by Maya Blake
Vanessa had tears running down her cheeks. “My secret is mine to tell. You shut your mouth.” She gasped and buried her face in her hands.
Rachel took another step closer and planted her finger in the dead center of Gabe’s chest. He might have a good hundred pounds on her, but he didn’t scare her. “As for you, I will tell the entire world who you are if you don’t do the job I paid you to do.”
“I’m not hurting her. She’s family, for God’s sake.”
Rachel rolled her eyes. How could Gabe have run his miraculous fixing business all this time? From where she sat, he was just another idiotic man. “You don’t know that. I have no doubt she’s fully capable of lying.”
“Regardless. You need to go home. Go call Luc. Harrison is waking up.”
As if Rachel cared about that right now. She’d hear all about Harrison in due time. No doubt Luc would go on about it endlessly. Rachel had bigger fish to fry. Getting rid of Vanessa might have been shortsighted. She could learn a lot from an employee of Casa Cat. And then there was Gabe. She was about to own him, which could be very, very good for her. “Look. I can keep secrets, no problem. But here’s the rub. You both work for me, now.” She bore into Gabe with the steeliest stare she could muster. “Especially you, Mr. Fixer.”
* * *
The waiting was going to kill Mariella. She stood by Harrison’s bedside, holding his hand, surrounded by her children. She smoothed her fingers over the back of his hand, unable to keep staring at his drawn and tired face, waiting for another sign of life. She’d always loved his hands—they were strong and capable. They’d built an empire from the ground up. Yes, they showed his age, but he’d earned every scar, every wrinkle. The veins were raised and blue, and she traced one as she talked to him. “Please, darling. Wake up. Talk to me.”
Elana stood on the opposite side of Harrison’s bed, impatience radiating off her. “I don’t understand.” She sounded exactly as she had as a little girl, when she couldn’t comprehend how the world wouldn’t bend to her every wish. “The doctor said he was awake. He’s barely opened his eyes.”
“It’s common for patients to slip in and out of consciousness,” Luc said, crossing his arms over his chest. He seemed more distressed than any of them, and Mariella had to wonder if that was a bad sign. He was a doctor, after all. Did he know something the rest of them didn’t? She wasn’t about to ask. There was enough tension in that room for a lifetime.
“Did you learn that from doing nose jobs?” Rafe asked.
Mariella turned and shot Rafe a look that she hoped would say she had no patience for this right now. “Boys. Please. Your father. Let’s try to be pleasant. Remember what the doctor said.”
“Mom. Look,” Elana blurted. “His eyes are moving back and forth behind his eyelids.”
Mariella leaned closer, her pulse racing. “You’re right. They are.”
“Daddy, it’s okay,” Elana said. “It’s me, Elana. Luc and Rafe are here. Mom, too. We’re waiting to talk to you.”
Like magic, Harrison opened his eyes. Elana squealed. Mariella didn’t know what to say. Tears rushed from her eyes like a stream breaching its banks, down her cheeks. There was life in Harrison’s eyes, and they flickered with recognition. He knew who she was. He was still in there. She could tell.
Rafe squeezed closer to Elana, but Luc hung back. Mariella had to wonder if this might be too much for him. Certainly as the oldest, he had to worry that an awful lot of responsibility could fall on his shoulders if his father were gone. Still, none of that mattered right now. Whatever differences they’d all had, the family could be whole again. Mariella would make it so, now that Harrison had woken up.
Elana leaned down and kissed her father’s forehead. “Daddy, you’re back. We’re all here. We love you so much.” She stood straighter with pure joy and elation on her face. “I have to tell Thom.” She ran to the door and out into the hall. “Everyone, come in. He’s awake. It’s a miracle!”
Mariella returned her sights to her husband, prepared to protect him and banish everyone from the room if he showed even the slightest sign of distress from the presence of too many people. He looked tired, but she reminded herself that his body had been fighting the battle of a lifetime. She tried to read his expression—a crease formed between his eyes as he concentrated on her, his lips quivered as if he was trying to speak. He raised his hand, but it was as if it was the most difficult thing he’d ever done. He dragged his fingers across her cheek, which was slick with tears. His arm dropped back down on to the bed as if it was impossibly heavy. His eyes were searching, pleading. He cleared his throat, and Mariella knew he was trying to speak to her.
“Everyone, be quiet,” she barked.
They all snapped to attention. The room became still.
Mariella sat on the edge of Harrison’s bed. He nodded, and she lowered her head, slanting it so her mouth was next to his ear. His warm breath brushed her skin, and it ushered in a million memories of loving, intimate moments they had shared. The births of their children. Their wedding day. Happier times. Precious times.
Then he muttered words she’d never expected, words that were clear. Words that sent a shiver down her spine.
“No. No. No. It can’t be,” she replied, easing back to better read his face. Had he really just said that?
He nodded, his lips again trembling. “It’s up to you now,” he whispered, his voice much more fragile and raspy than a moment ago. Just as she was about to ask him what he meant, his eyes rolled back into his head. The monitors in the room went crazy. Beep beep beep. Beep beep beep.
“Luc! Joe! Someone get the doctor!” Mariella whipped around, but the medical staff was already rushing in.
“We need everyone out, now!” a nurse shouted.
Mariella was shooed out of the way, but she would be the last to leave. She refused to obediently step out into that hall. This might be her last minute with her husband. And the thing he had told her was going to change everything.
“Ma’am, we really need you out in the hall.” The nurse nearly had to push her.
Mariella stumbled out of Harrison’s room. It already looked as though she had walked into his funeral. Elana was crying. So was Rafe. Luc was as upset as she’d ever seen him. Joe was, too, and he went to hug her, but she was having none of that. She pushed him away.
“I know you’re upset,” Joe said.
Upset didn’t begin to capture the way she felt. She could trust none of these people. She couldn’t believe it. She didn’t want to believe it, but she was certain of what Harrison had said.
“My husband just spoke what might be his final words.” Mariella’s head was whirring as she choked back a sob. She thought she might faint, the idea of which sounded quite lovely right now. She was exhausted from shock and disbelief. But she was a Santiago. She would not crumble.
“What did he say?” Elana spoke first, but the rest of them quickly chimed in with their own version of the question.
“Mom. What?”
“Tell us.”
“Please.”
An unholy brew of anger and mourning coursed through Mariella.
No matter what happened next, her beautiful family was no more.
They would never be the same after tonight. Never.
“He said...” She spit out the words. “He said that one of you tried to kill him.”
Epilogue
Six months later
Gabe sat in his beloved Porsche 911, reading the forensics report on Harrison’s Bugatti. Finally, he knew what had caused the accident, and most important—he knew who was behind it.
He closed the folder and tossed it onto the seat next to him, ran his hand through his hair, staring mindlessly at the nearly empty parking lot where he’d met his contact. His mind was a torrent, darting between the foren
sics facts, events prior to Harrison’s accident, and countless things Gabe had learned and witnessed since. The information in this report was not something Gabe should have had before the police, but he needed to stay one step ahead of everybody. Luckily, money and blackmail will get you one step ahead, every time.
It was still early, the sun sending ribbons of light through his windshield. Even with the information he needed, the knowledge he’d been waiting on for months, he wasn’t yet sure what to do with it. Formulating a plan would require careful calculation and tight lips. A single misstep and the responsible parties could slip away. He wasn’t about to let that happen. Harrison deserved better than that. The man who had filled the role of father in Gabe’s life would not go without justice.
“I need to think. And this is not the place to do it,” he muttered to himself, starting his car. He needed open spaces and he needed to be unreachable. That meant the four tires beneath him needed to hit the Pacific Coast Highway, so he could push the engine and his driving skills to the limit. Risking life and limb had a way of bringing everything into sharp focus. Without a second to waste, he muted his cellphone and tore out of the parking lot, kicking up gravel and dust.
In no time at all, he was at home, or at least that was the way it felt when it was just his car and the open road of the PCH. He took the same route Harrison had taken on that fateful day. It was only right, given everything he now knew. Plus, Gabe was eager to see everything through the lens of this new information. Today was a day for putting things together and for trying to find the silver lining, wherever the fuck that was.
He took every tight turn with great satisfaction, gripping the steering wheel of his convertible tightly, wringing the leather, working out his aggression. Even if he was not about to entertain thoughts of murder any time soon, there were certainly enough people in the world he might fantasize about strangling. Rachel was currently at the top of that list.
To say he despised being under her thumb was like saying water was wet. Even just thinking about her smug, self-serving ways tied Gabe’s shoulders up in knots. He would put an end to that, soon. He was not about to spend his life at the whim of Rachel Franklin.
And then there was Mariella, an even bigger problem than Rachel, and far more complex. For all of the good that had come out of the weekend in Vegas—the grand opening of the nightclub, the rousing success of the masquerade ball, she’d only gone downhill since then. She was sinking into her own despair, and Gabe wasn’t sure if it was Joe or Harrison or something else entirely. He only knew that he couldn’t ask. She nearly bit his head off when he inquired whether something was wrong. When it came to his tia’s current state, it was none of his goddamn business, apparently.
As soon as he saw the spot of Harrison’s accident, he pulled over and climbed out of the car. He’d stopped here before many times, experiencing any number of emotions, depending on the day—shock, anger, and confusion were all common players. Today, he saw this rocky stretch of shoulder next to the asphalt in a whole new light. The shiny new guardrail that had replaced the old one was no longer a sign of everything that was wrong. It felt like a declaration of moving forward. Gabe liked that. He didn’t want to live in the past. He couldn’t fucking handle the past.
He examined the scene from the pertinent angles, studied the curve Harrison had come out of right before everything went wrong, the same curve Gabe had just taken with no problem. It all made perfect sense now. He raised his sights to the sky and turned, looking out on the beauty of the big blue ocean and the rocky California coast. Salt air swirled around him, brushing against his face and tousling his hair. The sun was stronger now, warming his back. He had to wonder what had been going through Harrison’s mind at the moment when he lost control of the car. Had he suspected foul play or just bad luck? Had there even been time? Or was he just in awe of the gorgeous scenery around him?
With a cleansing breath, Gabe turned and hopped back in his car. Time to head back home. The drive had done him good. He was still formulating his plan, but it would not only come together, he knew where to start. No matter what happened, The Fixer would get the job done. All debts to Harrison Marshall would eventually be paid.
One way or another.
* * * * *
Don’t miss a single installment of the
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST series:
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 1 of 12)
by Joss Wood
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 2 of 12)
by Clare Connelly
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 3 of 12)
by Donna Hill
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 4 of 12)
by Reese Ryan
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 5 of 12)
by Helen Lacey
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 6 of 12)
by Michelle Major
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 7 of 12)
by Yahrah St. John
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 8 of 12)
by Cat Schield
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 9 of 12)
by Maya Blake
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 10 of 12)
by USA TODAY Bestselling Author Dani Collins
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 11 of 12)
by Maya Blake
SECRETS OF THE A-LIST (Episode 12 of 12)
by Karen Booth
Available now from Harlequin Serials
wherever Harlequin ebooks are sold
And don’t miss two linked romances also featuring the Marshall family from Harlequin Desire®:
CONVENIENT CINDERELLA BRIDE
by Joss Wood
On sale now
and
SNOWED IN WITH A BILLIONAIRE
by Karen Booth
Coming in December 2017
ISBN-13: 9781488082931
Secrets of the A-List Box Set, Volume 3
Copyright © 2017 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Secrets of the A-List (Episode 9 of 12)
Copyright © 2017 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Secrets of the A-List (Episode 10 of 12)
Copyright © 2017 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Secrets of the A-List (Episode 11 of 12)
Copyright © 2017 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Secrets of the A-List (Episode 12 of 12)
Copyright © 2017 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Maya Blake, Dani Collins and Karen Booth for their contributions to the Secrets of the A-List Box Set, Volume 3 series.
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