Blood And Bone by Dawn Brown Page B

again. Though he suspected the sound of Anderson’s voice would haunt the inner recesses of his mind for years to come. He wanted to get in his car and drive as far from Shayne, his father and Dark Water as possible. But he couldn’t. Not while Heddi held his sister’s life in her bony grip.
    Besides, he still needed to warn Shayne. After that, he would never need to see her again. Listening to his father’s voice had driven home the reality of the situation, evaporating whatever interest he’d had in her.
    He opened his mouth to tell her about Heddi, but instead asked, “What did you want from me for your book?”
    The concern in her face dissolved, wariness taking its place. She should be wary. The hate and shame and fury writhing inside him needed an outlet.
    Maybe Heddi was right. Maybe he was like his father.
    “I wanted to ask what you remembered. What you’d been told happened. Your feelings about your father. What life has been like as a survivor.” Her tone was soft, careful.
    He opened his arms wide. “Well, here’s your answer. Take a good look.”
    She stepped back, eyes round, mouth tight. Her reaction both pleased and infuriated him.
    “I guess you wanted to know the same things about Julia?”
    She didn’t reply, but her gaze held his, her eyes boring into him. She could probably see his black, twisted soul.
    “Compared to her, I’m the picture of well adjusted. Let’s see…three suicide attempts…I imagine she’ll eventually get it right. Five bouts of rehab to get her off the pills and booze. She’s been in the Caribbean since March. When, and if, she makes it back, I figure she’ll be ready for round six. That’s what it’s like for Julia to survive. Shouldn’t you be taping this, or at least writing it down?”
    Shayne’s eyes darkened to the color of onyx. He’d pissed her off. Good. Why should he be the only one?
    “Did you know she agreed to speak to me, that we were to meet back in March?” Shayne asked, her tone still soft, but clinical, as if she were interviewing him. “She never showed.”
    Dark anger swelled inside his head like a gathering storm. “Yeah, well that’s Julia. She wouldn’t have told you anything, you know. She doesn’t talk about what happened that night. Any attempt to make her sends her into hysterics. But I guess that wouldn’t matter to someone like you.”
    Pain flashed across her face. Yeah, well, the truth hurts. But was it the truth? Aside from that first phone call, she’d been completely up front with him. Provided, of course, she was being honest about her book and Anderson’s guilt. He still wasn’t sure.
    The dark pleasure surging through his veins shriveled. Exhaustion washed over him like a wave.
    “You need to leave,” Shayne said. Her eyes glittered like black ice. “As for where you stand on participating with the book, I understand. I will make no effort to contact you, or your sister, again.”
    “Wait.” With his fury easing, something entirely too close to shame pulled at his conscience. “I’m sorry I went off—”
    “Get out, Des.”
    He opened his mouth to protest, but Shayne turned her back on him. Without a backward glance, she strode into the bedroom, flicking off the lamp and throwing the room into darkness as she went. She slammed the door shut, the windows rattling with the impact.
    Alone in the dark, Des dropped onto the couch with a sigh. What a fucking mess.
     
    Shayne stripped off her clothes and kicked them into a pile behind the door. Her body trembled with pent-up fury. But who was she angrier with? Des or herself? She couldn’t decide.
    Had she not told herself to remember who he was and what he meant to her book? One stupid kiss and she’d developed romantic schoolgirl fantasies. He hadn’t, though. While she’d been talking herself out of an attraction, he’d been convinced she was a lying, manipulative bitch.
    A painful lump lodged in her throat. He barely knew her, so his assumption she