Devil's Riches: A Dark Captive Romance (Cruel Kingdom Book 2)

by Stella Hart

  15

  Nate

  As soon as the words were out of Alexis’s mouth, she jumped up and started rummaging through a pile of notes. I stared at her, brows shooting upward. “Who is it?”

  She bit her bottom lip and pulled out a page of her father’s notes—the one that simply said ‘IL?’ in big letters and nothing else. She put the page down in front of me, returned to her seat, and leaned forward. “J.R. obviously isn’t a person’s initials,” she said. “But I still think it’s significant. What do those two letters together mean to you?”

  “I don’t know. My brain is fucking fried right now,” I said, rubbing my forehead.

  “Think about what you just said a few seconds ago. That the current Golden Circle leader could be the original leader’s kid.”

  Her point finally dawned on me. “Junior.”

  She nodded emphatically. “Exactly,” she said. She leaned farther forward and lowered her voice. “I think the current leader could be my grandfather. Edward Paxton Jr.”

  I leaned back, eyes narrowing in disbelief. “Alexis—”

  She shook a finger at me. “Don’t look at me like that. Like I’ve lost my shit.”

  I couldn’t help but let a small smile tug at my lips when she said that. She looked so earnest. So determined and serious. On anyone else, that sort of expression would barely be noteworthy, but on her it was a captivating combination of cute and sexy.

  Then again, with those lips and eyes, everything she did was captivating.

  “I don’t think you’re crazy,” I said. “But last week at the Mayfair I asked you about Edward, and you said he couldn’t possibly be involved in the Golden Circle. He genuinely believes your dad was the Blackthorne Butcher.”

  Alexis nodded impatiently. “I know, but I was just thinking—what if I’m totally wrong about that? What if he wants me and my sister gone for other reasons?” she said, arching a brow. “What if he’s only ever pretended to not want a relationship with us because our dad was supposedly the Butcher, when in reality, he just wants us gone from the island because he’s worried we’ll look into Dad’s case and figure out the truth about him?”

  “Even if that’s true, the Paxtons don’t really match what we’re looking for,” I said. “They aren’t even in the top hundred of Avalon’s richest.”

  “They’re still extremely wealthy compared to most people,” she replied. “Also, they could’ve hidden a lot of their money and kept a low profile compared to all the other uber-wealthy people on Avalon. That way, even if the other twelve families in the Golden Circle wanted to find the thirteenth, they’d never suspect them, because like us, they’d be looking for multi-billionaires. Not multi-millionaires.”

  I glanced down at the ‘IL?’ page in front of me. Alexis still hadn’t explained why she’d put it there, but I’d learned enough about her in recent times to know she was smart as hell. A lot smarter than me. She had to have a good reason.

  “Okay,” I said, leaning back again. “Tell me why you think it’s Edward.”

  She held up her left index finger. “For one, he’s a doctor who owns three hospitals. Two on Avalon, and one in Seattle. He inherited them from his father.” She paused and tilted her chin. “If you think about it, being a doctor and a hospital owner would be perfect for someone who’s running an organ trafficking scheme. It would be easy for them to identify people who need organs, and it would be easy for them to arrange all the tests and surgeries.”

  I rubbed my chin. “That’s true.”

  “We also know that Greg and the other Golden Circle surgeons kept the victims in the Blackthorne tunnels before killing them and taking their organs,” Alexis went on. “I bet there’s a passage down there that leads right up to Blackthorne Teaching Hospital.”

  “Which is owned by the Paxtons,” I said, nodding slowly.

  “Yup. So the Blackthorne tunnels was the perfect place for them. They were able to keep the victims down there so no one could see or hear them, and they were also close enough to transport the organs to the hospital while they were still fresh and viable. Remember, even in cold storage, they don’t last very long.”

  “Right.”

  “There’s more,” Alexis replied, holding up another finger. “Listen to this.”

  She pulled the laptop closer to her and started reading off the screen. “The word ‘Ophiuchus’ means ‘serpent bearer’, and in ancient Greek mythology, Ophiuchus represented the god of medicine, Asclepius,” she said. “The Rod of Asclepius—a snake twisting around a rod—is an extremely common symbol in the modern medical world.”

  My brows puckered. “So?”

  “Do you remember the pin my grandfather always wears?”

  An image of it flashed into my mind a split-second later. “Holy shit. It’s that snake thing, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. I always assumed he had it because it’s such a common medical symbol,” Alexis replied. “But what if he wears it for two reasons? The medical connection and the Ophiuchus connection.”

  I skimmed my fingertips along my jawline as I considered it. “I think you’re right,” I finally said. “It’s too much to be a coincidence.”

  “Exactly. Also, there’s this.” Alexis gestured to the page she’d placed in front of me. “I think my father might’ve suspected Edward at some point. This ‘IL?” thing could’ve been short for ‘in-laws?’. Like he was questioning whether or not it could actually be them.”

  “Fuck. It all fits.”

  “See? I knew I wasn’t losing my mind,” she said, lips curving into a triumphant smile. Her blue and gold eyes were sparkling. “I think Edward Paxton Sr. was the first leader of the Golden Circle, and when he died back in the 1980s, my grandfather took over the position.”

  “Wait, what about your mom?” I asked, forehead creasing. “Greg said the kids in each family learned about the Golden Circle business when they were young. So if the Paxtons are really involved, shouldn’t she know about it?”

  “Mom ran away from home when she was really young,” she said. “She never got along with my grandparents. So I doubt they ever tried to tell her.”

  “Right.”

  Alexis suddenly dropped her gaze, lips pressing together. “You know, if I’m right about all of this, then it means you were right about me,” she said softly.

  “What do you mean?”

  She raised her eyes to meet mine again. The sparkle had vanished. “You used to say I was descended from evil. So if all this stuff about the Paxtons is true, then it means you were right. I am descended from evil. Just not the evil you originally thought.”

  My stomach knotted with self-loathing. “I didn’t know what the fuck I was talking about when I said that shit. I was just being an asshole.”

  “But you were right.”

  “No, I wasn’t. Maybe certain ‘evil’ genes can run in families, but I don’t think it applies to you.” I reached across the table and lay a firm hand on her shoulder. “Seriously, there’s nothing wrong with you, Alexis. You’re a good person.”

  “Sometimes I’m not so sure about that.” She dropped her gaze again. “Remember when you were keeping me in the tunnels?”

  Regret engulfed me, squeezing my chest in a vise. “Yeah,” I muttered. “I remember.”

  Alexis was correct in her assessment of me all those weeks ago—in trying to stop a monster, I’d become one myself. I deserved the knife she jammed in my guts. I deserved a hell of a lot more than that, too.

  “When I was down there, I used to wish more people would turn up dead at Blackthorne,” she said, voice barely above a murmur. “I thought if that happened, you’d finally realize that I wasn’t the copycat killer, and you’d be forced to let me go. That’s fucked up, right?”

  “No.”

  She fixed me with a disbelieving stare. “Nate, I wished for innocent people to be murdered so I could go home. That’s definitely fucked up.”

  “It doesn’t make you a bad person,” I said. “It mak
es you human.”

  Her eyes wavered. “You think so?”

  “Yes,” I said gruffly, squeezing her shoulder. “You’re one of the good ones, Lex. Just like your dad.”

  When I said that, a tear began to roll down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away. “Thank you,” she whispered, closing her eyes.

  I drew my hand back and watched her as she tried to pull herself together, wishing I could say or do more to comfort her. I wondered if she could feel my eyes on her face. Wondered if she could feel how much I’d grown to care for her.

  I knew she would never forgive me for what I’d done to her in the past, but I wished she would anyway. Then I could make her mine. Keep her close to me and keep her safe from this fucked up world. I could wrap her in my arms and let her pour all her grief and anger onto me, and then I could take that pain and make it my own.

  It would never happen, though. Who the fuck wanted to be cared for and comforted by a monster?

  Definitely not Alexis. She made that abundantly clear the other night.

  Every so often since then, my baser instincts made me want to forget about that conversation and go all alpha male on her like I used to. Grab her and push her up against the wall. Pin her there and roughly kiss her until her pain and tears were a distant memory.

  I knew that wasn’t what she wanted or needed right now, though.

  I had to respect that, even if it killed me not to have her in the way I wanted.

  Alexis straightened her shoulders and cleared her throat a moment later. “Sorry,” she said, dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve. “I don’t know why I’m suddenly so emotional.”

  I leaned forward again, hand lingering near her arm on the table. “Maybe we should take a break from this. Go outside and get some fresh air.”

  “No. I’m fine,” she said, pulling her arm back. She paused to suck down a deep breath. “Let’s keep going.”

  I nodded slowly. “Okay. What do you think we should do about Edward?”

  “Hm.” She chewed the inside of her cheek for a moment. “I think we need to get into his house. If he’s actually the leader of the Golden Circle, he must have something there that’ll prove it for us. Records from all the transplants and financial transactions, for example.”

  I furrowed my brows. “He probably does keep records, but I doubt he keeps them at home,” I said. “He’s probably got a secret storage locker somewhere.”

  “Maybe. But I still think we should take a look at the house.”

  “Okay. Do you want to break in?”

  “No. That’s too risky. If we get caught, he’ll know we’re onto him, and then we’re totally fucked.” She took a deep breath and sat back. “I think I should call him and tell him I’m sorry about the other night. Beg for another chance to be part of the family. It might take a while to fix things with him and Deborah and get them to let their guard down, but it’ll happen eventually, and then I’ll be able to get into their house and poke around.”

  “But Edward wants you gone from the island,” I said, cocking my head. “Probably because he’s afraid you’ll start poking around in your dad’s case, like you said before. So I doubt he’s going to be interested in any reconciliation attempts.”

  Alexis frowned and considered my words for a moment. “I could call him and say something like: Sascha and I have decided we want a fresh start, and part of that means accepting that our dad was the Blackthorne Butcher. We don’t want to talk about it beyond that. We just want to move on and have a new life,” she said. “If I can convince him of that, he’ll think there’s no chance that we’ll dig into Dad’s case, and then he’ll think he’s totally safe. He might even rethink things and decide it’s a good idea to bring us into the family so he can keep an eye on us, just in case.”

  I nodded slowly. “I guess it’s worth a shot. Do you have his number?”

  “Yes.” She pulled out her cell phone and lay it on the table. “Should I do it now?”

  “Yeah. Put it on loudspeaker so I can hear everything.”

  She nodded and unlocked her phone. Then she took a deep breath and dialed.

  Her grandfather answered on the fifth ring. “Edward Paxton speaking,” he said in a gruff tone.

  “Hi, Edward. It’s Alexis Livingston here. I was just wondering if we could talk for a mi—”

  Edward cut her off. “Oh, Alexis! What a coincidence. I was just about to call you.”

  Alexis tilted her head slightly to one side, staring at me from across the table with wide eyes. “You were?”

  “Yes. Your sister, too.”

  Alexis swallowed audibly and nervously scratched her chin. “Uh… is everything okay? Did something happen to Deborah?”

  “No. Her illness turned out to be a bad cold, so she should be all better soon,” he replied. “That is part of the reason I decided to call you, though.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “When Deborah got sick, I started thinking about a few things,” Edward said. “I know she’s going to be fine this time, because it’s just a cold, but we’re both getting on in years, so it’s only a matter of time before one of us goes. That means one of us is going to be alone at some point. To be honest, the thought of that is quite frightening to me.”

  “I’m sure you won’t be totally alone,” Alexis said, still looking perplexed by the strange turn the call had taken.

  Edward sighed heavily. “I don’t think you understand, dear. The ship has sailed on our relationship with your mother, which is mostly our fault, I suppose. And our other children—your Aunt Beth and Uncle Thomas—live in New York with their own children now, and they rarely have time to fly back over here to visit,” Edward said. He let out another sigh. “If I die, Deborah won’t have anyone here, and if she dies, I won’t have anyone.”

  “Don’t you have friends?”

  “We do, but it’s not quite the same as having a family, is it?” he replied. He cleared his throat and went on. “Anyway, I’ve been thinking about all of this ever since I saw you the other night at the Mayfair, and I have to say…” Edward trailed off and let out another nervous cough. “I’m embarrassed about my behavior, Alexis. I acted like a petulant child.”

  “I wasn’t exactly polite myself.”

  “You had every right to be rude to me. I was awful to you. Not just then, but during our first meeting, too,” Edward said. “My wife and I obviously have issues concerning your father, but that’s not your fault. We should’ve been more willing to spend time with you and get to know you. After all, you and Sascha are our granddaughters, and you live right here on the island. It doesn’t make sense for us to cut you off when we could be a big part of each other’s lives.”

  Alexis looked dumbfounded. “Oh,” was all she managed to say in response.

  “So…” Edward said slowly. “The reason I called was to ask you if you’d be willing to give a grumpy old man a second chance.”

  I nodded at Alexis, and she smiled in return. “Sure,” she said. “I’d love that. I actually called you for a similar reason.”

  “You did?”

  “Yes. I wanted to apologize for my attitude the other night and tell you that I wanted another chance to get to know you. So I’m really glad we’re on the same page.”

  Edward let out a light chuckle. “Great minds think alike, eh?” he said. “Anyway, which nights do you and Sascha have free in the coming week?”

  “I’m free anytime,” Alexis said. “I’m not sure about Sascha’s schedule, but she’s been dying to see you and Deborah again, so I’m sure she’d be able to make time whenever you’re available.”

  “Oh, good. It’s actually my 77th birthday on Saturday, so I’m having a small celebratory soiree at the house,” Edward replied. “Also, I believe it’s your birthday on Sunday?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Well, I was thinking that you and Sascha could come over for dinner a couple of hours before my party starts. Just the four of us—you, her, me, and Debora
h. We could use that time to talk things through and try to sort out some of our issues, and if all goes well, you could stay for the party and meet some of our friends. I suppose we could even say it’s a joint party for you and me, seeing as our birthdays are so close.”

  “That sounds great,” Alexis replied. “I’m guessing you don’t want us to admit that we’re your granddaughters, though. When we meet your friends, I mean.”

  Edward went quiet for a moment. “I’m sure we can figure out a way to tell them the truth without telling the whole truth,” he finally said. “For example, if anyone happens to ask who your father is, we could just give them a vague answer.”

  Alexis tightened her lips. “I guess that would be okay.”

  “We can discuss it further at our dinner,” Edward said. “For now, let’s focus on the menu. Do you or Sascha have any allergies or food preferences?”

  “I’ll eat anything and everything,” Alexis replied. “Sascha isn’t allergic to anything, but she’s steering clear of dairy at the moment.”

  “All right. I’ll let my house manager know,” Edward said. “Does Sascha still have the same phone number?”

  “Yes.”

  “All right. I’ll give her a call soon, and then I’ll text you the details for our dinner.”

  “Sounds great. I’m looking forward to it.”

  “So am I,” Edward said. His tone turned awkward again. “And, er… once again, I’m sorry about the way I treated you before. I’m very glad that you’re giving me a second chance.”

  “I’m sorry too.”

  Alexis ended the call with her grandfather. Then she put her elbows on the table and leaned forward. “Holy shit,” she said breathlessly. “I was not expecting that to go so well.”

  “Me neither.” I slowly rubbed my jaw and frowned. “It was almost too easy.”

  Her brows knitted. “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t you think it’s strange?” I said. “He acts like he hates you for months, and then suddenly he’s on the phone inviting you to parties and begging you to be part of the family?”