Chapter 14

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Fred

Vincenzo cocked his head to the side, staring at me. "If what you're saying is true, Fred, that would mean it's not an internal issue either." He gestured to the list in my hand. "Reading those names, are there any parallels with those who want to take out the Bleeding Angels and the Brennan family?"

I recognized pretty much every name on the list, and without looking again I knew the answer to his question.

"No."

"This reminds me of the Fernandos," Thomas said as he turned onto the highway.

"Fernandos?" I glanced over at Vincenzo.

"Yes, Gerald Fernando was a wealthy and powerful man. Whatever he wanted he got, and he needed for nothing. Then his wife began sleeping around, and he told her he wanted a divorce."

I scrunched my forehead. "This is nothing like that."

"I'm not done with my story." He lifted a brow.

With a sigh, I motioned for him to continue.

"It was bound to be an ugly divorce because when they met, they were young and in love and didn't get a prenup." He rolled his eyes. "About five months into the divorce proceedings, because yes, this was going to be long, Gerald was killed."

"Damn, totally the wife." I nodded.

"And she knew that was exactly how it would be seen. Except he was poisoned. The chemical compound was a new invention from a doctor in Switzerland. As soon as the autopsy was completed, there was a huge investigation and the wife claimed she didn't know anything about poisons, and to the police it was reasonable. The doctor had also publicly stated he was against Fernando's political views and rejected an offer from Fernando to buy the rights to the poison."

"Can you even buy rights to lethal chemicals?" I was a doctor myself and was sure you couldn't.

"You can when the purpose of the poison is to kill ticks and certain kinds of mosquitos that pass on deadly illnesses to humans."

"Okay, fair, go on."

"Anyway, the doctor was arrested because while he lived in Switzerland he happened to be in the same town as Gerald at the time of his death. Couple that with all evidence pointing toward him and boom . The spotlight was off the wife, she got everything, and that was that."

I released an undignified sigh. "Still nothing like what we're dealing with."

Vincenzo smirked, and I'd never wanted to equally smack and kiss someone so much in my entire life.

"Because she did, in fact, do it. See, Gerald's brother suspected his sister-in-law of doing it. He had no proof, though, but he felt the wrong man was in prison. He went to a private investigator Lex Talionis has on our payroll and when he contacted us, we agreed that if a woman was poisoning people, we'd like to know. So, we dug."

We were stopped at a light, and I realized we were close to Vincenzo's house already.

"Turned out the wife was having an affair with some tech of the good doctor's and was able to get her hands on the poison. If the tech knew, we had no idea. She then went about making sure the police focused on the doctor and kept attention off her. While everyone was fighting over the riches, the wife was planning to take it all. She knew to win, Gerald had to die and she had to make it look like someone else was responsible."

"And were you able to find the proof?"

Vincenzo nodded. "We were, but not any evidence we could use in court. Turned out she had a few deaths under her belt—some before she even met Gerald, so we dealt with her. After they found her body, the proof that she was guilty surfaced and the doctor was freed. The brother got the money, which he donated most of, and that was that."

I pursed my lips, thinking. "You said the evidence wasn't usable."

"It wasn't obtained legally, so it couldn't be presented in court…but if it happens to show up with a dead body and cops find it…" He shrugged, and a laugh bubbled out of me.

"Clever."

"I thought so. Anyway, this is similar in that someone wants your power and riches and to make it seem like someone else is guilty. In the end someone will prevail, and that would be the guilty party, who will have covered their tracks perfectly."

"That's a lot," Aiden commented. "Who'd do all of that?"

"That's what we need to find out."

When we pulled into the circular driveway, I didn't bother waiting for anyone to open the door. I got out and stormed into the house. Irritation and frustration were like an unscratchable itch under my skin. I wanted to punch something or someone.

I rushed up to the bedroom that was considered mine, slammed the door, and paced. Uncle Sean and Aine were dead, I had no idea who'd done it, I had a target on my head the size of Westford, and my emotions were all over the place.

I couldn't think, could barely breathe with how broken my heart was, how enraged my soul was.

The knock on the door only spiked my anger, and I pulled it open.

"What?"

Vincenzo stood there as if he didn't have a care in the world.

"You're spiraling, Fred."

"Excuse me? How about you fuck off?"

"Let me in."

I snorted. "I don't want to see your face right now. I don't want to see anyone right now." I tossed the now crumpled-up list Richie had given me into his face. "None of these people did this, and I think you know that."

He glanced at the paper on the ground before meeting my eyes again. "No, I agree. That list is pointless."

"Someone in my family did this to obtain power." I huffed, and traitorous tears filled my eyes. "A power I would have gladly handed over to them."

"This was an unnecessary move on their part. Selfish men fueled by their lying egos." He took a step closer, and I didn't stop him as he gently pushed me into the room and closed the door.

"All I ever wanted was to be a doctor, save lives. I wanted none of this. They fucking could have just taken it, and I'd have skipped off into the sunset." I couldn't stop the tears from falling, and Vincenzo stayed near but said nothing.

"If they waited, they'd have known I was pushing Aine away. I was giving them everything they fucking wanted." I tucked my fists against my thighs.

"You've yet to let yourself grieve, Fred." He inched closer and took my fists in his hands. "Anger is consuming you and while warranted, it will get you nowhere."

"It's all I have." I gritted my teeth.

"No, Fred, you have so much more than rage. You're smart, smarter than all of them. Perhaps they are threatened by that. They've been disloyal and likely thought punishment was incoming. Who knows? But you will get ahead of this, spin on them, and eviscerate every single traitor."

He cupped my cheek in his hand and the warmth pulled me in…God, was I so desperate for touch?

"Then, you will mourn the loss of your family and begin to heal."

What was this man doing to me, and why didn't I want him to ever stop? The fire in his eyes, the feel of his warmth on my cheek. Suddenly, I wasn't thinking about ripping the heads off people or the sadness that threatened to drown me. No, right now, I wanted to strip Vincenzo Belini of every stitch of clothing and lick him from head to toe.

Damn …I was a broken box of crayons.