Cruel Infatuation (Underground Kings 3)

“Well, yeah. Sick kids go missing, sick kids show up in the rivers there, large transactions to someone’s bank account. It all adds up, but there has never been enough proof.”

“She isn’t getting her hands on Dillon. When we get her, drain her of every ounce of fucking marrow you can, Doctor Gladstone. You hear me? I want to make sure every time she moves, it’s fucking painful. I want her to feel it. I want her to feel what she fucking put me through, what she put Dillon through, and what she was going to put Dillon through. I want her to suffer. Do you understand?”

“Oh, I understand. I don’t like people who fuck with kids. I’ll do whatever you need me to,” Doctor Gladstone takes me by surprise by the threat in his tone. He cracks his neck and pops his fingers. Zeke looks the doctor up and down and nods his head in approval.

“Also…” Sebastian’s eyes frown along the sides, and his lips turn white from how hard they are pressed together. “You two have a lot more in common that you initially thought.”

“Can we take this to the kitchen?” I ask and don’t wait for anyone to answer. I grab Finley’s hand to tug her behind me. I need a fucking drink for this conversation. I pull out Finley’s chair, then think better of it. I sit down, wrap my arms around her waist and plop her on my lap.

Sebastian gets out a few beers and passes them around to everyone, including Finley, and except Quinn.

“She can’t drink,” I say.

“She’s going to need it after this conversation.” Sebastian pops the top of his beer.

“You dad didn’t just die in that gas station. Trevor killed him.”

Finley tightens her hold on me, and the bottle falls out of her hand. Owen, with reflexes faster than a cat, lunges for it before it falls to the floor. He sets it in front of her, and she brings the bottle to her lips, drinking it down greedily.

“I think you’re right about that drink,” she distantly whispers.

“Do you want to keep going?” Sebastian asks, opening the file he complied on Finley.

Finley nods, not saying a word. Her face is as white as a sheet. She has that faint look abo

ut her, the one that tells me she might pass out, so I hold on tight and keep her safe in my arms.

“Your mom met Trevor when your dad was out of town for a few weeks. She had been having an affair for a while. She got pregnant, but she lost the baby. It was Trevor’s, not your father’s. There was a brief time when your parents were separated for about a year; do you remember that?”

“No… What are you talking about? We were happy. We—”

“No. Your mom was abusing drugs and alcohol, and your dad took you to the cabin on the lake. During that time, you never saw your mom. She was with Trevor. She got pregnant, had the baby, and sold her to Douglas Atropine. I don’t know if she is still alive. There’s no trace of her anywhere. Then out of nowhere Kendall comes into the picture. Trevor had raped another woman, Kendall to be exact, but at the time, he went by the name of David. Closest connection I could find was Kendall and your mom went to the same bar. He is a slimy fucking bastard. He made her set you up for a big lump sum of money and then when Dillon was born, Trevor wanted to sell him, but Kendall didn’t allow it. Trevor or David, has been playing Kendall and your mom for a long time; God rest her soul.”

“What did you just say?” Finley gasps and holds a hand over her mouth. “What the hell did you just say?” Finley turns to me with big watery emerald eyes. “What did he just say, Grayson!” She points to Sebastian. “Did you just say my mom died? Is that what you’re saying? My mom is dead?. When? How? What happened? I think I’m going to be sick.” Finley gags and her body jerks. Owen grabs the trash can and shoves it under her face, holding her hair back just in time as she pukes. “No!” She sobs between lurches. “No, no, no.”

“Fuck, I thought she knew that,” Sebastian whispers.

I want to know how Trevor is behind everyone’s misfortune. I want to know why Kendall wouldn’t sell Dillon back then, but would now. I want answers.

But I don’t want them as much as I want that fucking marrow and for Finley to get her peace.

Trevor’s life has a countdown clock on it, and he has no idea.

Chapter Twenty-Two

FINLEY

I can’t sleep.

I can’t breathe. I can’t focus. Sebastian told me my mother overdosed, but I don’t believe that for a minute. While she was a lost cause and turned out to be a horrible mother, she never managed to get herself too far gone because I think something, somewhere inside her told her she needed to keep an eye on me. I think Trevor got tired of my mom not bringing in as much money and killed her himself.

I hate him. I hated him before, but it is nothing like it is now. I want to bury his head in the water and watch him die. I want to see him struggle how he has made my family struggle.

“Are you okay, baby?” Grayson asks as we lay in bed in the middle of the night.

“I will be.” I’m not sure if I believe it or not. I just found out I have a half-sister, my stepfather killed my dad, and probably my mom. “It’s a lot to digest. I almost don’t believe it. She messaged me.” I cover my face with my hands and shake my head, but the guilt doesn’t stop. I can’t hide from it. I can’t hide from reality. “I ignored it. I didn’t even read it. I thought she was going to beg me to come home, but since I was running away from Trevor, I didn’t bother to answer. I didn’t want to hear her voice and go back. I couldn’t. Trevor was—”

“You did the right thing.” Grayson rolls until he is hovering over me. He takes my hands from my face and kisses each knuckle. “You had to run. You didn’t know. You had to save yourself, and you know what? I don’t regret it. I’m glad when you ran, you ran to me. You opened my eyes to an entirely new world, Finley. Life without you… I don’t even want to think of it.”