Titan’s attention stayed on the road as he replied, “It fits the M.O. and the timeline. They left almost ten million in a bequest. Archer needed a particularly big bump that year to stay on the list. And there was one other donor who was also murdered during a home invasion. About two years before Con’s parents. Cases were damn near identical. Both unsolved. Similar evidence.” His eyes shifted to me for a beat. “So yeah, I think he did.”
“How do you know all that? The evidence? The other case?”
“I called in a favor today from a mutual friend of ours: Detective Hennessy.”
Does everyone know that man?
“What did you tell him? Does he know?”
Lucas shook his head. “He knows not to ask questions. But he’ll put together the similarities. He just won’t have the means to figure out who the money man was behind the trigger.”
I was still processing everything I’d learned. It was absolute insanity. Even if Hennessy did put it together, what Lucas had figured out was so crazy, there was no way logic could get you to that answer. It was the work of a madman.
“Archer has to pay for what he did.” And when he paid, so would I. Because Con would walk away—no, run away—from me. And the foundation would be no more. My fingernails cut into my palms as I balled my hands into rigid fists. I was going to lose everything just when I thought I could have it all.
I squeezed my eyes shut. “I have to tell him.”
“Yeah, you do,” Lucas agreed.
Somehow, at this moment, Titan’s company and support weren’t completely unwelcome. “You’re not as big of an asshole as I thought you were, you know that?”
He smiled. His hands gripped the steering wheel tighter when he said, “No matter what happens, my offer is still good.”
My brow furrowed as I looked at him. “What offer?”
“This one: If Con can’t get over this… I’ll be here. Waiting.”
I turned my head to stare out the window, shocked to see we were pulling up in front of Voodoo.
I grabbed the door handle, steeling myself for what I was about to do. I hesitated for a moment, needing to make sure Titan was clear on one thing first. “If Con can’t get over this… I’m pretty sure you’d be waiting a lifetime. Because I don’t think I’ll be able to get over him.”
“You love him?”
“You’re smart, Titan. I’m pretty sure you can answer that question for yourself.”
My nerves were jumping as I pushed through the door to Voodoo. The female tattoo artist, Delilah, shook her head when she saw me. “He’s not here.”
“Where’s he at?”
“The gym.”
My heart fell. How could I tell him in front of his boys? I couldn’t. But I also couldn’t put this off.
Titan was still parked at the curb, so I climbed back inside the Aston and gave him directions to the gym.
“You sure about this?” he asked as he pulled into the back parking lot.
I saw Con’s Harley and decided that I was absolutely not sure about this. The apprehension thrumming through my veins was kicking up my nerves to new heights.
I got out of the car anyway.
I knocked on the door and waited.
Reggie opened it. “Ms. Frost, didn’t know we were expecting you.”
“Impromptu visit,” I said, attempting a smile. Reggie gave me a strange look—which led me to believe that my attempt had failed. He held open the door, and I stepped inside.
I knew the way to the gym and didn’t wait for Reggie to lead. I stepped into the open space and saw Con with another man. They were in the ring and appeared to be demonstrating for the boys. Or maybe it had started as a demonstration and turned into a full-on boxing match.
I waited, my heart hammering harder with every strike either man landed, until one of the boys whacked an old school boxing bell with a mallet.
Con and the man separated. They were about the same height, same build, with same hair color, although the other man’s was buzzed short. And then there were the tattoos. The resemblance was… uncanny. They could’ve been brothers. I froze. Are they brothers? Con had never mentioned a sibling, but he’d also never said he didn’t have one.
But if they were brothers, why would Joy and Andre Leahy have adopted only Con?
Con saw me and grinned.
The knots in my stomach twisted even tighter, and my guilt at what I had to tell him multiplied.
“What’re you doing here, babe? Should’ve called first.”
I stalled, wanting to see him smile for just a few moments longer before I ripped his heart out.
He slipped between the ropes and hopped out of the ring.
“You look like you’ve been cloned.” I nodded toward the other man, who’d turned to talk to the boys.
“That’s Lord,” he said.
“And he is…?”
“The manager of Chains. Helps out here sometimes too.”
“And?”
Con stripped off his boxing gloves and lifted my chin. “And I think you’ve figured out what else.”
My eyes widened at his confirmation. I wasn’t sure how many more surprises I could handle today.
“You have a brother?”
“Yeah.”
“And I didn’t know this because?”
“We don’t really tell people. But I was going to introduce you on the Fourth. He was one of the buddies who was coming over.”
“Oh.” I stumbled backward until I felt the bench behind me and sat
“Whoa, princess. You don’t look so good. I guess I should’ve told you—”