Traitorous Heart 5 (Traitorous Heart #5) Read Online Free

bottles. Red juices of some kind had dripped from the thing and puddled under the water. There was a piece of paper jabbed into the meat, held there by a fork. “What is that?”
    “You didn’t do this, right?” Cage kept his voice low, even.
    “No way.” I went to reach inside and move it, but Cage pushed my hands away. “Don’t touch it. Fingerprints.” His bright eyes bored into mine. “Do you have any tongs?”
    “Yeah.” I went to the drawer where we kept our kitchen utensils and pulled out a metal set. “Here.”
    “Get a serving platter. Something clean.”
    I opened the cupboard and pulled out the platter we used for wine and cheese tasting parties. “Got it.”
    He used the tongs, lifted the thing, and placed it on the platter. The paper had been soaked in blood, but it was still easy to read the words.
    Slutty Bitch!
    You ripped out Reid’s heart long before I did.
    But the deviant fucker deserved it. You all deserve it.
    Dandelion Katelyn Jayne, you’re next.
    There were several names listed on the paper, including mine, Griffin’s, Birdy’s, Brian’s—the drummer in Griffin’s band—as well as Reid’s mom’s and dad’s.
    “Do you think that’s Reid’s heart?” My stomach started to roll.
    “There’s one way to find out.” Cage took out his phone and dialed 911. When he hung up, he said, “Hey, you doing all right?”
    “No. As a matter of fact, I’m not.”
    “Is there someone you can call?” Cage pulled me into an embrace.
    I clung to him, knowing I could call my parents. They lived in Albany and would come if I asked, but it would take a while. And really, what would telling them accomplish? Nothing. My mom would worry and drink too much. My dad would ask too many questions, searching for answers I didn’t have. Yet.
    “My parents live in Albany. They’d come down, but I’d rather keep them as far from this as possible.” I wiped my eyes, suddenly realizing I’d been crying.
    “I understand. Maybe you should go stay with them, though. We can’t take this threat lightly.”
    I pushed away, glaring. “Fuck you. Fuck that note. I’m not a breakable little child and I’m not going to let some asshole scare me away.” I tossed the pillow on the couch. “I’m going to figure out who’s doing this. Besides,” I smiled, “this note proves Birdy didn’t kill Reid.” As afraid and pissed as I was, that one piece of information made up for it. “They have to let her out now.”
    Cage seemed to mull it over. “It’s definitely new evidence. There’s a possibility she’ll be set free. But…” He trailed off, rubbing his hands over his short brown hair. “Fuck.”
    “What?”
    “My guess is, unless they find DNA evidence to prove someone other than Birdy touched this heart or the fork and paper, then the prosecution will claim Birdy put someone up to this, possibly even you, in a sad attempt to gain her freedom. With all the evidence pointing at her, the judge is likely to agree.”
    My breathing came faster. It felt like a panic attack. But fuck that. “Son of a bitch.” It made sense. It was what I would do.
    “I know.”
    There was a knock at the door. I checked through the peephole. It was the police. I let them in. They took our statements, packaged up the evidence, promised to keep an eye on the place, and left. When they were gone, I fell onto the couch. It was nearly five in the morning and I hadn’t been to sleep yet. Exhaustion was taking over.
    “Will you be okay sleeping here?”
    The answer to that question was a big fat no, but I nodded. “Yeah.” My voice wavered, exposing the lie.
    “That’s it. Pack a bag. You’re going to come stay with me for a while.”
    “No. They are not kicking me out of my apartment.” Surely he could understand that. My life was being flipped on its ass. I needed to keep something normal. “I’ll add an extra lock.”
    “This isn’t up for fucking negotiation.” He pushed past me. “Get a bag, fill it