When Devils Sing(96)

Isaiah pulled away first.

“Can I leave this with you?” his father asked, handing Isaiah the portfolio.

“Yes, sir,” he said, composing himself. “I’ll leave it on Leblanc’s desk.”

“Very good.” His father patted his shoulder, then checked the time on his watch. “Don’t work for too much longer, son. It’s a difficult habit to break once you learn it.”

Isaiah nodded, then walked his father to the firm’s front door. He watched his Tesla disappear into the stormy night, the headlights swallowed up by the rain. Once he was gone, Isaiah locked the front door, then hurried back to Leblanc’s office.

“What if Neera’s next?” Isaiah asked Reid. “What if this is Grant and Wiley collecting on the debt?”

“That’s possible,” Reid said slowly. “But that doesn’t account for Sam being taken. We’re missing something important here.” His face paled then. “What if Neera’s already been taken? That could be why she hasn’t answered her phone.”

Isaiah shook his head, making a run for the front door. “We need to get to Grant’s. Now.”





CHAPTER 40NEERA




25 HOURS


Neera was frozen in place at the sight of Grant in the doorway. She barely flinched at his sudden appearance, still in shock from the documents strewn across his desk. “I didn’t hear you come in,” she said, her eyes flitting to the gun in the safe.

I don’t even know how to use a gun, she thought pitifully. She needed to use her wits, because what she’d just found was definitive proof Grant was responsible for Ajay’s death. If he realized she knew, she was afraid of what he might do. She needed to focus on the other damning document—the one not about death, but birth.

“You were clearly distracted,” Grant said, taking a sip from his glass. “Whatcha got there?”

Neera stiffened, before gesturing to the scrapbook on the floor. “You tell me.”

Grant eyed it with casual disinterest. “Ah, that.”

Neera moved around the desk, putting a bit more space between her and Grant. “Is there anything you wanna tell me?”

Grant sighed, as if this was an inconvenience for him. “I need you to be more specific.”

Neera felt sick, again. “Those photos—you all looked so close, like best friends. Like family.”

Grant shrugged. “We were all quite close back then—me, your uncle…” He paused. “Even your mom.”

“What changed?”

Grant took another sip from his drink, stepping closer into the room. “Me and Ajay … well, we didn’t see eye to eye on some things. We were young and hotheaded, desperate to make a name for ourselves in music. Let’s just say we had a falling-out over a business disagreement.”

“Over Blind Bucks?”

“You know of it?” Grant asked, eyes narrowing.

“Yeah,” Neera said. “I know all about the loans Ajay took out on it. How it never took off, yet my family was left with the debt. It’s funny how Ajay wanted to partner with you on Blind Bucks four years ago. Then the Tavern opened up one year later. The exact same idea, only in Lake Clearwater, rather than Carrion.” She shook her head. “It’s like you made a career out of stealing Ajay’s ideas.”

Grant grimaced, swirling the brown liquor in his glass. “I can admit we were afforded very different opportunities in this industry, but I’m not a thief.”

Neera mentally calculated how fast she could run into the hallway. “Why’re you really helping me?”

Grant hesitated for a breath, then met her gaze. “Make no mistake, kid. Your talent is worth investing in, regardless of what happened between Ajay and me.”

“Come on, Grant. Cut the bullshit.” Neera’s gaze hovered on her birth certificate. “I know it’s you.”

“Pardon?”

“Your falling-out wasn’t really about Ajay or the music or even Blind Bucks,” Neera said, more to herself than to Grant. “No, it was because of my mom, wasn’t it? It was because of me.”

Grant went entirely still, as if the wind had been knocked from his lungs. For the first time since she’d met him, he seemed at a loss for words.

“Say something,” Neera snapped, slamming her hand on the desk. “Say anything. Tell me I’m wrong!”

“Lower your voice, please,” Grant said tensely, as if he were worried someone would hear. There was no one else there—only them.

“Oh God.” Neera’s whole body began to shake. “This can’t be real.”

Grant took a long swig from his drink, finishing it in one gulp. He stood there for an unbearable moment, staring at the empty glass. “What do you want me to say?”

“The truth!” Neera held up her birth certificate for him to see. “Why do you have this? Tell me you’re not really the one who—that you’re not my—oh God.”

Grant grimaced. “I believe the word you’re looking for is father.”

The sound of it made Neera’s skin crawl. “You’re not even gonna deny it?”

“Neera, please,” Grant said. “What does it matter now? It changes nothing.”