HIM
Staring at the funeral from behind the tinted windows of my black sedan, I was reconsidering coming here. I should leave; being here was a risk. The others would be upset if they found out. But I couldn’t help it. It was necessary to make sure the funeral happened and there would be no more autopsies or investigations of Susan Taylor. I had a personal connection to Sage and Lacey’s mother.
I knew who killed her and why they’d done it.
Running a hand down my face, I convinced myself it was fine. I’d covered my bases.
The license plate didn’t even belong to this car, and I would switch plates again after I left. Glancing out the window once more, I saw who I had been looking for. The Taylor sisters. Sage and Lacey stood arm in arm, facing away from me.
A minute later, the funeral ended, and people started to walk toward their cars. My foot hovered over the pedal, ready to bolt if I drew any attention. Just by being here, I’d already pushed my luck. But I needed to see Sage and Lacey’s faces before I left. Finally, the girls turned to leave, and Sage glanced at my car as she talked to her boyfriend.
My heart seized as I met her eyes, even though there was no way I was visible to her. I’d checked the tinted windows before coming here. It was impossible to see inside this car. Her attention returned to her boyfriend, and I snorted.
That guy was too soft. He wasn’t man enough for Sage. She had a fire that couldn’t be tamed. Her fiery, ruby red hair hung in soft waves down her back. As for Lacey, she was a classic beauty. Where Sage was athletic, she was dainty. She had an aura of innocence about her. Her hair was red like her sister’s. But was much lighter with an almost orange hue. Even with their differences, the fact that they were sisters was undeniable when they stood side by side.
They both had the same hazel eyes that changed color, depending on the light. Their smiles were infectious. And right now, even with their faces streaked with tears, they were both breathtakingly fucking gorgeous.
My pulse quickened when the girls began to walk toward the road. Sage stared at my car again and I decided it was time to go. I stepped on the gas and sped out of the cemetery, but my mind stayed on the sisters.
* * *
A groan escaped me as the constant ringing of my phone pulled me from my sleep. Blindly, I reached around on my nightstand until my hand closed around my phone.
“Yeah?” I answered gruffly, not bothering to open my eyes.
“What the hell were you thinking?” the man on the other end practically yelled.
I sighed and sat up while rubbing my eyes. I should have expected this, but I honestly didn’t think any of the others would have noticed that I was at the funeral. Obviously, I wasn’t as careful as I’d thought.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I decided to feign innocence, in case it wasn’t about where I was yesterday.
“You know exactly what. Going to that funeral. Acting all shady in a car with tinted windows. That screams suspicious.” He was pissed.
“Don’t worry. They didn’t see me, I was careful. Even if they did see me, you really think I couldn’t have talked my way out of it?”
“What are you? Stupid?”
Swinging my legs over the edge of the bed, I rolled my shoulders before standing up. I took a deep breath before answering, trying to control the anger coursing through me.
“Calm down; nothing happened. I know what I’m doing. I’ve been taught to be discreet all my life. You really think I’d risk it if I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I wouldn’t be caught?” I asked, fighting to keep my voice controlled.
“Do not do anything that brings more awareness to that case. There have been no new leads in the case of that woman’s death, and I want to keep it that way. Got it?”
“Yes, sir. I got it,” I said through clenched teeth.
“Good,” he replied, hanging up before another word was spoken.
I grumbled under my breath and stretched my arms over my head. The discovery of Susan Taylor’s body made big news in the small town of Capac. She had been considered a missing person for the past twenty years, and that’s how it was supposed to stay. The old guy who owned the land where she was buried kept it from the public for years. Until he died and none of the others in the group knew because he lived alone.
That wouldn’t happen again. We would put measures in place after this unfortunate incident. Couldn’t have land being sold off to the public, uncovering our deep secrets. It made working toward the greater good that much harder.
The plan would happen soon. There were only a couple months to get it all together for everything to go off without a hitch. Excitement shot through me, and the thought of seeing the others instantly put me in a better mood. I only saw them when the planning started, and again on the night of the ceremony. We couldn’t all be seen together; it would draw too much suspicion.
They were like family, and anything they asked, I’d do. No matter what. That included listening to the asshole who’d told me not to arouse questions about Susan Taylor’s death.
I chuckled as I made my coffee. I hadn’t agreed to stop going around the Taylor sisters. They were intriguing and had been on my mind more than I’d ever admit to anyone. They were so different from each other but had a bond I’d never witnessed. I wanted to be a part of their lives, at least for a while longer.
While I watched the coffee brew, the tragic fate of the Taylor family filled my head. The sisters had lost their mother when they were so young. Spent their childhood years wondering what happened to her. Then their dad got sick.
Those girls didn’t know that their family was part of a bigger picture. Something for the greater good. Their mother found out what that was before her death, but she didn’t accept it. Maybe the chosen sister would. Either way, Sage or Lacey was marked to share the same fate as their mother.
Maybe she’d accept it and understand why this must be done. Or not. Many of the women who were chosen didn’t understand why this happened to them. Before I could convince myself not to, I pulled out my phone and searched online until I found Lacey’s profile picture. I stared at the picture of the two sisters with contagious smiles on their faces. If only they knew what was going to happen once the plan was set.
One of the Taylor sisters would be dead before summer ended.