Chapter Twelve

Jude

As soon as we walked through the front door, Caspian received a call from Radcliff about the warehouse. He was willing to sell. Ezra had decided it was a good time to double our security, so he met with Craig, who worked the cameras in one of the buildings on the grounds.

Rissa had been put on the back burner for now. I managed our schedules and the accounting of the family business. I kept us one foot out of prison, but right now, there was nothing pressing. I wasn't sure I could concentrate on anything, so I went to the den.

I stared at my phone and the picture of Rissa I'd pulled up. Dammit, she looked so happy and carefree.

It wasn't long after her funeral, a few months, maybe, that I woke up and began to panic. I couldn't remember what she looked like. I'd grabbed my phone and thumbed through my pictures until I found one in particular. The one I was looking at now.

The wind was blowing, and I took the picture as she moved her hair away from her face. She'd caught me taking her picture and given me a saucy smile, so I snapped that one, too. This was the last one I'd taken of her, and the one I kept bringing up.

As I sat on the sofa in the den, I tried to remember everything about the woman on the rooftop. It had been Rissa, hadn't it? I scraped my fingers through my hair. But how?

"Doing alright?" Caspian asked as he came into the room.

"Still a little shook up, I suppose."

He went straight to the bar and poured himself a drink. When he raised his glass, I nodded. He fixed me one and brought it to me, then sst in the chair across from me. I knew he didn't believe it had been Rissa, but I don't think anything could convince me otherwise.

Caspian was the quieter of us. He weighed all the options, except this time. He didn't seem to want to believe the woman might have been Rissa. It would mean he, no, all of us, had failed her. I'm not sure if he could handle that or not.

We'd had a special bond with her. Caspian was the one she turned to when she needed to feel grounded. He was the stable one in her life. Ezra was the one who thrilled her with his wild escapades. He was the adrenaline rush in her life.

And me? I was the one who danced her to the stars. She once told me that I was her Prince Charming and she was my Cinderella, except she was rich and had a loving father, then laughed. That's what she did. She made all of us laugh and feel like we were indestructible. Right now, I felt as if a breeze could topple me over.

I looked up when I realized it was quiet. Caspian studied me. I brought my glass to my lips and took a long drink. The alcohol burned, but I was glad to feel something besides…what? Remorse? Yeah, maybe that was it.

"One of our enemies could've found a look alike. It wouldn't be as difficult as you might think. Hell, the substitute wouldn't even have to look anything like Rissa. She was burned beyond recognition. The only thing left was the necklace we gave her."

Ezra chose that moment to walk into the room. He looked from me to Caspian, then went straight to the bar and poured himself a drink.

"Are we talking about her?"

"Yes, Rissa." I needed to say her name. I sat forward on the sofa. I couldn't seem to get comfortable. I didn't think I would be comfortable until we figured out what was happening.

But now that we were together, it was time to address the fact that both Ezra and I had seen her, or someone who looked and acted a hell of a lot like Rissa. Someone who knew things only Rissa would know.

"I thought I was losing my mind the night of the fundraiser. I thought she was an angel. Then she was gone, and I was left wondering what I had seen. Had it been her or just a moment of wishful thinking? But then on the rooftop." I shook my head, then downed the rest of my drink. I would've followed her off the roof if Ezra hadn't tackled me. I met their gazes. "What the fuck is going on?"

"I don't know, but we're going to find out." Caspian downed his drink, then slammed his glass on the table next to him.

It was easy to see the anger boiling inside him, so close to the surface. Caspian rarely lost his temper. He would just as soon put a bullet between an enemy's eyes as argue with him. People seldom argued with him.

"And if it is her?" I asked. "She's not the same girl we knew. I think they destroyed her. Think about it. We thought she was dead for five years. If it turns out that this was an elaborate setup…" I jumped to my feet and began to pace the room. "If it is her, we have to save her. No matter what they turned her into, she's still our Rissa. Even if we have to keep her in a locked room for the rest of her life, I'll make damn sure no one ever hurts her again." I couldn't face knowing the monster who took Rissa might have tortured her.

From the expressions on their faces, I was sure that was their opinion as well. Our enemies could have done horrible things to her over that length of time. We swore to protect her, but we hadn't. We had a lot to atone for.

I looked at my brothers. "Okay, where do we start? She connected with me first. Use me as bait."

Ezra was already shaking his head. "No, I don't like that at all. What if she brings a weapon next time? It's too dangerous."

Caspian came to his feet. "No, he has a point."

Ezra's eyes narrowed. "I can't believe you would go along with this. I don't want to take a chance of losing one of you."

"You won't. We'll make sure of it."

I wasn't certain something wouldn't happen to me, but I was willing to take that chance. I would take it if it meant saving Rissa. And if it wasn't her, heaven help whoever had put the imposter up to this. I would go after them with every breath in my body.

I looked at them. "I think I have an idea that will keep us all safe. Just hear me out."