Surprised, Armie said, “Oh. Hey...sorry.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’m happier now than I’ve ever been.” She glared at Steve. “And I definitely didn’t want his money.”
Merissa slowly stepped from the truck, too. She looked from her brother, to Lea, to Armie—and finally to Steve.
With both of his hands wrapped around Armie’s wrist, maybe as an attempt to keep from being strangled, Steve rasped, “Merissa!”
She wasn’t feeling very generous. In fact, if her arm wasn’t injured, she’d have taken her own turn. “Armie?”
Negligent, he glanced her way. “Yeah, Stretch?”
“I’m glad you’re finally fighting back.”
He grinned while Steve redoubled his efforts to get free.
Impatient, Cannon crossed his arms. “What are you planning to do?”
“Kill him.”
Knowing he wouldn’t, Merissa nodded. “Sounds about right to me.”
Rubbing his mouth to stifle a laugh, Cannon took charge. “As usual, I have to suggest that perhaps we ought to get some information from him before you mangle him. What do you think? It could possibly lead us to answers about other things, as well.”
“You’re right.” Just like that, Armie opened his hand and Steve slumped while coughing.
“Asshole,” he managed to gasp.
“Idiot!” Merissa shot back.
Armie glanced her way. “Honey, why don’t you wait in the truck?”
Merissa arched a brow. “Why don’t I not?”
Regaining his aplomb, Steve turned to her. “Jesus, you are hurt.”
Merissa studied him.
He ran both hands through his hair, his gaze taking in her bandaged face, the bruising, the way she held her arm. “What happened? Do you know who tried to grab you?”
She was wondering how Steve knew anything about that when suddenly Armie turned an incendiary glare on him. In a voice so soft it was eerie, Armie murmured, “You son of a bitch.”
Cannon, equally enraged, reached for Steve, and this time it was Armie stopping her brother.
“He’s mine.”
Heaving, Cannon paused and gave one small nod.
Looking every bit as enraged, Leese said, “Well, I’d fucking like a turn, too.”
“Let’s get those other answers Cannon mentioned, first.”
The reason for their rage suddenly dawned on Merissa and she took a step forward. “You.”
Armie nodded. “Him.”
Blustering, Steve said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Apparently deciding discretion was the better part of valor, he tried to elbow his way past them. No one budged. “All of you,” Steve insisted. “Get out of my way.”
“Call Logan,” Armie ordered while stepping Steve back.
Without taking his gaze off them, Cannon did just that. When he disconnected, he said, “He was already headed back here. He said to give him five minutes.”
Armie pressed in on Steve again. “Until Detective Riske gets here, how about you tell me why?”
Gaze darting everywhere, Steve shook his head. “Why what?”
“Why target Rissy? Why hire fake reporters to hassle her?” Armie shoved him hard into the pier. “Why set her up to be kidnapped right off the fucking street?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
SEEING RISSY’S SHOCK, Armie told Cannon, “Hold him,” and he reached her in two strides.
“It was Steve?” She clutched at his arm, her gaze baffled. “All of it?”
Armie led Rissy a short distance away to the front of his truck. “It appears so. I’m sorry.”
In the faintest of whispers, she murmured, “Incredible,” and she buckled to sit against the fender. “I never thought...never even considered...” Her gaze locked with his. “He probably knew the passcode to my house. I mean...” She flushed and glared at Steve again. “He was in my house, standing there when I reset it after we came in.”
Armie bent to her ear. “Let me deal with this, okay? All I want is the truth and now might be my best shot.”
Briefly, she leaned into him. “Do what you have to do.”
So much faith in him. Armie smoothed her hair, then returned to Steve.
Rissy’s ex was starting to look a little green.
“Let’s hear it,” Armie said. “You have to have a reason.”
Steve gave a frantic shake of his head. “I didn’t do this.”
“Describe this.”
He seemed to have trouble finding the words, but finally he gestured at Merissa. “I never wanted her hurt.”
So the ramifications were starting to sink in on him? That suited Armie just fine. The bastard deserved to suffer the consequences of what he’d started—but Rissy didn’t deserve any of it. “So tell me, Steve. What did you want?”
“Nothing! I...” Again he tried to maneuver away.
Armie, Leese and Cannon made that impossible.
“All this time,” Armie said, his words bitter. “I thought the threats were about me.”
That seemed to push Steve over the edge. “They are about you. You’re nothing. Your own father admits you’re a filthy rapist!”
“Shut up!” Rissy started to rise.
She stopped when Armie landed a body shot on Steve, making him double over in pain. Hitting him seemed the expedient way to end that particular accusation, and appease Rissy so she wouldn’t get herself too riled.
“Thank you,” Rissy said.
“Welcome.” Whether Rissy or the putz realized it, Armie had pulled the punch. If he hadn’t, Steve would be curled on the ground with broken ribs.
Disgusted, Lea said, “I already explained to him that I made it all up. I was a jealous brat and I told lies. End of story.”
“I guess old Steve doesn’t like to listen.”
Arms folded around his guts, Steve wheezed. “How dare you step in behind me?”
Again Rissy rose to her feet. “He was before you, after you and during you, you ass!”
Leese chuckled. “Yeah, as her confidant, I can confirm that you,” he said to Steve, “were just her way of passing time until Armie wised up.”
Steve tried to lunge away.
Catching him by the front of his shirt, Armie slammed him to the post again.
And Steve’s cell phone rang.
Looking extra panicked, Steve started fighting. Armie put him in a headlock and nodded at Cannon.
Cannon took the phone from Steve’s pants pocket, glanced at the ID and put it on speaker.
Steve tried, but he couldn’t speak; he barely got out a gargling noise.
Voice bland, Cannon said, “Yeah?”
“You see her yet?” Without waiting for an answer, a man laughed. “We’ve played it your way with the robbery and the scare tactics. Now it’s going to be our way. Pay up, or next time it’ll be worse for her.” The call died.
His heartbeat exploding, Armie stared at Cannon.
Cannon looked just as shell-shocked as Armie felt.
With a shove, Armie released Steve—and at that moment, having his suspicions confirmed—Armie wasn’t sure what he would do.
Choosing that inauspicious moment to pull in, Logan spotted them and gave a two-second flash of his lights.