Then, a muffled groan came through the speaker.

It was a sound I recognized instantly.

“Kiera?” Thomas’s voice was cracked and weak.

“Thomas!” I cried out.

“Kiera, I’m sorry,” he groaned. “I didn’t want—”

A sharp smack cut him off.

I flinched as if I had been struck myself.

“That’s enough,” Marcus’s voice returned, cold and sharp.

“As you can hear, your husband is still with us.”

“But he is having a very difficult night.”

My heart hammered against my ribs like a trapped bird.

“What did you do to him?” I demanded.

“Nothing that can’t be repaired,” Marcus said.

“If you cooperate.”

“If you don’t, Thomas won’t see the sunrise.”

I gripped the edge of Arthur’s wooden table.

“He didn’t steal from you,” I said. “He was working for you.”

“He was a liability,” Marcus replied.

“And now he is a bargaining chip.”

“I want my ledger, Kiera.”

“And I want those land deeds.”

“If I don’t get them back tonight, Thomas pays the price.”

“Then I will go to the police,” I said, trying to sound brave.

Marcus laughed, a dry, rasping sound.