a chance to speak.

They’re ruled by emotions right now, whereas he’s able to keep a clear head.

“So you want to capture Gregg and use him to give you info on The Count? Then once you have The Count, he can give you all he knows about The Aristocracy?”

As Bree confirms the plan, Miles speaks over the top of her, scoffing. “As if they’ll tell you anything.”

Bree glares at him, her eyes darkening in a way that has me leaning back. Gone is the bright, smiling young girl that was sitting there just a second ago, and in her place is a dangerous predator, scowling at Miles like she’s seconds away from tearing him to pieces.

With her gaze firmly fixed on him, she pulls a sparkly knife out from underneath the table and casually twirls it between her fingers, as her lips lift into a twisted smile.

“I can be very persuasive.” Her voice is almost sickly sweet, completely at odds with the danger she’s exuding from her very pores.

A shiver runs down my spine, and I completely believe every word she says. It’s suddenly very clear to me why Bree’s the most dangerous one in the room, and why grown men fall to their knees to obey her.

The intensity of the situation suddenly becomes too much, and my mind is racing. All I can think about is that they’re not going to kill Gregg, and my stomach sinks. I don’t even know when my eyes filled, but I feel a tear slip down my cheek.

The words leave my lips before I can stop them. “I’ll never be safe while he’s alive.”