Blood Rose

by P. T. Michelle

  Just as I tug my tote bag onto my shoulder, the back door slams open on its hinges and Ben barrels toward me, an angry, determined look on his face.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Calder

  The moment I’m on the open road, I gun it, pushing my Charger’s eight-cylinder engine to the limit. Gripping the steering wheel tight, I grit my teeth to keep my shit together. I’m going to destroy Ben. Whatever game that two-faced liar is playing, he just lost. You don’t fuck with the woman I love.

  As the speedometer climbs to ninety and above, Den remains unruffled, his accent smooth as silk. “I sent Talia the address you put in the GPS. You told her you’d call her.”

  “Not yet,” I say in a cold tone. All I can think about is Cass. I’m both angry and worried for her. I know in my gut that she didn’t have a choice to help Celeste, because she would’ve talked to me about it. But fucking hell…I want her to tell me everything. All the time. Not pick and choose. “Why is it so hard for her to let me help?” I finally voice my thoughts. “Why is she so goddamn stubborn?”

  Den smirks. “What makes a woman like Cass appealing, besides her free spirit, is her inner strength. She may infuriate you at times, but would you really have it any other way?”

  I grudgingly grunt my agreement. He’s right, but I don’t have to like it. Not in this situation.

  “As for Ben—”

  “I don’t want to discuss that lying bastard.” I glance his way, locking a hard gaze with his light-brown one. “And you’d better not get in my way. You’re here as back up, not a road block.”

  My phone rings with an incoming call from Sebastian. I hit the speaker button. “Are you en route?”

  “I’ll be about ten minutes behind you. Talia said that Ben is with Cass on a trip to this Beacon address and you’re worried about Cass’s safety? She said you know more. What the hell is going on, Cald?”

  Even though every fiber in my being is yelling for me to tell my cousin about Celeste, I honor my promise to Cass. “These are the facts I can say: Cass was worried about Beth’s health and she asked Ben to look over Celeste’s blood work to see if Celeste had any symptoms similar to her mother’s Lupus. Cass didn’t tell him that the blood work was Celeste’s, because Talia thought it might upset Ben. Ben didn’t come to work today like he was supposed to. And now he and Cass are driving to this address in Beacon. I’m worried that Cass didn’t go with Ben by choice.”

  “Talia told me about Ben secretly going to see his father. Tell me about the other?”

  “What other?” I ask, frowning.

  “You said ‘that’s all you can talk about.’ What’s the rest? We are not walking into a potentially volatile situation without all the facts, Cald, so stop fucking holding back.”

  I lock my jaw. Everything could unravel if I say a word. Before I can speak, Den says, “We’ll call you back,” and hits the End button.

  I glance his way in surprise. “He’s just going to call right back.”

  My phone immediately rings and Den speaks over the ringtone. “Will revealing whatever you’re holding back compromise your business partner?”

  Pressing my mouth in a tight line as the phone goes silent, I slowly nod. “It could potentially, yes.”

  When Bash calls back again, Den asks, “Can we still do what needs to be done without this information?”

  “We can, but knowing all the facts would make it a hell of a lot easier,” I grate out.

  Nodding, Den answers the phone to Bash’s immediate rant. “Don’t you dare hang up on me again or you’re fucking fired.”

  “You do realize I don’t need to work, right?”

  Bash is probably as shocked as I am, but I give Den props for staying cool under pressure. He looks at me, his brows raised expectantly, so I offer my cousin an answer he’ll accept. “Bash, this road trip could be all the motive Ben needs to hurt Cass.”

  A couple seconds of silence comes across the line. “I hear your engine roaring. Don’t get yourself fucking killed, Cald. I’ll be there as fast as I can.”

  Before I can thank him for trusting me, he hangs up. “He’s pissed,” I mutter.

  “He’s in. That’s all that matters,” Den muses. “Where was he anyway?”

  “He’s worried about Mina,” I say, rolling my head from one shoulder to the other to ease the building tension of not being able to get to Cass fast enough. “The fact her best friend Regan ripped off her father’s company for millions before disappearing has really shaken her. Bash went over to take her to lunch.”

  “She needs to be pushed, not coddled.”

  The Brit’s on a roll today. I snort at his bluntness. “She’s the only girl in the family. We all look out for her.”

  “You’re doing her a disservice. Mina is quite capable.”

  “Of course she’s capable, but watch what you say to Bash.” I glance his way, but he’s staring straight ahead, his expression unreadable. “When it comes to Mina, he’s very protective of his little sister.”

  Den flicks me an unapologetic look. “I only say what matters, Calder.”

  I hold his gaze for a second. “Fair enough, but don’t say I didn’t warn—”

  An incoming call from Elijah interrupts us and I quickly put his call on speaker. “What’s up, Elijah?”

  “Sending you the address now where the water was delivered.”

  “That’s going to have to wait. I don’t have time—”

  “Calder,” Talia interrupts. “Look at the address.”

  I look at Den, who pulls it up, then quickly turns his phone my way. When I see it’s the same address I plugged into my GPS earlier, I jerk straighter in my seat and snarl, “Fuck this shit! All bets are off. Conference in Bash, Talia, so we’re all on the same page.”

  Once Talia gets Bash on the line, I tell them the rest of the story. “Celeste is actually alive.” While Bash mutters, “motherfucker,” I tell them all what happened and how we got to where we are today. “This address we’re going to is apparently where Celeste is currently living.”

  “I’ve been checking up on that address. It was owned by a man for twenty years and he sold it for cash last year. The transaction was through an agency, so I can’t confirm who the buyer was. It could’ve been Celeste,” Talia says. “Didn’t you say that Cass said she wasn’t going to help Celeste when she tried to contact her? Wonder what changed her mind?”

  I narrow my gaze on the road, my stomach clenching as my worry deepens. “I don’t know, but something convinced her otherwise, and somehow Ben’s involved.”

  “It sounds like Cass was set up, but why?” Bash says.

  Talia speaks closer to the phone, her voice suddenly tense. “I still can’t get through on her phone. Get to Cass fast, Calder. I think this whole thing might be some kind of trap.”

  I hang up with them and a few minutes later my muscles tighten as I make the hairpin turn onto the road Celeste’s house is on. I can see the small house sitting down a hill on several acres of land that runs parallel to the road. Off in the distance, Ben’s car is sitting in the driveway. Just as I push on the gas, the car windows rattle from a horrific boom. Bright light flashes within the house below and it explodes into a ball of fire.

  Cass! God, no! Slamming on the brakes, I jam the gear into Park. Since the driveway is on the opposite corner of the property, running a straight line from here will get me there faster, so I jump out and call to Den, “Meet me down there.”

  It’s a steep hill, but I don’t remember getting from the top to the blazing inferno below. The smoky fire grows bigger the faster I run. I can only get so close because of the heat.

  My heart thunders and my eyes water as I peer into the raging blaze for any signs of life.

  Nothing.

  The fire is relentless and massive, its flames viciously consuming everything that mattered to me, burning up all my dreams, reducing my heart to ashes.

  I stare in shock and my hands shake as I scrub my face in the h
opes it’s just a nightmare I’ll wake up from. But the heat pushes me farther back. I stumble, my legs hardly working.

  Sweet Cass. My angel. My life. I swallow several times, but I just can’t believe it. My chest feels like it’s caving in and I fall to my knees unable to catch my breath.

  Den’s hand lands on my shoulder and squeezes. I barely feel it. Everything inside me goes numb. My mind shuts down. Coldness seeps into my soul, chasing the heat from my skin.

  When a shadow forms to the left of the house in the smoke, I blink. I quickly stand on unsteady legs and stare harder, whispering to Den, “Do you see that?”

  The shadow’s trying to run, but stumbling. I start running toward the person, yelling, “Cass?”

  “Calder? I can’t see you.” Her croaks are barely heard above the noise of the inferno, but God it’s music to my ears. I rush forward into the smoke billowing out of the blown out windows on the side of the house and lift her up into my arms.

  Moving away from the smoke and heat of the fire, I set her down in the yard, then skim shaky hands all over her. From her gorgeous hair, to her shoulders, to the tips of her fingers, I check every beautiful, warm part. “I’ve never been so scared, Cass! Are you okay?”

  As I cup her soot-covered face and press my lips to her forehead, so fucking thankful she’s alive, Cass clasps my wrists and coughs a couple of times, then pulls back to meet my gaze. “I—I’m fine. We’re fine.”

  “That was a close call,” Ben says quietly behind me.

  The sound of his voice sets me off. I don’t even bother looking as I pivot and swing with one fluid motion. The pain in my hand is overshadowed by the satisfying crunch. But it’s not nearly enough.

  He stumbles back and covers his bloody nose. “Have you lost your goddamn mind?”

  “Calder!” Cass screams and tries to grab my arm.

  “You lying sack of shit! I’m going to fucking kill you for putting Cass at risk.”

  “Liar? What the hell are you talking about?” Ben puts a fist up and beckons with his other hand, yelling, “Come on, asshole! It’s way past due.”

  “Why don’t you tell Cass about how you’ve gone to see your father three times this month? The man you swore you were done with, remember that? What the hell is your end game, Ben? Are you working with your father?” When I snarl and step forward, ready to pummel him into oblivion, Cass jumps onto my back.

  Wrapping her arms and legs tight around me, she yells in my ear, “Stop, Calder! I would be dead if he hadn’t grabbed me and run us out of that house. He saved me.”

  I don’t want to let go of my anger. The emptiness and terror I felt when I thought I lost her hasn’t left me. It’s still festering and swirling inside me, needing a release. I advance on Ben, then jolt to a halt when sudden pain radiates from both my ears and my head snaps back. “Ow, Cass!” I quickly reach back and grab her ass, lifting her to relieve my pain.

  Releasing her bull-horn hold on my ears, Cass falls against my back once more and squeezes my neck in a tight hug. “Sorry, but you weren’t stopping. I had to snap you out of it.”

  “Was anyone else in the house?” Den looks between Ben and me. Once we shake our heads, he says, “Then if everyone’s all right, I suggest we leave the area as soon as possible.”

  I pull Cass down in front of me and wrap an arm around her. When we don’t move right away, Den adds, “Unless you’d like to answer the authorities’ questions as to why you’re here and if you had anything to do with this inferno? The fire trucks are about three minutes out.”

  Realizing he’s right, we all nod. While Cass retrieves her tote bag, I refuse to let her hand go and I steer her toward my car.

  “I’ll ride with Ben.” Den says, then walks away.

  Once Den reaches Ben’s car, I meet his gaze across the driveway. “Text Sebastian and tell him to meet us in the town of Beacon. We passed it on the way here, so he could get there before us. We’ll find a place to convene there.” Den inclines his head in agreement and climbs in to Ben’s car.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Cass

  As soon as we’re seated in his car, Calder takes my shaky hand and presses his lips to my palm. I don’t know why I’m trembling, but the look of love and worry in his eyes slays me. After I quickly clean up my face with a wipe, he takes my hand and sets it on the gearshift, then rests his big hand over mine as he shifts the gear and we follow Ben’s car. When his fingers lock with mine around the gear, the warmth of his hand seeps into me, settling my nerves. A few miles pass before my body stops shaking, but my mind is screaming with questions. I know he’s waiting for me to talk.

  “I still don’t know what happened,” I say quietly.

  Calder rubs his thumb across my engagement ring to let me know he’s listening.

  I swallow and recount the last few seconds before the explosion that felt like both an eternity and a movie on fast-forward. “I was standing in the kitchen and Ben kicks in the back door.” I close my eyes and shake my head. “I was confused by what he’d done and a bit scared, because he looked angry. Then he ran in, grabbed my hand, and yanked me toward the back door, yelling, “Run, Cass!”

  I open my eyes to see Calder watching me. “All I did was react. I trusted his lead and ran. If Ben hadn’t tugged me down that steep hill behind the house, where we both pretty much rolled all the way to the bottom, I don’t know if I’d be here talking to you right now.”

  He squeezes my hand and glances toward the road, his voice rough, on edge. “Ben using the hill to get you out of the way quickly saved you both. I’ve seen more than my share of explosions in my active military days. Beyond flying debris, the concussive force can cause major damage. Why were you even there?” His gaze returns to mine, his eyes darkening. “Did Ben force you to go?”

  “No, Ben didn’t force me. I told you that he was going with me.”

  “You sent a text, Cass. After learning that Ben lied about his father, I didn’t know what to think. When you told me about Celeste, you said you told her not to contact you again, remember?”

  I nod. “Then she sent the book.”

  “What book?”

  “The one you put on our bed. That was the same book Celeste used to confess what she’d done to Phillip.”

  “Son of a bitch!” he grumbles, his hand on the steering wheel tightening.

  “The note she left for me said that her medical problems were more than she’d planned for and she needed me to get the money she’d hidden away for herself at the Carver estate or she’d get kicked out of her hous—” I gasp and clamp my other hand over my mouth. Fingers trembling, I pull them away from my lips. My breathing increases and I feel a bit dizzy. “Oh God...all that money. I’d just set the stacks on the table. It blew up in the explosion.”

  “Calm down, Cass. Don’t worry.” He holds my gaze for a second before returning his to the road. “Celeste knew exactly what she was doing.”

  His sharp tone surprises me. “You don’t understand. It was a lot of money. Three hundred thousand. She’ll never believe I didn’t have anything to do with what just happened—”

  “Celeste set you up. You were targeted all along. The fact that she wasn’t there when the house blew up is very telling.”

  “What! You think the house blew up on purpose?” Ben’s reaction now makes more sense. But how did he know? Looking at Calder, I furrow my brow. “But I checked on Celeste’s story. Ben confirmed that her blood work shows she’s not well at all. She’s very sick.”

  He gives me a look. “You weren’t completely truthful about your reason for asking for that lab report.”

  “I was trying to do my own investigating first,” I say in my defense. “And I did share that I needed to help Celeste. It’s not my fault you distracted the hell out of me last night. I told you I’d tell you everything when I got back.”

  He grunts and returns his gaze to the road. “Celeste’s poor health may or may not be true, but this part definitely is: I had El
ijah check on your credit card issues in the hopes we could stop it for good. Celeste is the one who opened the latest credit card under your name.”

  My face flames with fury and I curl my hand into a fist on my lap. “Are you serious? I’m going to cut a bitch!”

  Calder nods. “She’s probably behind the other credit card issues you had too, which falls in line with what you said about her needing cash for a while. We know for sure she was behind this last credit card, because she screwed up and used that card to order a bottled water delivery service to the same Beacon address.”

  “I tried to be smart and double-check her story. I knew I’d never be able to look Beth in the eyes again if there was something I could do to help her sister and I didn’t. I considered telling Beth, but I don’t think she could handle the truth. I believe it would actually destroy her to know Celeste lied to her whole family, so I retrieved the cash and took Ben with me as back up to deliver it. Er…speaking of Ben. I ended up telling him the truth about Celeste on the way.”

  Calder sighs, then nods. “Talia, Den, Bash and Elijah now know too. I had to fill them in once we discovered Celeste had been targeting you for a while.”

  I’m relieved that he didn’t ask me what prompted me to tell Ben. The last thing I want is for Calder to encourage Ben’s consideration of leaving BLACK Security. Then again, after Calder’s punch earlier, my effort to forestall Ben from leaving may be a moot point. I rub my throbbing temples and try to focus on one worry at a time.

  “Celeste promised once I delivered the money, this would be the last time she contacted me. I didn’t realize she meant because I’d be dead. Why did she do this? Why did she destroy all that money and a house?” My stomach churns with disappointment in myself for not seeing through Celeste’s ruse. As much as I’d like to believe otherwise, tigers really don’t change their stripes, and apparently a sick tiger is far more deadly. “I can’t believe I fell for her sob story. I feel like such a fool.”