to smile and be polite and then we can bitch about that witch behind closed doors.”
“Alright, but I’m not making any promises.”
I can practically hear Mom roll her eyes before she lets out a little huff at having to deal with her delinquent daughter. “The cellar is down past the back staircase. There’s a small door that leads down into it. You can’t miss it. Just be careful. The stairs leading down into it are very narrow. I don’t want you to fall.”
“Kay, thanks. I’ll be careful.”
Mom ends the call and I get to it, letting out a frustrated groan in the process and I just happen to be on the complete other side of the massive house. Hell, maybe she didn’t request I go to this wine cellar to fuck with Charles, maybe she was fucking with me.
I find the door exactly where Mom had explained and as I push it open and look down into the darkness below, I can’t help but feel like this is some kind of creepy dungeon.
Not able to find the light switch, I step down into the wine cellar and within a second, the room floods with light. I shake my head as I continue down the narrow steps. Of course, Charles would have motion sensor lights in here. Only the best for his personal wine cellar. I wouldn’t be surprised if this room was also temperature controlled.
I get down into the main part of the cellar and glance around. It's kind of beautiful in here. I’m not going to pretend that I know a damn thing about wine, but I can tell that this shit is freaking old. Half of it is in locked, glass cases or up on fancy stands with spotlights showcasing it. It’s kind of ridiculous but clearly these are his prized possessions.
I walk around. There must be at least two thousand bottles down here and the thought of ruining his collection to satisfy his ex-wife starts to irk on my nerves. Colton told me that Charles used to hit her and I totally understand her wanting to fuck with him, but using me to do it? Charles was a douche, but this isn’t exactly a position I want to be in.
I wonder if Laurelle would notice if I grabbed a bottle from the main cellar and left this alone. She can get her revenge on her ex herself. I don’t want anything to do with it. Besides, I don’t need to give her more ammunition to use in her grand plan of getting me away from Colton. She can get her own hands dirty. I’m not going to be her little errand girl.
I start heading back toward the stairs when a soft rattle grabs my attention and I spin around, nearly knocking over a prized bottle in the process.
What the hell was that?
I search through the room before giving up and shrugging it off. It’s got to be my mind playing tricks on me.
I start for the stairs again when I hear the same noise, only this time it wasn’t so soft and I’m damn sure that shit wasn’t my imagination. Shivers run down my spine and I find myself creeping through the wine cellar.
Please be a rat, please be a rat.
“Hello?” I call. “Is someone down here?”
I get no response and find myself curling my fingers around the closest bottle of wine, gripping it tightly and preparing to use it if I have to.
My mind instantly takes me to the DeCarlo family. It’s only been a little under two weeks since they stormed through here. What are the chances that one of them has been hiding out down here, waiting for the right moment to strike? Colton declared that he will get them back so I don’t doubt that they’re on edge. He's that powerful that he could destroy their whole legacy with just the click of his fingers.
I instantly shrug that thought off. I doubt someone is going to wait down here that long. It has to be something else.
I turn a corner and come to a standstill as I find a big metal door that looks like the kind of door that banks would use to guard their safe. This door means fucking business. This door means secrets.
What has Charles been hiding down here?
I should be walking away. I should take the stupid bottle of wine and run yet something has me walking toward it. I need to know what's on the other side, I