Chapter 3

“I get it,” he says. “I’d better not fail or…”

“You dare raise your voice with me now, kid?” Antonio’s cold voice sends chills down Kyle’s spine.

“I didn’t—”

“Shut your fucking mouth!” Antonio explodes and Kyle deflates. “Just do your fucking job if you don’t want the world to know what your father has done, and pray that things are going the way they’re supposed to go. Make sure your groom’s coming tomorrow.”

The click Kyle hears when Antonio hangs up echoes like a bomb in his ear. Shaking all over, he hangs up, too, and slides down the wall to slump on the floor. His muscles feel like wet strings. He doesn’t even notice when his cell phone rolls out of his hand. Kyle wraps both arms around himself, still trembling violently. Suddenly he feels cold all over. “Gardner,” he murmurs the name forlornly. He has the guy’s phone number, but he knows calling him now will make him look bad and needy, and everything Antonio said to him just now will only come true.