Big Bad Boys A Romance Collection - Penny Wylder Page 0,21

and where to kill the wife and kid. It took a while before he realized what I must have done. That I’d freed them instead.”

“We don’t kill innocent people,” Ashley says, louder now. She pulls away from me a little, her expression hard. “It’s the number one thing Dad always promised me. The one code we stand by.”

“You don’t know your father half so well as you think, Ashley. I’m sorry.”

Ashley swallows down whatever protest is clearly itching at her throat next. Her forehead is a tight crease of a frown, and in her eyes, I can see the war beginning. Part of her wants to deny it. Wants to call me a liar and a snake and the root of all this evil. But there’s another voice in there. Another part of Ashley, the smart girl that I’ve gotten to know so well in such a short time, who knows better. Part of her knows that this is entirely plausible.

You can’t grow up this smart, and be the daughter of Mauricio Marrón, and not know a thing or two about what that man is capable of doing.

“If you don’t believe me, I left the burner phone we were using for the heist, turned off and with the SIM card removed, in the same place as the cash. When you go to pick that up, you can listen to the voicemails yourself. Hear your father condemn an innocent woman and child to death, just so he can be sure he’s not pursued.”

When I open my eyes again, Ashley is white-faced, staring at me in open-mouthed shock. But she isn’t saying no anymore.

“I’m sorry, Ashley,” I repeat, softer now. “But you need to know. If you’re following in his footsteps, you need to know who Mauricio Marrón truly is.”

Ashley sucks in a deep breath. “God…”

“I hid the money. I knew the next thing your father would do would be to come after me, finish me next, as soon as he had his hands on that cash. It was the only leverage I had. So, once I hid it, I went to the safest place I could think of.” I shrug a little, half a sardonic smile coming to my mouth. “Then I turned myself in. Turned myself in, and I told the cops that Eric’s family was in danger, and they should move them to a safe place, which they’ve done.”

“Damon…” Ashley reaches up to cup my cheek. Her palm feels soft against the rough stubble of my cheek. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea…my father said you’d killed all three of them.”

I shake my head. Tilt my forehead against hers again. “It’s my own fault. I knew the risks when I agreed to work for your father. But you, you don’t deserve this, Ashley. You don’t deserve to be trapped with a man like him as your family. I’ll tell you where the money is hidden, but just promise me that you’ll use it to get yourself away from him.” I reach up to cup her face between my palms, draw her closer to me, desperate. “Run. Somewhere, anywhere, far away from his schemes and his lies. He’s a terrible person, and it’s only a matter of time before he drags you deeper into his mess. You deserve a better life than this.”

“But you don’t deserve this,” she whispers, reaching up to wrap her arms around my neck. “You don’t deserve to be trapped here, imprisoned for a murder you didn’t commit. You should never have taken the blame for that. Talk to your lawyer, see about getting an appeal, Damon.”

I laugh a little. “For the daughter of a mobster, Ashley, you can be so innocent.” The laugh dies away. “I took a plea deal already. That means no hope of parole or further appeals. I admitted guilt, because, like my crappy state-appointed lawyer told me, there wasn’t any proof I didn’t kill Eric, and besides, I robbed the bank, there’s camera footage of me in the vault. Only me. For all anyone else knows, I did this alone. And it doesn’t help that I didn’t give up the money.”

“So give it up and tell the truth.”

“I don’t care about the truth,” I say, louder than I intend to, my hands tightening on Ashley’s shoulders. She freezes, eyes wide with disbelief. “I don’t,” I repeat, softer now. “The truth never saved me before, and it won’t save me now. All that matters is that Eric’s wife and daughter are