Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 138775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
It wasn’t an answer, but I took her hand as we walked up the path. Lucas joined us as we reached the front door.
“Stay back, okay?” he told her. I hoped to hell she listened.
I pounded on the door, but not as hard as I wanted to because I didn’t want to scare this asshat so fucking badly that he wouldn’t open up.
After the second knock, I heard footsteps on the other side of the door. “Who is it?”
There was no peephole. I glanced back at Tori, my eyebrow raised in a question. She nodded and moved forward. “It’s me, Tori.”
“Tori?” That motherfucker probably came in his pants just from the sound of her voice.
“Can I come in, please, Todd?”
I admired the steadiness of her voice. This wasn’t the girl who’d been so quiet on the drive out here.
The sound of the deadbolt turning reached my ears, and then the door opened a crack.
That was all I needed. With both hands, I shoved the door, knocking the guy backwards into the entryway. “What the hell—”
“Shut up,” I growled, as Tori and Lucas entered behind me. The man who’d hit the floor was older than us, maybe late twenties. He had a weak chin and narrow-set eyes—eyes that were currently wide in fear. I grabbed him by the front of his shirt and hauled him to his feet.
“Who the fuck are—”
I slammed him against the nearest wall, pressing hard on his chest to pin him there. Behind me, Tori gasped.
“We’re asking the questions,” I snarled. “So shut the fuck up and listen. Tori had a gold necklace, a gift from her mother. You and I are going to go get it, right fucking now.”
“I don’t know what you’re—”
I yanked him forward and threw him against the wall again. His body hit it with a thud. “Wrong answer, asshole.” My temper flared, but I tried to keep myself in check. At least while Tori was watching.
I dragged Todd into the living room, Lucas and Tori following at a safe distance. Tori was clutching Lucas’s arm, and though he wouldn’t be much use in a fight, I knew he’d do what he could to defend her.
“Where’s the necklace?” I barked.
The fuckwad stared at me, his face white, but he closed his mouth tight, not saying anything.
“Where’s his bedroom?” I turned to Tori.
“Down the hall and to the left.”
He shot her a nasty look, and I pushed him toward the hall. “Don’t you fucking look at her.”
I marched him to his bedroom, shoving him inside. “Last time I’m going to ask nicely. Where’s the fucking necklace?”
He shook his head, and I couldn’t tell if he was being stubborn or just scared. Not that it mattered.
Lucas appeared at the door.
“You don’t want to be here for this, bro,” I told him.
He ignored that, holding up a black phone. “He dropped this back there. I want to check if he has any videos or pictures of her.”
Shit, I hadn’t thought of that. I dragged the dipshit over and held him steady while Lucas put the phone up to his face.
“Hey, that’s mine,” Todd complained. If he didn’t like Lucas messing with his phone, he really wasn’t going to like what was coming next.
Lucas studied the screen. “Got it.”
“If you find anything—”
“I know what to do.” He headed back down the hallway, but then he paused. “Don’t kill him, Kyle. He’s not worth it.”
No. But Tori was.
I stepped back into the bedroom and closed the door.
Ten minutes later, I stormed out into the living room. Tori was perched on the armrest of the sofa. Lucas stood next to her, his arm around her shoulders.
“Here.” I handed her the necklace. I’d scrubbed both it and my hands clean in that loser’s bathroom.
She clutched it like a lifeline, and there was no doubt that it was the real one. “Thank you,” she whispered, staring at it as if trying to memorize it.
“Did you find anything on his phone?” I asked Lucas.
He shook his head. “But I snapped the SIM Card, anyway.”
Good.
Tori finally tore her gaze away from the necklace. “Wait, SIM Cards aren’t used for storage.”
Lucas raised an eyebrow. “I know.”
I almost laughed. Was my stepbro finally growing a pair?
“Let’s get out of here,” Lucas said, holding out his hand to Tori.
She jumped up, but I stopped her. “Wait a minute.” I understood her desire to get the hell out of here, but she deserved to know the whole truth. “I found something else. These were in his dresser.” I handed her a cloth bag that I’d swiped from his closet.
Tentatively, she pulled the drawstring open and looked inside. Then she gasped. “He stole my panties?”
Lucas swore under his breath.
“He stole my fucking panties?” Tori repeated, louder this time. Some of the color came back to her face.
“Afraid so.” I didn’t point out what he’d likely been doing with them.