sudden cool breeze on her back. She shivered in her thin jumper. Had Gabe forgotten to close the patio door?
She stood and turned around, and came face to face with Brett, who was standing directly behind her, a wicked-looking blade in his hand.
“Hey there, sis,” he said pleasantly.
Quinn opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out. She backed away but realized there was nowhere to go when she felt the low coffee table press against the backs of her calves.
“Stay where you are,” Brett ordered Gabe, who’d sprung to his feet. “Now, sit down and put your cell phones on the coffee table where I can see them,” he said. “Don’t test me, Gabe,” Brett snarled when Gabe made no move to comply and looked meaningfully toward Quinn.
“Do as he says,” Quinn said. She barely recognized her own voice. It was shaky and hoarse. She sat down and laid her mobile on the table. Gabe followed suit. Quinn could almost feel the tension coursing through him, but he remained silent, his angry stare fixed on Brett.
Just then, Rufus exploded into the lounge, barking like mad, his tail wagging at the promise of a new friend to play with. He must have been upstairs in Emma’s room. Rufus made straight for Brett, eager to play, but Brett kicked the dog so hard, Rufus went flying across the lounge and landed with a thud after he hit the wall. He whimpered pitifully, then bared his teeth in a snarl, but remained where he was, too frightened to try again.
“Get out,” Brett hissed.
Knowing what was good for him, Rufus hobbled out of the lounge and headed for the stairs, his tail between his legs. Quinn’s heart hammered painfully against her ribs, but she did her best to keep calm. As long as she knew the children were safe, she could still breathe.
“What are you doing here, Brett?” Gabe asked gruffly.
“Came for a flying visit,” Brett replied. He stood over them, knife clasped in his hand, the skull ring they’d seen on the CCTV clearly visible. The light of the lamp glinted off the steel blade, which was long and thin. And deadly.
Quinn forced herself to meet Brett’s gaze, daring him to say something, to explain his presence in their house. He looked down at her, an odd expression on his face. It was almost wistful, as if he were remembering the good times they’d had, except that there hadn’t been any.
“I had a good life before you came along,” he said at last. “Ruining lives seems to be a talent of yours.” Quinn didn’t reply.
“I had parents who loved me, friends, hobbies. I was going to go to college, party for four years, then decide what I wanted to do with my life. I was happy. But then you showed up out of the blue and started poking your nose where it didn’t belong, digging up the past. Filming,” Brett added with disgust. “And no one will touch me now that I have a criminal record. Even my own parents look at me and wonder if they’ve raised a monster,” Brett said miserably. “But it was all your fault. You never stopped to think how I might feel about what you were going to reveal. Or Dad. Sure, he told you it was all right, but it wasn’t easy for him, you know, coming to terms with what you’d so carelessly spewed to the world. It’s not fun, being biracial in Louisiana, especially not in prison. People are not so open-minded there, and I have the scars to prove it.”
“Maybe you got your ass kicked in prison because you tried to kill your sister and her unborn child,” Gabe snapped.
“You shut up, or she gets it,” Brett said, pointing the knife at Quinn.
“Brett,” Quinn said in a conciliatory tone. “I’ve apologized to you and told you I should have been more sensitive to your feelings.”
“Yeah, only when you thought you were going to die and would have said anything to get me to let you out. And now you’ve had the investigation into Jo’s death reopened, with me as the star suspect.”
“Why would you think that?” Quinn asked carefully. She hadn’t mentioned anything to Seth, so how in the world would Brett have found out about an investigation taking place in England, and so quickly? It’d only been a few days since DI Marshall had called her with the news.
“My lawyer tipped me off. He has contacts in the NOPD. Seems