Page 287 of What We Bury

SAGE

Milo sits on the counter next to the stove, legs swinging, phone in his hand. He eavesdropped on the entire conversation, which is kind of expected from him at this stage.

“She doesn’t know about us, right?” he says. “The . . . part?” He mimes being hanged.

“No. And she’s never going to find out either.”

“Agreed.” He sets his phone down. “But we need to talk about that Tyler fuckwad.”

I fill the kettle and put it on, digging through the takeout menus on autopilot while my brain runs the other track.

“He’s planning to corner me,” I say. “That’s what Amy heard.”

“Corner you. Intimidate you. ‘Make you understand the consequences of lying.’” Milo’s voice is light, but his eyes are hard. “That’s a threat against my kitten. I can’t let him keep breathing.”

“It’s bluster. Tyler’s all?—”

“Volume, I know. Everyone keeps saying that. Tyler’s all volume, Tyler’s not a planner, Tyler doesn’t have the patience. But you know what Tyler does have? Motive, opportunity, and a group of friends willing to help him scare a woman into talking.” He hops off the counter. “I’m calling the others. They need to hear this.”

“Okay. But Milo, we can’t leave her here alone. Not with Tyler on some crusade. It’s not safe.”

“You’re right. We’ll rally around her.” He’s already got his phone to his ear. “I don’t trust that bastard one bit.”

I nod as he crosses to the living area and paces, one hand braced on his hip. By the time the kettle rumbles, I’ve found the Thai menu and Amy’s favorite mug. I set the tea to steep then put an order in—a bunch of everything because these men eata lot.

“Tea’s ready and food’s ordered,” I call through the bathroom door when I’m done. “They say it’ll be an hour.”

“Thank you!” Her voice is muffled by steam and water, but she sounds almost like herself again.

I go back to the kitchen, where Milo now has the guys on speaker, telling them to get their asses over here.

Knox and Micah arrive twenty minutes later and we all huddle into my bedroom. Holden joins us via phone since he’s still at the station but he’s okay to talk. Amy drank her tea then went back in her room, door closed, watching something on her laptop while we wait on the food.

“What happened?” Micah asks as we all sit together on my bed, keeping our voices low.

“Tyler did,” I start, and tell them what Amy told me.

Knox growls deep in his throat when I finish.

“You can’t deny me now,” Milo says to the others. “Whether he left the noose or not, he’s a threat. We need to deal with him.”

“Deal with him how?” Micah asks carefully.

“How do you think?”

“We’re not taking out Amy’s boyfriend because he’s a loud-mouthed idiot who misses his friend,” Holden says through the speaker. “But I’ll run him and his boys through the system. If any of them have records, I can put enough pressure on Tyler to back off.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Milo asks.

“Then you have my blessing to make it hurt.”

“Fuck, yes.” Milo pumps his fist, satisfied for now.

“What about the other lead?” Knox puts in. “Stephen. Does Amy know him?”

I glance toward the closed door. “I’ll go ask.”

Extricating myself from the huddle, I hop off the bed and go back to her room. She’s cross-legged on the bed, laptop open, looking more human after the shower. She’s even changed into real clothes.