Jaxx cautiously set the phone down and wiped her palms against her hips, getting rid of sweat that had suddenly accumulated. After the fourth ring, she grabbed the device again, pressed accept, and placed the speaker to her ear.

“Thea?” she said the name tentatively, unsure of what to expect. When a darker voice piped up, her blood ran cold.

“I know your secret,” Jessup said in a low, gravelly voice. “You and Thea, and…that whore in the ...