Page 92 of These White Lies

“I want you to answer my questions. How did Keith Gowan get the necklace?”

Carrow’s shoulders lift. “My ex-wife was having an affair with him. She admitted it.” His face twists in a cruel smirk. “He liked to fuck her in it and take pictures. She thought it was because she was beautiful, but the whole time, he was taking photos to have a copy made.”

“What is so important about the necklace?”

That wipes the smirk right off his face. “I can’t.”

“You can, or I’m going to make sure you piss blood for a week.” I say, keeping my voice calm, even though I want to roar at him.

Carrow stares at me for a long beat, then shakes his head. “I’m not telling you anything.”

Rhodes lets the tip of the blade pierce the fabric, and Carrow yelps when it finds flesh. “Wrong answer.”

Every muscle in my body is strung so tight it’s a miracle I haven’t ripped the knife out of Rhodes’s hand and ended this myself. One quick move, and one of the threats to Elizabeth is gone.

The world would be a better place without him.

I keep my eyes locked on him. “Why is the necklace so important?” I ask, overenunciating each word.

Carrow’s gaze flicks toward the moonlit windows. “I can’t tell you. If I do, they’ll kill me.”

I bend into his face. “That’s a theory. Here’s a fact. I’ll kill you right now if you don’t.”

He swallows hard, and for the first time, I think he’s about to crack.

Then I see it.

A perfect red dot twitching dead center on his forehead.

“Sniper!” Rhodes’s shoulder slams into mine, tackling me sideways. Thethwipthat cuts through the air is instantly recognizable as a suppressed, long-range rifle. Carrow’s head snaps back, the chair tipping with him. The spray is quick, and then he’s a lifeless heap on the polished floor.

The next round punches through the spot where I’d been standing a second ago.

“Move!” Rhodes hauls me up, and we sprint for the door. Anotherthwip, and splinters burst from the doorframe ahead of us.

“Back exit!” Rhodes barks.

We don’t stop running until we’re past the tree line, moving in a zigzag pattern, the trunks giving us cover from the estate.

By the time we reach the SUV, my pulse is thundering in my ears. Rhodes starts the engine, and before the doors are fully shut, dirt and pine straw are kicking up from the tires. My hands are clenched so hard on my knees, the bones ache.

“Goddammit!” I slam my palm into the dash hard enough to rattle the glove box. “They knew he was the weak fucking link. How the hell did I miss that?”

Rhodes keeps his eyes on the road. “Carrow’s been out of town. This might not have had anything to do with our being there tonight. Could be they were taking their first opportunity, like us.”

I look at him. “That would be a hell of a coincidence.”

“Could be,” he says with a shrug. “If Carrow tried to grab your girl to cover his ass with his secret society friends, for losing the necklace, and then failed… It’s entirely possible we just showed up early for their show.”

I grind my teeth. “And we walked right into it.”

Rhodes makes a face. “Guy folded pretty easily, though. Not that I’m unhappy we didn’t have to get creative, but you’d think he’d at least hold out for alittlepain.”

I don’t answer. My mind’s still circling a name.

Anna.

Who the fuck is Anna?