Page 103 of The Colour of Revenge

I blink. "Why do I feel like I don't want to know this story?"

Nate grins. “Because you don’t.”

“We need to move fast,” Kai states firmly, all business again. “If your mum starts wondering where he is tonight, this whole plan falls apart. We need to plant the trailnow.”

Kai slips effortlessly into leader mode, delegating tasks.

Enzo heads back to my place to start creating a narrative that makes it look like Edward has been planning his escape for weeks. Nate and I work on scrubbing the blood splatter, using the arsenal of cleaning supplies Kai brought, while he preps the body for disposal.

It’s not ideal, but we’ve always been a solid team. By the time we finish, the room looks almost untouched, save for a lingering sense of wrongness I can’t quite shake.

As Kai finishes packing up to dispose of Edward’s body, a sudden thought jolts through me.

Shit. The texts.

I pull out my phone and quickly dial Enzo.“Enzo! Can you remove the messages I sent Nate and Edward about tonight?”The words tumble out in a frantic rush, panic tightening my chest as I imagine a trail leading straight to Nate’s door.

"Già fatto11, bella,”Enzo reassures smoothly. “And I changed the GPS on Edward's phone, so it doesn't look like he was ever at Nate's tonight.

"I've got the location of his cabin, I'll send some men to check it out. It doesn't look like he still uses it, but we'll get anyone out if they're there."

Relief washes over me. “You’re the best.”

"Anything for you, amore mio12,” he teases before the line clicks dead.

I slip my phone into my pocket, exhaling as relief washes over me.

Then freeze.

Nate is staring at me, eyes blazing, sharp with barely restrained fury.

“I don’t know much Italian, but I know whatamoremeans,” he spits, his voice quiet but simmering with barely restrained anger.

Fuck.

“Nate—”

“Why haven’t you told me about him before?” His expression shifts, the fire in his eyes dimming into something that looks a lot like heartbreak. His shoulders slump, the weight of everything crushing down on him.

Kai clears his throat. "I'm just gonna… head out." He hoists the duffel bag like it's nothing. “You two have… fun.” He disappears through the door, leaving us in heavy silence.

“I didn’t think it was necessary,” I say softly. “I hadn’t spoken to him since coming back to England until this week.”

Nate's jaw ticks. "I don't like it."

"You don't have to," I murmur. "You just have to trust me."

His jaw clenches, and then he delivers the blow I’ve been dreading. “Like you trusted me?”

The words hit hard. I flinch, guilt twisting in my stomach.

Nate immediately shakes his head, regret flashing across his face. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.”

“No… it wasn’t,” I admit, stepping closer to him. “You’re right. I should’ve trusted you. And I’m sorry for not giving you the benefit of the doubt.”

His shoulders soften, and his hand brushes against mine. “We’ll figure it out,” he murmurs. “But right now, we need to focus. We’ve got a hell of a mess to clean up.”

Nate