Glorious Rivals(100)

“It appears our business arrangement is at an end,” Knox told Alisa, handing Gigi over.

“Yes, yes,” Alisa replied curtly, “you’re heartless and driven only by greed and weren’t worried about Gigi here in the least. Ridiculous premise accepted. I have another job for you, Mr. Landry.”

“Not interested, Ortega.”

“You will be.”

Gigi felt a bit like she was watching two sexually repressed mountain lions playing Ping-Pong.

“I was just notified by security,” Alisa continued, “that Brady Daniels has disappeared from Hawthorne Island without a trace. I can’t help but wonder if he had help.”

Knox scowled. “You think he’s with Calla—or the other one.”

Zella, Gigi thought.

“I think,” Alisa told Knox, “that our business arrangement is not at its end.”

Chapter 88

GIGI

Gigi found Savannah standing on one of the yacht’s open decks between a hot tub and a pool. She stood with her back to Gigi, who still wasn’t used to her twin’s haircut, wasn’t used to being able to see the back of her sister’s neck—the tension in it.

“You won, didn’t you?” Gigi said. That was such a nonsensical way for her to start, but she couldn’t take it back now. “The Grandest Game.”

“Winning rarely matters as much as I think it will.” Savannah did not so much as turn. Gigi could tell just by the tone in her sister’s voice that Savannah’s walls were all the way up.

Solid ice.

Gigi was not without discretion or the ability to take a hint, but Savannah’s walls were always highest when she was hurting most.

“I’m going to hug you,” Gigi announced, walking toward her sister. “It’s probably a very bad idea, but you’re going to let me, because if you don’t, I will be forced to find something else to do with my arms, and we both know that my arms and I should pretty much never be left to our own devices.”

“Go away, Gigi.” Savannah’s voice broke, and that broke Gigi.

“It’s okay if you hate me.” Gigi’s voice broke, too. In response, Savannah said nothing and nothing and nothing.

And then: “Believe me, Juliet. I’ve tried.”

Tried to hate me. “Now.” Gigi slipped her arms around Savannah. “I’m going to hug you now.”

“Our father was murdered,” Savannah snapped, “and you—”

“Our father was a murderer.” Gigi felt the rise and fall and rise and fall of her sister’s chest. “And I wanted so badly to protect you from that.” Gigi had wanted so badly to be strong.

She thought about Mattias Slater telling her that she already was.

“It killed me, Savannah. Every time I saw you, it killed me.” Gigi knew that she was on the verge of babbling, and she didn’t care. “But I wanted to do for you what you did for me when you found out about Dad cheating. About Grayson. About all of it.”

“You pushed me away.” Savannah’s voice was almost too calm as she said those words.

“I didn’t mean to,” Gigi whispered. She waited for Savannah to shrug off her hug, to push her away.

But it didn’t happen. After an absolute eternity, Gigi’s twin spoke again. “You’re hurting.”

Gigi didn’t smile. She didn’t grin. For once in her life, she didn’t even try to make it hurt less. “He was our dad.” She hadn’t cried about this. She hadn’t once let herself cry about it. “I know that I should hate him for what he did, but I don’t. Men died, and there is nothing that I can do to make up for that, no matter how hard I try, and I can’t even hate the person who killed them.”

Savannah’s arms wound around Gigi’s shoulders. As hugs went, it was hardly expert, but it was enough.

“I was going to bring it all to light.” Savannah’s voice was quiet but not at all soft. “I was going to bring them down.”

Was. Gigi knew her sister well enough not to read too far into that. Savannah was not a person known for changing course.

“But now,” Savannah continued, “Avery is missing, and I don’t even—” Savannah cut off mid-sentence. “You didn’t know.”

Gigi stared at her sister. “I am totally going back over a mostly one-sided phone conversation I had that is making a lot more sense now.”

This is bad, Gigi thought. This is very bad.

“I know you care,” Savannah said. “About them. About Avery.”

“I care too much,” Gigi told Savannah. “Always and sometimes inappropriately. It’s kind of my thing—but you know what’s really not my thing? Secrets. Keeping them. From you.”

No more secrets, Gigi thought. “I might know something,” she told her sister, “about what’s going on.” It all came pouring out—again: Slate and Eve, Calla and Zella, the time for watching.

“Back up to the part where you got kidnapped,” Savannah said. “Twice.”

“And I didn’t even get a T-shirt,” Gigi quipped. Part of her wanted to ask—if they were okay, if Savannah was—but Gigi didn’t get the chance.

Savannah turned suddenly, whipping her head left. It took Gigi a good three seconds to realize why. Footsteps. Coming toward them.