CHAPTER 55: CHAPTER-55. (JUST ONE PIECE OF IT).

Dave finally disappeared into the walk-in closet, and I slumped back onto the bed with a sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, he emerged, thank God, in an actual shirt and a pair of track pants.

Still unfairly good-looking, but at least now my sanity wasn’t hanging on by a towel thread.

He grabbed his phone again, this time actually focused, scrolling with quick precision.

The shift in his demeanor was immediate...calm melted into sharp concentration, like a switch had flipped.

I frowned, sitting up straighter. "What are you doing now?"

He didn’t answer right away. His brows furrowed, thumb sliding across the screen. Then he let out a low hum, something between satisfaction and intrigue.

"I found something."

That got my attention. "Something? What something?"

He looked up at me, his eyes no longer lazy or teasing; they were sharp and serious. "On Caroline’s blackmailer."

My stomach dipped. Just hearing the words brought the memory of Caroline’s pale face back into my mind.

The way her hands had trembled under the table in that cafe.

"What do you mean?" I asked, shifting closer without even realizing it.

Dave angled the phone so I could see. On the screen was a string of emails, blurred and jumbled at first, but the subject line stood out clear as day:

Payment overdue. You’re not the only one.

I froze. "Wait. What does that mean?"

Dave’s voice was calm but edged, like steel wrapped in silk. "It means Caroline isn’t the only one they’re targeting."

The bottom dropped out of my stomach. "Another person?"

"Yes. Another number. Haven’t figured out who it belongs to yet." His jaw tightened, eyes narrowing as if the words themselves left a bitter taste.

"But whoever it is, they’re tied into this just as much as Caroline is. Maybe more."

I hugged my knees closer, feeling the weight of the room press down on me. "So... this blackmailer is playing a bigger game."

"Exactly," he said. "Caroline’s just one piece of it."

I stared at the emails again, heart thumping. The thought of some stranger, maybe someone else in the family, being blackmailed too made my skin crawl.

And then a memory struck me, sharp as glass....those pictures.

The one I had shoved deep into my mind because every time I thought about it, my chest tightened with dread.

I wet my lips, my voice coming out smaller than I meant. "Dave... do you think this blackmailer could be... the man in the picture?"

For a moment, he didn’t answer. His eyes narrowed, studying me like he was trying to decide if I was asking out of fear or if I already knew something.

Finally, he leaned back against the couch, arms crossing over his chest.

"It’s possible," Dave said slowly, letting the words hang in the air.

I swallowed hard, my pulse racing. "Possible... how?"

He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, eyes dark and sharp. "The blackmailer itself is someone we haven’t traced yet. But the photo... the man in it is very real. And very close."

My stomach dropped. I’d already told Dave about my suspicions of Nicole.

My gut had screamed it from the moment I first saw that picture, and now my mind latched onto the detail that had almost made me choke when I first saw it...a hickey on the man’s collarbone.

Not some faint marking that would fade away in a few hours but a very deep and purplish kind of mark. A mark which stays on your body for days.

A mark which needed to be hidden with a freaking concealer and tons of foundation to hide it.

I couldn’t help blurting it out. "Dave... in the picture... the man had a hickey on his collarbone. If we could... if we could see Nicole’s collarbone, we’d know for sure."

Dave’s eyes narrowed. "You think it’s him?"

I nodded, shifting uncomfortably. "I mean... it would explain why Caroline recognized him. And why he’s been acting so... too perfect. Too careful. And that smile... the one he flashes when he thinks no one’s watching? That’s him covering tracks."

Dave was silent for a moment, letting the weight of it sink in. Then he leaned back, calm but calculating. "You’re saying we can confirm him with a simple... visual check."

"Yes," I whispered, suddenly aware of how insane it sounded.

"It’s... risky. But it would confirm it. The man in the picture is Nicole. That hickey doesn’t lie. If it’s there on him... It’s him. No doubt."

Dave tilted his head, lips twitching slightly....not a smile, but something sharper, sharper than his usual calm. "Risky indeed. But I like the logic."

My heart thudded. "You mean... you’ll help?"

He shrugged, though his eyes held that familiar intensity that made my stomach turn somersaults. "I’ll help. But we do this smart. Subtle. We can’t spook him. Not yet."

I nodded, biting my lip, trying to steady my shaking hands. "So... how do we do it? I mean... Nicole doesn’t exactly leave his collarbone exposed for casual observation."

Dave leaned closer, voice dropping. "We wait. Watch his routine. Look for a moment where he adjusts his shirt or removes it....something as natural as breathing. And then... we confirm."

My pulse raced faster. "And if it’s there?" I asked, almost too breathless to speak.

Dave’s gaze met mine, steady and intense. "Then we know. And we act. Carefully."

I swallowed, nodding, suddenly feeling both terrified and electrified. Nicole, Dave’s step-brother, the one who’d fooled everyone with his charm, was hiding something.

And if that hickey matched... everything Caroline had feared would be real.

I shifted on the bed, trying to gather my thoughts. "So... the blackmailer is still someone else. But Nicole... he’s connected, isn’t he? Maybe a witness, maybe more."

Dave’s jaw tightened. "Connected enough to matter. And dangerous if underestimated."

I hugged my knees, staring at him. "I can’t believe it. All this... hidden right under our noses."

He leaned back, hands clasped. "That’s what makes it dangerous. And that’s why we need proof before making a move. And Elena..."

His eyes caught mine, sharp. "Be careful. Nicole isn’t stupid. And he’s been playing this game longer than we realize."

I nodded, heart pounding. "I’ll be careful. But I... I have to see that hickey. I need to know."

Dave’s lips quirked ever so slightly, that familiar smirk lurking at the edge. "And we will. Just... let’s do it our way. No mistakes."

I exhaled slowly, gripping the blanket. "Our way. Right."

But even as I said it, my mind spun with possibilities, plotting out how we’d catch him, how we’d finally prove he was the man in the picture...and maybe unravel the entire blackmail scheme at the same time.

Because if that hickey matched... nothing would ever be the same.