Broken Empire (Boys of Oak Park Prep 3)

ME: Nothing about Adam Pierce… yet. But I thin

k I figured out who paid that lawyer to help me get access to my trust.

COLE: Who?

ME: Your parents.

There was a beat before he responded again, making me wonder if he’d dropped his phone. It wouldn’t surprise me if he had. It made no fucking sense to me at all. Unless maybe they were just clients of Erin’s in some other capacity? That would be a pretty damn big coincidence.

COLE: What?

ME: Yeah, that’s what I said. Do you know anything about it?

COLE: No.

COLE: Come over. We can go through my dad’s study and see if we can find anything. I’ll text the guys.

ME: Okay.

Fuck. That would mean I’d have to drive, something I hadn’t done in months—hadn’t wanted to do. I was physically capable of it by now though, and I really didn’t want to wait for the other Princes to come back and pick me up.

I believed Cole when he said he didn’t know about his parents’ involvement in hiring Erin, but I still wanted answers. If he was willing to sneak into his dad’s study to help me go through whatever documents were stored there, it was our best chance of finding out what the hell was going on.

ME: On my way.

Grabbing my little purse, I stuffed my key card in my back pocket and headed out the door. My gait was almost even as I walked across campus, and I made a beeline for my car. I didn’t have to struggle to remember where I’d parked it since it’d been parked in the same place for months.

It was bigger and clunkier than my old car, which did make me feel a little safer somehow. Still, my heart slammed hard in my chest as I turned the key in the ignition. I sent a text to Mason letting him know what was going on, and that Cole had probably texted him too, then slowly made my way out of the lot. I tested the brakes a half dozen times as I pulled down the drive toward the street, but they felt solid and strong, the resistance of the pedal reassuring.

I took the direct route to Cole’s place, skipping the scenic drive he’d taken when he’d driven me back to Oak Park after mini-golf that day, and even though I drove like a grandma, I made it in about twenty minutes.

As I pulled up the drive toward his family’s sprawling mansion, I found myself craning my neck to stare at it, as if the outside would somehow give away a hint of whatever secrets were concealed inside.

I pulled up outside and moved quickly toward the front door, excitement and nerves jangling through me—I hoped like fuck Cole wouldn’t get in trouble for helping me, but if we were smart about it, his dad wouldn’t even know we’d gone looking through his shit.

Digging my phone out of my pocket, I checked for messages as I reached the door, but didn’t see any. I wasn’t sure how often the other guys were able to check their phones, although they obviously had access to them since Finn had texted me earlier.

I rang the bell and waited for a few beats, and when the door opened, I looked up quickly.

“Yes?” Mr. Mercer stood in the doorframe, his brows furrowed.

Fuck.

“Um, is Cole here? I’m—he invited me over.”

I knew Cole wasn’t allowed to stay on campus most weekends, but I didn’t know if he was supposed to have guests at the house, and I kicked myself mentally for getting him in trouble already. I hadn’t been expecting his dad to open the door.

Actually… why is his dad opening the door?

Every time someone unexpected came to my grandparents’ house, one of the staff greeted them. They only went to the door themselves if they were expecting someone.

“Oh.” The dark-haired man smiled, nodding in understanding. “Yes, he’s here. Come on in.”

An alarm bell had been chiming softly in my head ever since the large man had opened the door, and now it began to grow louder. My feet didn’t move, and I glanced down at my phone, checking for any new messages from Cole.

None.

I pulled up his contact and started typing out a hasty text, trying to find out where he was, when Mr. Mercer cleared his throat in annoyance.