< 258 Face to Face with a Snake
258 Face to Face with a Snake
Mara
Keisha’s situation lingered in my thoughts, pressing like a bruise. It was heartbreaking. I’d been right to distance myself from her-but had it been worth it?
If I’d known she was battling depression when Lucian and his team went missing, I would have reached
out.
I remembered my own state during that time-heavy, empty-but without the illness dragging me under, I’d managed to keep my head above water. Keisha hadn’t been so lucky.
Even in the grip of psychosis, she had tried to warn me about the kitchen, giving me the only version her mind could piece together. And I, too distraught, hadn’t stopped to connect the dots.
I was glad Lucian had gone looking for Denis instead of cutting him down. If he hadn’t, a disgraceful dismissal would have been a cruelty Denis didn’t deserve. I could only hope the Stormborns’ road ahead would be kinder than what they’d just endured. *
But right now, my focus shifted.
I couldn’t wait to get Tina in that interrogation room.
When we reached headquarters, Rowan was waiting out front. Steady as ever, his presence carried the kind of reliability that made him the obvious choice to run things in my absence.
“Hello, Rowan,” I said aloud.
His smile was polite, but his voice slid into my mind through our link. You’re about to get even with that b***h, Mara. He replied with a casual “Hello” for Lucian’s benefit.
A faint smile touched my lips. Rowan knew exactly how personal this was for me.
Tina had been a thorn in my side for far too long. I’d thought Richard’s fate might have shocked her into
changing-but no. She was as rotten as ever.
I masked the heat in my chest, keeping my face calm. Lucian couldn’t see how badly I wanted this. If he
thought I was too emotionally charged, he’d pull me from the interrogation.
That wasn’t going to happen.
We went straight to the interrogation room. Lucian peeled off toward the adjacent space, settling behind the one-way glass while I took a seat at the metal table. Rowan gave me a quick grin before heading out to fetch Tina.
I rested a hand on my belly, absently rubbing the small curve.
Are you okay, darling? Lucian’s voice slid into my mind through the link.
I glanced toward the glass and smiled. I always feel better when I do this. It’s a habit now.
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258 Face to Face with a Snake
I couldn’t see him, but I imagined the faint smirk that answer probably earned.
The door opened. Rowan ushered Tina inside. She was well-dressed, well-groomed-far too polished for someone who’d been painting herself as sad and miserable.
“Hello, Tina,” I greeted her, watching as Rowan secured her to the chair with silver restraints. Her gaze dropped to my bump, and I stroked it again, meeting her eyes with a small smile.
Her response was a sharp scowl, so sour it was almost comical. I laughed softly, not bothering to hide the
amusement.
“I guess I don’t need to ask how you’re doing. You look perfectly fine,” I said, my tone light but edged. “So instead, let’s get to business. Tell me everything you know about Chase Nighthorn-and the name of whoever’s working for you in my kitchen.”
She stared at me, her silence deliberate, her eyes daring me to push harder.
I closed the distance between us and, without warning, slapped her across the face. The sharp crack echoed in the room. Her eyes watered instantly, but the silver bindings kept her from recoiling.
“You can make this easy,” I said evenly. “You talk, and we both walk away in one piece. Or you make this hard, and I put you through pain you can’t imagine. Either works for me.”
I let the threat hang in the air for a beat, then added with a smile, “I’ve been itching to break out my interrogation tools, Tina. And I won’t mind satisfying that itch on you.”
gave a short nod to Rowan, and he slipped out to get my equipment.
Tina’s lips stayed pressed tight, her eyes hard with hatred. But behind the defiance, I saw it-just the
faintest tremor.
“I thought you said he wasn’t a good catch,” Tina sneered, her gaze flicking to my bump. “Now look at you -head over heels for him and carrying his baby. How does it feel, Mara? How does it feel to eat your own
words?”
I smiled, slow and deliberate, and stroked my stomach again. “Delicious. It feels so f*****g good, Tina.
Literally speaking.”
She looked away, her mouth twisting in disgust.
“I have nothing to say to you,” she said flatly. “Do your worst. There’s nothing more you can do. You took my man and my child from me. You ruined my life. There’s nothing you can do to hurt me more than you already have.”
Her voice wavered when she spoke Richard’s name. “You took my son from me-wouldn’t even let me near him. You all deserve what’s coming to you. Chase is out to get you, and I promise you, he is ruthless.”
I held her gaze, my expression unreadable. “Is that why you wanted to help him kidnap your son? Do you even know what Chase would do to Richard?”
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She stayed silent, her jaw clenched.
“You’re stupid, Tina,” I continued. “I thought you’d realised your mistakes that day in the hospital, but i was wrong. Your remorse lasted about as long as it took for you to draw your next breath. After hearing what Keisha told me, I know now-you’re no good for society.”
Tina’s lips curled into a cold laugh, a sound with no humor in it. She didn’t deny it. Of course she didn’t She’d used Keisha for information without a second thought.
And I was damn glad she’d never been my friend.
