Burning Moth

Chapter Five, Part One - No Sudden Moves

"Disappeared? What do you mean the bodies disappeared? What the heck happened?"

"The grave was excavated; the coffin is gone, Aid. Nick thinks his parents had something to do with it... I agree."

Aidan let loose a rocky exhale, like his entire world had shattered.

I knew the feeling.

It was the morning after the gala, and so far, we had gone through our usual Sunday morning routine–made coffee in our pajamas, bickering like the old couple we were at heart.

I grabbed my mug, following Aidan to the breakfast table.

"Okay," he said, scrunching his brow in thought. "Million dollar question--who knows what, and how much do they know?"

"Honestly, I don't think Nicholias knows about the body--just his parents. Nick told me his mom saw him with Luther's ring while they were at the office. He's pretty sure she figured out where it came from even before he did. If she did know about the dead girl, it makes sense that she'd freak out on him. My guess? She had the coffin excavated to hide the evidence. Mrs. D is probably worried her son found the body..."

And she knew exactly where to find him. Mommy Dearest was probably singing lullabies to Nicholias in the drawing room, spoon-feeding him poisoned Kool-Aid as we spoke...

"Scar, I think maybe we messed up by not going to the police," said Aidan. He bit his lip in guilt. "And now, it's too late. The evidence is gone--"

"Not all the evidence," I reminded. "I still have Luther's ring. Look, I know you want justice for what happened to that girl, and so do I. But look at how much power the Dixons have, Aid. If they can make a coffin with two dead bodies disappear, imagine what they can do to us. We need to think, we need to strategize."

Aidan let out a groan, head drooped over his coffee. "Great. You're sleeping with the enemy, and now I'm gonna get killed--"

"No, I'm not and no, you aren't. And for your information, I don't even like your boss. In fact, I can't stand him. He's got stupid hair, and a stupid chin, and he always smells good--like a sissy-baby. What's to like?"

"That makes no sense. You snuck into his party--a party I helped plan, might I add--not to mention you brought that evil slag with you--"

"Chloe."

"She's evil! And you made out with Nicholias in a room full of people! Like a non-pyscho person, I assumed that was because you had a thing for him--"

"Well, I don't! So just... shut-up." I reached out and nudged his mug, splashing coffee on the table.

"No! J'accuse! And don't think I haven't noticed you calling him 'Nick' all morning. You broke your rule for him, Scar! You never kiss guys! He's my boss--what the hell!"

"He kissed me! It was a hit-and-run type of situation that, for the record, will never happen again. I'm already in enough hot water for that dumb kiss, so can you cut me some slack, Commandant? Last night, Nicholias' brother tried to force him to hand me to their mom on a silver platter. I'm guessing Mommy Dearest had an eyeful at the gala and wasn't too pleased with what she saw."

"Scar..." Aidan leaned forward. "You stole her gala, and then you kissed her son--before all the Village's finest. Of course she's not happy. You don't know these people like I do. Appearances are everything--they'll kill for it. And if you keep making up excuses to see Nicholias, it's just a matter of time before Mrs. Dixon figures out that we know what they did--"

"That's the thing, Aid. What did they do? What really happened to that girl? We have no idea how she died, or who put her there. We're just taking turns pointing fingers at the Dixons--but we still have no information."

"So what do we do, Sherlock? We don't know her name--we didn't even see her face."

I sighed, took a sip of my coffee. "Maybe Nicholias knew her."

Aidan paused. "Because he killed her?"

"If he did, we're going to find out," I said, firmly. "Looks like that job of yours is gonna come in handy after all..."

Before Aidan could question me further, he was interrupted. Someone was banging on the front door of the apartment, in a strange and silly sequence of knocks.

"I'll get it," said Aidan, rising from his chair. "While I'm gone, try to keep the bright ideas to a minimum?" He tapped me upside the back of the head, then left the kitchen.

As I waited for Aidan to shoo away the solicitor, I pulled out my phone, re-scrolling through last night's messages. They hadn't changed. A few were from clients, on the hunt for answers to the upcoming midterms, and a bunch more were from one-night stands, looking for another roll in the hay. The most important one was from Finn, wondering where the hell I'd been, and when he was gonna get his money.

I issued something halfway between a growl and a groan.

Great. Nick's kiss had landed me on his mom's radar, and now Finn was already busting my chops about his money.

Could things get any worse?

"Uh, Scar?" I looked up to see Aidan in the kitchen doorway, looking like he had swallowed a light bulb. Ten minutes ago, he was considering what to write in his will. Now, he suddenly looked like he had scored the Powerball. "We have a guest," he said. Beaming, he stepped aside...

My step-brother, Jake, took his place.

"Heya, Scar. Long time, no see..." His smirk brought me back to the elevator--and the agreement he had broken. Beneath the table, I clenched my fists.

"Jacob." Even though Aidan was busy staring at him, ready to slobber him down like a Philly cheesesteak, I put on a happy face, smiling through the fury. "You're out. I had no idea. Why, I would've thrown a party."

"Please, Scar." Jake's grin stretched even wider. "That look on your face? Way better than any old party."

"Okay, um, I'm gonna go get dressed," said Aidan. His eyes never left Jake's face. "Breakfast? On me?"

Jake nodded, and with that Aidan breezed past him and down the hall.

"I thought you said you weren't hungry!" I called after Aidan. "What the hell, Jake!" I rose from my seat, a knee-jerk reaction to the anger finally spilling over. "I thought we agreed it was best you stayed away, remember?"

"No, you agreed. And clearly, that's not what Aid really wants--unless he always buys strawberry pancakes for people he hates. But I guess I'll find out. We have a lot of catching up to do--"

"Look, he is not in a good head-space, right now, Jake. The last thing he needs on his plate is a relationship--"

"Uh-uh-uh!" Jake took a step forward, wagging his finger. "There you go again--making decisions that just aren't up to you. You lied to me, Scar--you said Aidan wasn't interested. I'm glad I decided to see for myself."

I sighed. "Jake--"

"Stop. I get it, you don't want your best friend dating a felon. You wanna keep me from Aidan--but I think I just proved lying won't work. And as for our relationship, no need to worry, Scar. I'm officially severing the familial knot. From here on out, I am not your brother, and I am done saving you."

With a final stare that shriveled my cowardly, fractured heart, Jacob turned his back on me, and walked away.

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