Page 48 of The King of Hearts (The Raven Group #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

HER

I sit with my feet propped up in front of me, crossed at the ankles, and reclining back against the chaise lounge in the library.

The book I was reading is laying open on my stomach.

Loki is curled against my side, and I absentmindedly run my fingers through his fur.

My mind is all over the place, replaying the last twenty-four hours since I was forced to move in here.

“Hello, earth to Savina?”

I bring my attention back to my phone, where my best friend’s concerned face stares back at me. “Sorry. What did you say?”

“Oh.” Something glints in her eyes. “I was just asking how destroyed your cervix is after the multiple poundings it must have taken since yesterday.”

I choke on my spit and nearly fall off my seat at her candid statement. A tear rolls down my cheek after I’ve caught my breath, and I bat it away, glaring at Emersyn and hoping she cannot only see my displeasure but also feel the heat of it through the screen.

“Really, Em?” I ask.

“Well, I mean, he’s always given me big dick energy, so now I’m curious.” The cheeky grin on her face turns upside down. “Please don’t crush my fantasy and tell me he’s a shower and not a grower.”

If I could, I’d reach through the phone and smack her upside the head. This girl is not funny.

At all.

Her look turns serious. “For real though. How are you?” Her eyes run over my face and the small portion she can see of my body through the phone. “At least I can tell you’re still in one piece.”

“I’m fine.” I run my hand down the material of my shorts, then stop to pick at a loose string at the hem. “It’s one of those ‘it could be worse’ situations.”

“I hate that phrase,” she says, wrinkling her nose. “I always say, ‘it could be better’ when I hear it.”

“Hmm…” I roll the loose thread between my fingers. “Have you really fantasized about him? Ryker, I mean?”

She scoffs, like my question is a stupid one. “I’m pretty sure anyone who’s met him has. The man is sex on legs. Even if he does give off ‘stay the fuck away, or I’ll hurt you’ vibes.”

I can’t deny either of those. Over the couple of years that Ryker’s worked for The Raven Group, he’s starred in a few of my nightly fantasies.

I never in a million years thought that they would become a reality, though.

Especially since that ‘stay the fuck away, or I’ll hurt you’ aura that Em mentioned is very accurate.

“I can’t believe you’re actually living in the Ellington mansion. That place has always given me the creepy crawlies.”

“It’s beautiful here. The outside structure seems to be original, but a lot of the inside has been modernized.”

“I’m not surprised you like living there. You’ve always had an obsession with that house. I used to hate when you would drag me there and make me walk around outside the stone walls surrounding it as you looked for a way inside.” She shudders, as if even her memories of those times spook her.

I laugh. “It was only a few times. I stopped making you come with me after that near panic attack you had.”

“I swear there was someone out there calling my name,” she stresses. “And I felt eyes on us.”

“Maybe it was the ghost of Miles Ellington. Or his wife.”

“That does not help.” Her eyes dart around, like she’s looking for the ghost right now, and I can’t help but giggle. “It’s not funny,” she grumbles.

I get distracted from the conversation when my phone vibrates and a notification pops up on my screen above Emersyn’s face. I get alerts for the mainland local news, and this one snatches my attention.

The Butcher strikes again .

“Hey, Em, I’ve got to go,” I tell my friend.

“Fine, but message me later. We need to meet. Tomas said he was going to storm the mansion if he doesn’t hear from you soon. You know him, so you know he’ll do it. Lunch in a day or so should appease him.”

God bless Tomas. He’s nearly as protective as Dad and my brothers.

And Em is right. If he doesn’t hear directly from me that I’m okay, he’ll damn sure show up on the doorstep here, and the confrontation between him and Ryker isn’t one I want to happen.

Especially considering Ryker’s willingness to hurt any man who touches me.

I feel horrible for not calling him yet, but I still don’t have the mental capacity to explain everything that’s happened. I need another day or two.

“I’ll message him later and set up lunch with the three of us.”

As soon as we hang up, I bring up the article.

There’s a picture of a run-down abandoned building in the old part of the mainland with police tape surrounding it.

According to the article, the body that was found three days ago was missing both legs from the knees down and both arms from the elbow down.

He was also missing his genitalia, and both of his eyes were gouged out.

The authorities are scouring the city to find the missing body parts.

What the article doesn’t mention is that they have no hope of finding the genitalia.

They never do. It’s a rumor that The Butcher keeps that particular part as a souvenir.

It kind of reminds me of Ryker and his hearts.

I check a few other news articles and don’t find anything new.

This is the sixth body found, and the police are no closer to finding out who the killer is.

All of the victims have one thing in common.

They’re suspected or convicted criminals of sexual assault who have been released after they’ve served their term or were released without conviction for some reason or another.

I can’t say I’m sad to see they ended up how they did.

I believe a lot of people should be given a second chance, but there are some who just don’t deserve it.

No amount of rehabilitation will ever change them.

I exit out of the last article and turn the screen off on my phone. I stretch my legs out in front of me before getting up from my comfortable seat, making sure to slip the bookmark inside the book before I close it. Loki doesn’t even twitch.

Yesterday, after Ryker showed me my new art studio, I explored a little more of the house while he went to do whatever he does during the day. There’s still a lot more to look at, and since I have time now, I decide to check out the grounds.

As I walk toward the back of the house to grab a bottle of water from the kitchen, something sweet catches my attention. I know what the smell is as soon as I step into the room. I find Susie standing at the island, sliding a spatula under a pale purple sandwich cookie.

“You made macarons?” I ask, unable to hide my surprise.

She looks up from her task and offers a smile. “Yes. Mr. West said they’re your favorite. He acquired several recipes from your family’s cook.”

Well, that was… thoughtful. I don’t know how to feel about this discovery.

I mean, I shouldn’t be surprised that Ryker knows something so trivial about me.

Something tells me he knows everything there is to know regarding my life, even something so small as my favorite foods.

I guess what shocks me more is that he actually cares enough to have gotten the recipes from Lea.

She takes a few of the ones already cooled from a cooling rack and puts them on a plate. Carrying it around to where the stools are, she places the plate down.

“Have a seat.” She gestures to the chair. “You like milk with them, right? I believe I remember Mr. West mentioning that.”

I unstick my feet from the floor and walk over to the stool. “Yes, please.”

After grabbing a glass from a cabinet and pouring a generous amount of milk into it, she brings it to me.

“I’m sure they won’t be as good as your old cook, but I hope they’re to your liking. I’ll play around with the recipe until I get it just right.”

I pick up one of the devil’s food—aptly named because these things are addictive—and bring it to my mouth. I close my eyes and moan as I bite into the warm, bready cookie.

“This is delicious,” I tell Susie. “It tastes almost identical to Lea’s.”

Susie smiles with pleasure. “I’m pleased you like it. I’ve made enough to hopefully last you a few days.”

“Thank you. That’s very sweet of you.”

She goes back around the island and finishes scooping up the rest of the macarons onto the cooling rack. As she does this, I stuff a couple more cookies in my mouth, washing them down with gulps of milk in between.

“How long have you worked for Ryker?” I ask after I’ve finished off the last one.

“I’ve been employed with the Wests for over twenty years.”

“Wow. That long?”

She nods as she wipes down the counter. “Yes. Mr. West was six when I started working for them.”

“So, you were here before his father disappeared.”

The cloth on the counter pauses a moment, and a far-off look appears in her eyes before she blinks, and it’s gone. She resumes running the cloth over the marble.

“Yes. My employment started a year before Mr. Romano went missing.”

I tap my finger on the counter, wondering how much information Susie is willing to give about Ryker and his family.

“Ryker said his mother’s been in her current state since after the accident.”

“Accident?” She lifts her head, her eyes meeting mine. “It was no accident. It was pure assault.”

“How was his parents’ relationship?”

“Mr. Romano loved his wife and child very much. He was extremely committed to them. I’ve never seen a love match as strong as theirs.”

“Vivian, she hasn’t spoken since then? Not a word?”

She moves to the counter on the other side of the sink. Her movements are twitchy, and I know my Q&A is almost to an end.

“After she got back from the hospital the first time, a few days after the accident, she was withdrawn, but coherent. She spoke, she was mobile, she looked after young Ryker as best as she could, given her situation, but she was sad and depressed.”

I nod. “That’s completely understandable,” I say. Then my brows furrow. “What do you mean, after she got back from the hospital the first time?”

She folds the cloth three times before she turns to face me. “I don’t really think we should be talking about this anymore.”

I drop my hand from my chin and sit up straighter on the stool. “She went back to the hospital,” I try again. “Why?”

Susie sighs and rubs her hand over her forehead, like she’s suddenly tired. “She had… complications. She was admitted to the hospital and was there for six months. It was when she came back that she was different.”

I open my mouth to ask another question, but Susie holds up her hand. “No. No more questions. I understand your curiosity, and you have every right to be, but I don’t feel comfortable giving you this information behind Mr. West’s back. If you’d like to know something, I suggest asking him.”

“Fair enough.” I incline my head.

I’m dying to know more about the West family, particularly because I’m about to become part of it, but I won’t push Susie.

The last thing I want to do is make her feel uncomfortable or get her in trouble.

We’re going to be living together for the foreseeable future, and I’d prefer not to have tension between us.

Susie goes back to cleaning the kitchen while I sit and contemplate what I’ve learned so far.

I’m curious to know what pushed Vivian to be admitted into the hospital a second time.

It could simply be an extremely depressive state after what happened to her husband and her that night, but something tells me it’s more.

I also wonder why Ryker would think his father is still alive after the authorities claimed there was too much blood for him to have survived.

I get the feeling it’s more than a hunch.

There’s a specific reason behind his beliefs.

I did extensive research on the history of the Ellington mansion a few years ago and came across only one article about the family who lived here.

The husband and wife’s names were Antonio and Vivian Romano.

The little boy’s name was Matteo. There was an older boy, Aiden, but he died years prior.

No matter how much I dug, I couldn’t find more on the oldest Romano son.

My parents didn’t move to the island until a year after the incident.

When I asked around town, no one seemed to know anything either, only what was in the news article.

I even asked some of the older folks on the island who would have been around when everything happened twenty years ago.

Either it’s a closely kept secret or the Romano family were extremely private and kept what happened out of the media and the general public ear. I personally think it’s the latter.

All of it is such a mystery, but I’m determined to get answers. Ryker seems to know everything there is to know about me and my family. It’s only fair that I know about him and his.