That was a resounding no.
“No,” I shook my head. “I would not.”
Because that was how bad shit happened.
The cop chuckled. “Didn’t think so. No worries.”
With that, he left, leaving the two of us watching him go.
He was in his car, with his partner driving, before Iris said, “Do you think she killed him?”
There was a long silence as I contemplated what to say, and then decided that Iris deserved real. “A lot of people are capable of doing some bad things.”
“Even you?” she asked, leaning her hip against the kitchen counter.
“I’m capable of doing worse things than most,” I answered honestly.
Her eyes studied me for a few long seconds before she said, “Teller said that you were a criminal. That you were a murderer.”
I crossed my arms over my chest as anger at a dead man shot through me. “One day, when you’re wearing my ring, I’ll tell you everything. Until then… I plead the fifth.”
She smirked. “Abby doesn’t seem capable of killing Teller.”
“Maybe she is, maybe she isn’t.” I shrugged. “But what I do know is, Teller was telling me that people were threatening him from work. It’s possible he pissed off the wrong criminal, and that criminal decided he was due punishment. I don’t know. But what I do know is, you shouldn’t feel guilty.”
She sighed. “How do you know I feel guilty?”
“Because you get this look, right here.” I smoothed my thumb down the middle of her brows. “You get this cute little wrinkle.”
She scoffed. “Wrinkles aren’t cute.”
“Yours are,” I challenged, pulling her into my body. “And they’ll find your sister. She doesn’t strike me as having any criminal mastermind tendencies. She’ll screw up, they’ll clear her and get whatever information she has, and then slap her with something like obstruction of justice.”
CHAPTER 21
I need to get out of this bed. I’m late for my appointment with the couch.
-text from Iris to Callum
SHINE
“I’m sorry, but what?”
Surely, I hadn’t heard the man at the door correctly.
“Iris is the sole beneficiary of Teller Kincaid’s estate,” the man repeated.
Apparently, he was Teller’s attorney.
Also apparently, we’d been doing a lot of ignoring phone calls lately, mainly because Iris’s parents called once every couple of hours to see if she’d heard from Abby yet.
Which, every single time, was a resounding no. First on Iris’s part, then on my part because Iris couldn’t handle talking to her parents anymore. Then, finally, on nobody’s part because we’d turned Iris’s phone off completely.
Only Anderson had my cell phone number, and he’d been nice enough not to call every two hours on the dot like their parents.
He called once a week, if that.
Anderson was good people, and I knew that we’d get along famously when we ever had the occasion to spend any time together.
Which wasn’t meant to be anytime soon.
A, because business was booming for me, and sadly, until I hired more guys—or girls if they were willing to do the damn job, and most weren’t—I was stuck working since it was the busy season.
B, because it was also the busy season for the airlines, with everyone and their brothers trying to take vacations at the same time. Which inevitably meant that Iris was forced to take extra shifts whether she wanted to or not.
C, because what time we did have off, we spent together. Which, sadly, wasn’t fucking much.
She was home for a day before she had to fly out again.
And I was set to work the majority of it.
We were stealing a few extra minutes in the kitchen, her talking about dinner and what she intended to make, when there was a knock at the door.
Leading to now, a lawyer standing in my living room, giving us information on what Teller’s last wishes were for when he died.
That included the house that he’d been living in, his pension at work, and fifteen million dollars.
“Fifteen million dollars?” Iris scrubbed at her eyes with the heels of her hands. “What the hell? How did he get fifteen million dollars?”
“Life insurance, ma’am,” he answered. “The department had a very sizable policy it offered for its senior staff. And he had a ten-million-dollar policy on himself. You were the beneficiary of both.”
Iris shook her head. “I don’t want it.”
“Well,” the lawyer looked uncomfortable. “Seeing as there is no family for Teller to have left it to, you were chosen. What you do with it after you’ve received it is your choice.”
He handed over some paperwork, and when it became apparent that Iris wasn’t going to take it, I did.
“How did you even find me?” Iris asked curiously.
“Your tenant, Ms. Lindy, gave me your address,” she answered.
“Tenant?” Iris asked cautiously.
“All rental property is yours as well.” He pointed at the paperwork. “It’s all in there. I suggest having your lawyer go through it. Once he does, y’all can schedule an appointment with me, and I’ll help you with any of it that I can.”