Page 69 of Indecent Villain
“No!” Maia snaps out of it. “Cannon only told me about Rossi before he left to see Kinsley.”
“Mom?” Xavier frowns in confusion.
“Oh my God! Pierce didn’t get Anna pregnant because he never slept with her. Kinsley is my granddaughter,” she confesses.
“What the?—”
“Fuck!” Xavier finishes for me, a look of horror on his face. “She’s Cannon’s daughter? How did that happen?”
I give him a pointed look.
He blushes. “I mean, well, fuck! I didn’t see that coming.”
“Oh, it was such a mess. Cannon was in love with Anna, and then your father found out,” Maia says, her gaze fixed on Xavier. “He interfered and ruined both their lives—Kinsley’s too.” Her tearful eyes turn to me. “They never gave each other up.” She clears her throat. “Come inside. I have something to show you.”
Salem whispers, “Did you ever think?—”
“No.” I feel like such an idiot. My best friend was fucking his tutor, and I was clueless.
I drag a hand over my face and wonder where Kinsley is. Is she hurt? Does she know about Cannon? Is she waiting for me to come for her?
Maia leads us to the office and opens the safe. She retrieves a cardboard box and sits down in Cannon’s chair. Lifting the lid, she passes the box to me.
Staring up at me is a photograph of Anna and Cannon in each other’s arms, both grinning at the camera. I drop into the chair behind me and sift through the photos. They are all of Anna and Cannon. Some show Kinsley as a baby in Cannon’s arms, while others capture Anna pregnant, with Cannon tenderly kissing her swollen belly. These are intimate family moments, a beautiful story of love.
“He was present when she was born?” I look up at Maia.
“Yes.”
“I don’t fucking believe it,” Xavier mutters.
“Xavier! Language!” Maia reprimands her son.
“Sorry, Mom,” he says.
“Where does Jude fit into all this?” I ask.
“Your brother,” Maia says bitterly, “refused to allow Anna to walk away. She wanted to be with Cannon. I tried to help them as best I could.”
She straightens her spine and stares directly at me.
I nod for her to continue.
“Jude wasn’t the man you thought he was, Beckett. He projected an image of being one of the good guys, but he hid his true self from you. In reality, he was a big-time drug dealer who worked with Rossi. They were partners for a long time.”
My heart sinks at the revelation. First, learning about the arms deal and discovering the drugs in the shipping container changed my perception of my brother. And now, finding out he’d been involved with Rossi—fucking Rossi of all people—just tops it all off.
“He had evidence that would have sent Cannon to prison for the rest of his life, and he used it to keep Anna in line. He agreed to let them see each other once a week, providing Anna played the part of a loving wife. He would physically hurt her if she didn’t oblige.”
“Fuck,” I exclaim, earning a sharp glare from Maia. “Apologies.” I wince and rub a hand over my face.
“Rossi somehow found out about the mess of Jude and Anna’s life,” Maia continues. “And about Cannon’s part in it. He knew about Kinsley. He is using Kinsley to get the drugs and money your brother stashed somewhere.” She turns to Xavier, “Cannon has been trying to find them to get Rossi to leave Kinsley alone.”
Shit! I gave them to Prez, who will have already sold them by now.
I take the most recent photograph of Anna and Cannon and slip it into my back pocket.
“Keep them safe.” I pass the box back to Maia and watch as she locks it up.