When You Were Mine (Stone Lake 2)

“But, back to my lesson. Every man has a price. Darren? Darren’s price was revenge. You helped send him to jail and he was an idiot for sure, but he didn’t kill anyone. Still, he thought it was so funny getting his nephew to bust out a few windows. When Larry got him to serve as a lookout when we killed your father, he actually tried to back out. I had hoped prison hardened him, but I was wrong. We had to threaten his nephew just so he would clean the blood off the walls and of course leave you a nice message. I mean, I was going to, but you would’ve recognized my writing. I didn’t want to play my hand too quickly.

“Larry’s price was easy. He just hated you. You do tend to bring out that kind of emotion in people, Gavin. If you weren’t going to die, I would tell you to watch that in the future.”

“Do you have a point to all this, Atticus?” Gavin asks and he looks so alone standing there facing his brother, that I wish I could go over to him and hug him. I can’t though. I have to stay where I’m at. I have my body between Joshua and Atticus and before I will let Atticus hurt him or Gavin, I will charge him. I’ll most likely die, but Gavin will have time to act and I know he will save Joshua—that’s all that matters.

“God, you really do love hearing yourself talk,” Gavin taunts.

“But brother, we’re just now getting to the interesting part. Wouldn’t you like to know Luna’s price?”

“Fuck you,” I snarl at Atticus, wishing I had a gun. If I did, I’d already have killed him.

“Such a naughty mouth, but then we both know that don’t we, Brother?”

“The only part of my mouth you got was when I bit you when you tried to kiss me,” I growl, defending myself. If I die here, I don’t want to die with Gavin thinking I ever slept with his brother.

“It’s okay, Luna,” Gavin says, his voice soft.

“Yeah, Luna, it’s okay. Gavin’s so blind when it comes to you, he wouldn’t care that you let me between your legs.”

“I didn’t you bastard! You’re lying! You attacked me and would have raped me if I hadn’t stopped you!” I cry the words, my body trembling, hating that I have to tell Gavin, hating that I have to admit it to everyone in here including my son.

“And you would have let me had you then, wouldn’t you, Luna? If I would have had the right price figured out. I do now. You see, Gavin, Luna’s price is her son. When she found out that I poisoned her and almost made her miscarry, she started proceedings to have me thrown in jail. I couldn’t let that happen, I mean, I doubt a court would convict me of anything, but they would have had my DNA on file and that would have caused issues with my favorite pastime. So, I had to disappear. I was content enough, still enjoying my pretties and watching Luna closely. She never tried to let anyone get close to her until Sheriff Kingston arrived on the scene. That forced my hand somewhat, I have to admit. So I orchestrated it so we could all be together once again. And here we are.”

“Here we are,” Gavin says in a grave tone dripping with disgust.

I need to do something quick. I’m still dizzy from whatever they injected me with earlier. I’m afraid I’m going to lose my chance.

I look at Gavin, trying to send him a message without talking. He looks back, but I can’t read him….

I don’t know what to do…

Shit.

Gavin

“What was your price?” I ask, looking at Dern.

“Go ahead, tell him, Lawrence. I think my brother deserves to hear,” Atticus chimes in.

“Son…”

“Just tell me,” I tell him, my voice lifeless and detached. I’d given up on Dern before now, but for whatever reason—maybe morbid curiosity—I want to know how the man I once respected ended up like this.

“I fucked up, Gav. I had a murderer in my hands, but I was on a hangover, messed up the chain of evidence, contaminated the scene. He was going to get free… I had to make sure that didn’t happen,” Dern says.

“What he’s not saying is that he planted evidence,” Atticus adds, taking great pleasure in it. “I figured a man that likes booze and gambling had skeletons in his closet I could use. Finding Dern’s was ridiculously easy.”

I know Luna is looking at me, but I can’t pay her attention right now. Atticus is getting too wound up, and I have to make my move before this goes from bad to worse.

Dern puts Ben’s gun on the floor beside Atticus. I can’t help but notice he places it so the barrel is facing Atticus, not the handle.