The Scotch Series: The Complete Series (Scotch #1-3) - Penelope Sky Page 0,157

single day. His hard body had pressed against the leather cushions for years, but there still wasn’t an outline from his weight. His desk was perfectly organized, and the wood lacked even a speck of dust. It looked too clean ever to have been used.

He didn’t sound happy to speak to me. “If you’d just left with me, I wouldn’t have had to wait for your call every single day.”

“And if I had left with you, you’d be dead right now.”

“I’m not so sure,” he said coldly. “How are you?”

“Things have been good.” I could never go into the details about anything unless I wanted his head to explode.

“Made any progress?”

I eyed the door again even though I was certain I was alone. I brought my voice to a whisper just in case. “One of his men told me the transmitter in your skull is fake.”

“Fake?”

“As in, it’s not wired to anything.”

Joseph paused as he let my words sink in. “What makes you think this guy is being honest?”

“Because he hates me and wants me to leave.”

“Hmm…”

“I think he’s telling the truth. I don’t think Crewe would do something like that.”

“Why does this guy hate you?”

“Because I got him demoted since we didn’t get along. Now he works outside all night, and I’ve put a wedge between him and Crewe.”

“Good job, sis. Then maybe he is being honest.”

“I think so. I don’t see what incentive he has to lie.”

“Yeah, I don’t either. That’s good news. I can just ambush him and take you.”

“Ambush him?” I asked incredulously.

“Take all of my men and burn that castle to the ground,” he said coldly. “They’ll never know we’re coming.”

Joseph had a violent way of solving problems. Crewe would deserve what was coming to him, but I didn’t want that for him. He was a good person despite the evil things he did. All I wanted was to leave peacefully, not get anyone hurt. “We don’t need to do that.”

“You’ve got a better idea?”

“Actually, yes. He told me he loved me yesterday.”

Joseph paused again. “You’re being serious?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow. Crewe is a bigger dumbass than I thought.”

I felt offended when I shouldn’t. “He’s not a dumbass. I made it happen.”

“He’s still an idiot. What are you going to do now?”

There was only one solution, but I didn’t know how well Crewe would take it. “I’m gonna talk to him and ask him to let me go.”

I could hear Joseph roll his eyes through the phone. “That’s not gonna work.”

“I think it might.”

“No, it won’t. You’re just gonna spill your secret, and he’s gonna keep a tighter leash on you. Shit, he might even kill you. He’s got a lot of pride.”

Crewe would never kill me. “I’m not gonna spill my secret. I’m just going to ask for more out of the relationship—like freedom. I want the ability to come and go as I please. If he can’t give that to me, then he doesn’t love me.”

“Everyone has a very different definition of love—especially a guy like him.”

“I think he means it. He’s different with me.”

“He’s keeping you locked up in a castle. Sounds like a fucking monster to me.”

I couldn’t argue against that. “Let me do this first.”

“And if it goes south? He’ll never let you call me again.”

No, he wouldn’t. “It’s not gonna go south.”

“But what if it does?” he asked. “I have no way of contacting you.”

Based on everything I learned about Crewe, I had to believe he would let me go if I asked. He was compassionate and caring, and we had a deep connection. I refused to believe he would backhand me and chain me to the floor. “If you don’t hear from me in two weeks…come and get me.”

“I can get on board with that. Where are you?”

“Sterling Castle outside of Edinburgh.”

“Tell me about his crew. Where are their posts? What time do they change shifts?”

I told him everything I knew and what kind of weapons they had. “But if it comes to this, I don’t want you to kill anyone. Just make them surrender, get me, and leave. And don’t you dare shoot Crewe.”

“There’s no way I can pull that off. People are gonna get shot.”

“Then I don’t want to be rescued.”

Joseph sighed into the phone. “This guy has really fucked with your mind, London. You shouldn’t care if I shoot him between the eyes.”

“But I do care.” A lot. “I don’t want anything to happen to anyone. They’re good people just trying to support their families. They’re no different