THIRTY-SIX
THE BREAK-IN
Knox
Nash yawned and scraped a hand over his face. He was sitting at his dining table in sweat pants. His usually clean-shaven mug had the beginnings of a beard.
“Look, I told you. I don’t remember jack shit from the shooting. I don’t even remember pulling the car over.”
It was after two a.m., and Lucian had insisted we put our heads together on the situations.
I flipped my phone over to see if Naomi had texted me yet. She was supposed to text as soon as she got home. After the night she’d had, I felt unsettled letting her drive home by herself. But Lucian was insistent that we needed to talk to Nash.
“Is that normal? Not remembering?” I asked.
Nash shrugged with his good shoulder. “How the fuck should I know? This is the first time I got shot.”
He was being flippant, but there were shadows under his eyes that had nothing to do with the time of night.
Lucian, on the other hand, looked as if he was just hitting his stride. He was in what was left of another expensive suit. His tie and jacket hung over the back of Nash’s couch. Even as a kid, he’d slept short and light. Every sleepover we’d ever had, he’d been the last to fall asleep and the first to wake. We never talked about what demons kept him up at night. We didn’t have to.
“We need the dashcam footage,” Lucian said. He leaned forward, elbows on knees, a glass of bourbon in his hand.
My brother was already shaking his head. “Fuck you, Luce. You know I can’t do that. It’s evidence in an ongoing investigation. I know law and order don’t mean much to you two—”
“We’ve got the same goal. Finding out who the fuck decided to put two bullets in you and leave you for dead,” I interjected. “If I were you, I wouldn’t be pissed off about the extra eyes and ears.” I flipped my phone over again.
No messages.
“What’s your problem?” Nash asked, nodding at my phone. “Liza J kicking your ass in Words with Friends again?”
“Naomi isn’t home yet.”
“It’s a five-minute drive,” Nash pointed out.
Lucian looked at me. “You didn’t tell him?”
“Tell me what?”
“Naomi’s ex showed up at Honky Tonk tonight. Put his hands on her. Scared her.”
“Jesus. Where did you put the body?”
Lucian smiled slyly. “You don’t want to know.”
Nash pinched the bridge of his nose. “I really don’t want this paperwork.”
“Relax,” I said. “He’s not dead. But if he ever shows his goddamn face in this town again, I make no promises.”
“Knox gave him the first shot in front of witnesses,” Lucian explained.
“What else did he do in front of witnesses? Break his fucking neck?”
“Just the idiot’s nose. I escorted him out into the parking lot and helped him understand if he ever came within a hundred miles of Naomi again, my lawyer was going to make it his personal mission to bankrupt him, his family, and his family’s business.”
“Luce also smashed his face against the kitchen door,” I added cheerfully, wanting to give credit where credit was due.
My brother picked up the untouched bourbon Lucian had put in front of him and downed it. “Goddammit. I hate being left out of shit.”
“You didn’t miss much,” I told him.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Nash demanded, looking at me.
“I’m staring at you two pains in my ass.”
“What the hell are you doing here staring at us when you should be home with her? She’s probably messed up over the whole thing. Scared. Embarrassed. Worried about how it’s gonna look in a guardianship hearing. This on top of the Tina shit is the last thing she needs.”
I didn’t like how well my brother knew Naomi.
“She’s fine. We talked it out. I’m heading to her place as soon as you get your head out of your ass and hand over the dashcam footage.”
“What Tina shit?” Lucian asked.
Nash was filling him in on the details of Tina’s break-ins when my phone rang. I all but vaulted out of my seat to answer it.
“About damn time, Daisy.”
“Knox?” The way she said my name had my hackles rising.
“What’s wrong?” I said, already grabbing my car keys.
Nash and Lucian were on their feet too.
“Someone was here. Someone broke in. It’s a mess. It’s going to take me forever to clean this up.”