The Devil Within (Devil Series Book 3) by Stacy-Deanne

”
    * * * *
    “Fuck.” Leo chewed on the candy bar. “Grant sounds like he’s on to him. I hope Base doesn’t blow it.”
    “He won’t.” Alexis prayed to herself.
    He better not.
    * * * *
    “I put my life on the line for you, Grant.”
    He laughed. “No you didn’t. You did a job and I paid you.” He walked to the couch. “I also told you it was over and done with, so why are we speaking about it now?” He sat down.
    “Because I can’t get what I’ve done out of my head.” Base touched his forehead. “I’m no saint, but what I did for you was probably the worst thing I’ve ever done.”
    “And what did you do for me?” Grant ran his finger around the rim of his glass.
    “Leo Pacheco is a good person. He didn’t deserve to lose his job the way he did.”
    “Well, he should’ve minded his own business.”
    * * * *
    “Shit!” Alexis hit Leo’s arm. “He’s almost admitting to it.” She clenched the phone. “Come on, Grant. Admit you set Leo up, you son of a bitch. Come on.”
    * * * *
    “Leo Pacheco was trying to damage my reputation,” Grant said. “The reputation I’ve spent decades building. People look up to me around here. I own this fuckin’ town, and he tried to accuse me of murder.” He scoffed. “Murder of Stossel Adams, one of my closest and dearest friends, then he got caught with meth?” He shrugged. “What goes around comes around.”
    “Yeah.” Base nodded. “Especially when the meth is planted, right?”
    Grant tapped his foot. “You did what you did on your own. It had nothing to do with me.”
    “Bullshit it didn’t!” Base charged him. “You made me set Leo up so he’d lose his job! Admit it!”
    Grant grinned. “Base—”
    “Admit it, Grant.” He held out his arms. “It’s just us.”
    “Admit what?”
    “Admit what you had me do!”
    * * * *
    “Shit, calm down, Base,” Alexis said.
    Leo laid his hands on his thighs. “I’m telling you he’s gonna blow it.”
    “Please.” Alexis closed her eyes. “Please just let Grant admit he set you up. Just let me have that at least.”
    * * * *
     “Admit that you found Leo a threat.” Base pointed to Grant. “That’s why you paid me to put the meth in his house. Now why would you want me to do that if you hadn’t killed Stossel?”
    “Oh I see.” Grant poked his lips out and nodded. “You came here to find out why I killed Stossel.”
    * * * *
    “Oh God.” Alexis held her breath. “Leo!”
    Leo sat up with his mouth open.
    * * * *
    “You wasted a trip because I didn’t kill him.” Grant sipped brandy. “That’s another nasty rumor going around thanks to Alexis Adams.”
    * * * *
    “Shit!” She hit the dashboard. “I was that close.”
    “Shh.” Leo waved his hand. “He might still admit to paying Base to set me up.”
    * * * *
    “If you didn’t have someone tamper with Stossel’s brake lines, then who did?” Base asked. “Who would want him dead?”
    “I don’t know who’d want him dead. I think about who’d do such a thing all the time.”
    “You’re the most powerful man in this town, Grant. You would literally get away with murder even if you did do it.”
    “When you asked me how I felt about doing bad things…” Grant looked away. “I don’t always feel good about doing them. Sometimes it’s like something takes me over.”
    Base inched up to him. “I can tell that something is weighing heavy on you.” He sat on the coffee table beside the couch. “I’m nobody in this town. I’m probably the only person you can tell your deepest secrets to, because who would believe me?”
    Grant looked at him.
    “I know you cared about Stossel. What, is it that you didn’t want to do it, but were in a corner or something? Did he know something about you?”
    Grant set his glass on the table.
    “I know you wanna get what happened off your chest.” Base leaned closer to him.
    “You know you can trust me, Grant. Look what I did for you and I never told a soul.”
    * *