Page 81 of Wayward

“I know.” I bite at the inside of my cheek, and I’m a second away from shutting down completely again. But then I spill it all out in one long-winded breath. Everything about Susan and my mom.

Haley’s blue eyes are full of tears, and for a second, I think I’ve said too much. Jumped too many steps.

“Wow . . . I don’t know what to say. It seems like it could be. She wanted your dad, his money. She got them, and then she lost them . . . so she decides to take it out on you. On him . . . on all of us. It’s ringing bells to me.” She holds my hand, and we sit there for a long time, not talking. Just watching Penny chase leaves.

After a while, Haley turns to me. “What about the diamond? Or diamonds. Why were there two diamonds on theRock Candy?”

I pull the diamond out of my pocket. Somehow, from the island to theRosewood, the house in Thailand, the resort, and now here, I’ve managed to not lose the damn thing. “I’m prettysure I’ve got the real one, but I’m not positive. I’ve been meaning to ask Dante . . . I have no idea. Maybe Susan was mad that Candy got the diamond, and she wanted it as a trophy. Maybe the saboteur was supposed to take it.”

“Rockwell, Brewster,” Collins yells. He comes jogging around the side of the house. “Get the dog.” Unlike the last few days, he’s got a large gun slung over his shoulder.

Haley whistles and Penny’s at her side. I don’t trust the asshole. He was willing to shoot at Zane. He’s just the kind of asshole who would shoot our dog.

“Move around the side of the house.” Collins is right behind us. “Faster.”

“What’s going on?” Haley’s running with Penny at her side. Penny’s butt is dancing around like whatever is going down is some kind of game.

“Get in the van,” Collins shouts.

Dante, Sam, Easton, and Zane are leaning against the van. Calvin’s wearing Pepper in a hoodie.

“I told you to get in,” Collins yells. “Here.” He hands Dante some wire cutters. Dante snips the ankle monitors off me and Haley.

“What do you want me to do with them?” Dante swings them sideways from his fingertips.

Collins takes them and throws them into the hedges on the side of the driveway. It’s a long haul. He’s got an impressive arm.

“Get in the damn van.” We pile in, and Collins gets in the front seat. He backs out, handing me his phone. “Turn this off. You don’t have any other devices on you, do you?” He swipes his badge, and the gate goes up. We’re a hundred feet from the gate when Collins tosses his badge into the hedge.

I turn his phone off and hand it back to him.

“What’s going on?” Haley whispers to Dante.

“I’ve got no clue. You want to tell us where we’re going, Collins?” Dante asks.

“I’m trying to keep you alive. Just hang on; we’ll be there in an hour. If we don’t hit rush hour and don’t run into the elder Z’s guys. Or Holloway.”

“Holloway? As in your boss?” Sam asks.

“I don’t work for any of those criminals. Not really.” Collins takes a sharp right and turns onto the M3. “Do me a solid and watch my six.” He points to Calvin in the back with Zane.

“I’m not watching anything. I’m so fucking sick of that. You shot at me, Collins,” Zane shouts from the back row.

“My name is not Nick Collins. It’s Nolan Mitchell.”

He’s got the wheels of this van gripping the road with each car he passes and swerves around. Like he’s a Formula One racer turned delivery driver. But there’s something about him that’s ticking at me. Why should we care about his name?

“Mitchell?” Haley asks. “Nolan Mitchell?”

“Yes,” he says and cranks the wheel, passing a tour bus.

“Like Trent Mitchell, Mitch, from theRock Candy?” Haley says, an edge to her voice.

Collins-Mitchell turns quickly around and catches her eyes. He nods and turns back to the road. “Yes. I’ll tell you everything you want to know when we get where we’re going.”

I turn to Calvin and hold his icy stare. And I’m not the only one looking at him and then Sam. Finally, my eyes flick to Zane. He shakes his head. Not surprisingly, he doesn’t trust the man driving us. He tried to kill him. He’s one guy. Granted, he’s one guy with an assault rifle.

“How are you related to Mitch?” Sam asks.