On my way home, I looked in the rearview mirror once, seeing who I knew (but had never met) was one of Nick’s men trailing me. Trailing me like he’d probably done often over the years. He wasn’t obvious, but I saw him.

I didn’t see Harry but now I knew he could be back there.

He’d played me.

God, I didn’t even have Harry, such as he was, a reminder of a golden time when I still hoped. When I still had it in me to believe.

Now I’d learned. Definitely learned.

Gold didn’t exist. It was all fake and tarnished.

My phone rang. I looked to the dash to see it was Nick.

That ice crawled up my throat, frost crackling and spreading.

I ignored it as well as the strange coolness of the tears sliding unnoticed down my cheeks.

My phone stopped ringing but it did chirp with a text.

It would do this repeatedly for some time.

But I kept ignoring it.

I was too busy.

Too busy reminding myself.

Too busy reminding myself never, not ever, not ever again to forget.

There was no Brightside.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Dark

Nick

11:49 – That Same Day

Tweaked and pissed off that he knew Olivia left that fucking warehouse, made it home, but didn’t return a single call or text, on his way to her house to check on her, he ignored Knight’s first call.

Tweaked and pissed, Olivia not communicating, the second one coming from Knight five minutes later, he took.

“I got shit happening, brother. Something I need to know?” he asked as greeting.

“Late last night, anonymous tip came in. The body of Drake Nair was discovered early this morning in a shallow grave that is absolutely not the Shade MO but absolutely is exactly where the tipster said it would be. The cops got their search warrant, they hit the Shade warehouse. Found what they figure is the murder weapon right in Vincent Shade’s desk drawer, residue of blood spatter on his carpet. Shade has been arrested. CSI team went in. My guess, more evidence is gonna rack up.”

Shit.

Shit!

“Georgia is makin’ her move,” Nick guessed.

“So it’s not you,” Knight replied.

“No it’s not me,” Nick bit out. “I made that move you think I’d do it without tellin’ you?”

“I hoped not. Good to know I hoped right.”

Nick couldn’t let that annoy him. He had more important things on his mind.

“Olivia was called to the warehouse this morning. She left, went home and in between she is not taking my calls or returning my texts. Your sources who gave you all that shit, they say anything about my girl?”

“No word breathed about Olivia or Georgia or any of the Shade crew, outside Vincent.”

“You know, Knight,” Nick said.