Page 103 of The Devil's Deceit

Resignation pulls Arron’s features tight. “Call me when you’re settled.”

“I will.” I won’t. It’s too dangerous. For all I know, the De Vils have the technology that traces words or phrases, or they’ll find a way of bugging Arron’s phone. Telling him this will only make him worry, though, so I keep quiet.

“I’m sorry I let you down.”

I put the suitcase on the floor again and take hold of his upper arms. “You didn’t let me down. You did everything you could, but the entire plan was flawed from the start. We were too embroiled in grief to see it, but what we did was the wrong approach. We never should have listened to Daniel. And you.” I give him a little shake. “If he turns up here, my advice is to tell him to leave. He’s toxic. I’m only sorry I never saw it until it was too late. I can’t lose you, Arron, not to a man like him.”

“You’re not going to lose me.”

“I feel as though I did for a while.”

He tucks his chin to his chest. “He made so much sense, and you weren’t here for me to talk things through with. You’ve always been my rock, my common-sense barometer. I don’t know what I’m going to do without you.”

“It isn’t forever.” At least I hope not, but the future looks murky, and until the waters clear, I can’t be certain of anything. “If Christian comes here, tell him the truth. That you saw me, but I wouldn’t tell you where I was going.”

“Okay.” He kisses me on the cheek.

“Call Juliet and tell her what’s happened. I can’t risk turning my phone on.”

“Use the burner.”

I grimace. “I left it at Oakleigh. I was in such a rush to leave that I forgot.”

“Get yourself another burner.”

“I will. Once I’m settled.”

Arron calls me a cab. For all I know, there’s a tracker on my car. It doesn’t matter if Christian tracks it here. He will already know Mum and Dad’s address from working with them.

Not long after, I’m sitting in the back of the taxi, waving to Arron out of the rear window, with tears pouring down my cheeks. Who knows when I’ll next see him, or the home I grew up in.

I face the front, my heart aching and my chest hollow. I don’t know where I’m going, only that Christian will find me when he’s ready.

What happens until then is my true penance.

One I deserve.

Chapter Thirty-Three

CHRISTIAN

It’s a special kind of dread to know your hand has been forced into confessing an error in judgment to your family. Not only that, an error in trust, and in execution. I’ve made so many mistakes I’m drowning in the fucking things.

If Grace and her lunatic uncle hadn’t forced me into this, would I have ever told my family the truth of what led to Nexus’s collapse? I’m not sure I would. Not because keeping things from them fills me with glee. It’s more that it shines a light on flaws I’ve tried my hardest to keep hidden. I’m not dumb, far from it, but I cannot shake the unwavering belief that if any of my brothers or, indeed, my sister had been in charge of Nexus, that building would still be standing today.

Granted, Grania and Drew Taylor would have faced the consequences of their actions, but at least they’d still be breathing, and their children would still have their parents. I know the pain caused by losing a parent. To lose both at the same time must be devastating.

Would my brothers have been taken in by Grace’s deceitif they’d been her target instead of me? Possibly. I guess we’ll never know. But it didn’t happen to them; it happened to me and, once again, it’s made me feel less than in a family of overachievers.

Gingerly, I feel along the bridge of my nose. Definitely broken. Having it set will have to wait. I need to confess to my family before I lose my nerve. It’s not as though I can hide a missing wife.

My chest pinches tight.

Grace.

It’s ridiculous, but I miss her already, even knowing the person I married was a fraud, a phony, a charlatan. Underneath it all, she’s still Grace, the woman I’ve fallen in love with. My wife.

Telling her to run was a necessary evil. I’m furious at discovering her lies, but I know, given time, I’ll find a way to forgive her. Love is like that. It’s stupid and makes you do crazy, illogical things. It’s my family I’m concerned about, especially Xan and Nicholas. They’re likely to feel duped also, and they will hate that. I’m unsure what actions her betrayal will force them into, and until I know that, she’s better off far away from here.