Tangled Web: A Small Town Romance (The Cortell Brothers Book 6) by Giulia Lagomarsino (an ebook reader txt) 📕

“There wasn’t a need for it anyway,” I growled. “So, this is why I’ve been having people come up to me and ask questions,” I said to myself.

“You can thank me later, man,” Joe said, slapping me on the shoulder. “When she sees that you guys have made the town Facebook page, she’s gonna be stoked.”

“Stoked?”

He frowned. “Did I use that wrong? Fly,” he said to himself, shaking his head. “No, that’s not right. I’m pretty sure it’s stoked.”

Ignoring his ramblings, I pointed out the obvious. “Somehow, I don’t think she gives a shit if she makes the town Facebook page.”

“Right, well…you can’t please everyone. So, what were you going to tell me about her?”

I sighed, sitting down at the kitchen table. “So, I didn’t exactly meet Lorelei by accident.”

“What, like you sought her out?”

“Sort of.”

“Was this because of Eric?”

I shook my head. “I got a call about this job, and I met this guy in town. He showed me all these things about a woman that kills men…And that woman was Lorelei.”

He stared at me wide-eyed, his eye twitching just like Eric’s did when he got all weirded out. “Wait, you’re telling me Lorelei is a serial killer?”

“No—“

“She’s with my wife right now!”

“Sofia’s not your wife,” I said calmly.

“And you slept with her? What the fuck is wrong with you!” He stood and started pacing the room. “Christ, I thought Josh had problems, but then you run off and start fucking the local serial killer. What the hell is going on in this town? It’s like we’re being overrun by crazy people. I need to call Kat. No, that would tip Lorelei off. I’ll call Corduroy.” He stopped pacing and stared at his phone. “On the other hand, Jack would probably handle the situation better, even if he does hate us.”

“She’s not a killer,” I said loudly, trying to calm him down.

He stopped pacing and turned to me, a frown marring his features. “Wait, she’s not a serial killer?”

“Not that I can tell.”

“Oh, well, that makes me feel better. So, she gives good head or something and suddenly she’s not a serial killer,” he said, throwing up his hands.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?”

“Look, I started out investigating her and…trust me, there are definitely some weird things in her past, but it doesn’t add up to her being a serial killer.”

“So, did you ask her about those things?”

I just stared at him. “And how the hell would I do that? Hey, Lorelei, you know I really like you, but when I first talked to you, it was actually because I was investigating you and your serial killer motives. But it turns out, I don’t actually think you’re a serial killer. However, I still would like some clarification on these odd events that happened in your past, so maybe you could tell me what really happened.”

Joe grimaced slightly. “Well, I wouldn’t put it like that.” Sighing, he sat down at the table with me. “Okay, what kind of weird stuff are we talking about? And make it quick. I don’t want Sofia with a serial killer for too long.”

I rolled my eyes and got started. “Well, her mother died in her chair at home. They didn’t have an autopsy done or anything. They just had a funeral.”

“How old was she?” he asked, his brows furrowed in thought.

“Thirty-eight.”

“That’s a little young to just die of natural causes.”

“That’s what I thought too.”

“Okay, what else?”

“Well, her friend Matthew died of a heart attack at eighteen.”

He nodded. “Another young death.”

“And her fiancé died in a car crash. He was about eight years older than her at the time.”

“Wait, didn’t her husband just die?”

I nodded. “But he was older,” I said quickly.

“How much older?”

I winced. “Late forties?”

“Christ,” he said, running his hand through hair.

“The stepson wanted me to investigate her. He thought she was a black widow.”

Joe shook his head. “No, she’s not a black widow.”

“See? That’s what I thought.”

“No, she’s just your regular old-fashioned serial killer.”

“No—” I started, but he interrupted me.

“Yes, I hate to break it to you, bro, but you have a killer on your hands. Tell me this…have any weird things happened since you met her?”

I thought back to all those accidents and shook my head. “They were all accidents.”

“Sure,” he nodded. “So, bad things just naturally happen around her.”

“It would seem that way.”

“No, it really is that way. You’re just too blinded by her to fucking notice.”

I sighed and slumped back in my chair. “I knew I shouldn’t have told you about this.”

“Right, because then when you disappear, I wouldn’t have any leads. Good plan.”

“I’m telling you, I’ve spent time with this woman. She’s not a serial killer.”

“Fine, prove it.”

I looked at him incredulously. “How?”

He shrugged, arms crossed over his chest. “If she’s as innocent as you say, then prove that she’s not a serial killer.”

I scrambled for some way to explain what I felt about her, or how it all just seemed like random coincidences, but there was no way to prove it. So, I just threw out some shit and hoped it was enough.

“Every time something has happened, it’s really random, like there’s no way she could have been trying to kill me.”

“Like what?”

“Okay, like there was this time that she threw a wrench and it just barely missed my head. But her head was under the hood of the car. There’s no way she could have seen me.”

He stared at me with a bored expression. “Serial killers are always aware of their surroundings.”

“Okay, but when the tub fell through the ceiling, she couldn’t have known the floor would give out.”

He leaned forward. “Unless she already knew how weak the floor was and knew how much pressure to apply to make the thing fall through the floor.”

“No—“

“The problem is, you’re not thinking like a serial killer.”

“Okay, fine, you want proof?”

“I think a little proof is in order here.”

“Fine, every time I show up at her place, she’s doing something different.”

“Ooh, you really