Free Bed of Lies by Shelly Ellis Page B

with the discarded referral that Dr. Sidda had written. He made his way to the granite kitchen island, where his cordless phone was perched. He settled himself onto one of the barstools and slowly dialed the number Dr. Sidda had written.
    â€œUh, h-hello,” he said to the woman who answered. “I’d . . . I’d like to make an appointment with Dr. Meredith Sweeney.” He listened to the voice on the other end of the line, then nodded. “Yeah, whatever slot you’ve got, I’ll take it. The sooner the better.”

Chapter 7
    Evan
    E van closed his eyes as his head fell back against the leather headrest.
    â€œWhere to next, Mr. Murdoch?” his driver asked.
    â€œLet’s just head home, Bill. I’m exhausted,” he muttered. And he was.
    Evan had had plans to go to his office in Arlington even though it was the weekend. He had wanted to get some badly needed work done, but that no longer held any appeal for him. Besides, he wouldn’t be able to concentrate. His thoughts would keep coming back to his brother, Terrence.
    Evan felt like he was watching his brother drowning, but instead of Terrence reaching for the life preserver that was thrown to him or even fighting the current on his own, Terrence seemed to be waiting patiently for the raging river to drag him under. It was painful and heartbreaking to watch.
    I wish I could reach him , Evan thought as the car made a left turn onto the roadway that would take him back to Murdoch Mansion. I wish he would listen.
    But Terrence had always been cocky and stubborn. Neither one of those traits did him any favors in his current predicament.
    The sorrow Evan felt for Terrence was only equaled to the rage he now had for their half-brother, Dante. While talking to Terrence’s lawyer about the lawsuit the other woman in the car crash had filed, the lawyer had mentioned in passing the name of her attorney.
    â€œDante Turner,” the lawyer had said. “He’s with Nutter, McElroy, and Ailey.”
    The instant Evan had heard his half-brother’s name, his jaw tightened. “Yeah, I’ve heard of him.”
    â€œI asked around about him to see if he’s a reasonable guy,” the lawyer had continued, unaware of Evan’s growing anger. “Maybe he’d be willing to lower the four million in punitive damages that she’s asking for. I asked if he might force it to go to trial, which isn’t ideal since the police still haven’t been able to determine who was at fault in the accident.” The lawyer had paused. “I want to warn you that none of what I’ve heard from my colleagues about Mr. Turner was good, Mr. Murdoch. They said he’s one mean son of a bitch— and he’s money-hungry.”
    Of course, Evan knew all of this already. Dante had gone out of his way to ruin the lives of his siblings—from having an affair with Evan’s wife to trying to blackmail and bully Paulette into selling him all her shares in Murdoch Conglomerated. And he had done it out of sibling rivalry and to exact some revenge on their deceased father, which was so delusional it wasn’t even funny. Now it looked like Dante had turned his laser sights on Terrence and of course, it had to be the moment when Terrence was most vulnerable and the least likely to defend himself.
    Evan gritted his teeth again as he glared out the Town Car’s tinted window at the passing cars and scenery. His fists tightened at his sides.
    He wanted to wring Dante’s neck. He wanted to punch his half-brother in the face over and over again. He had let Dante off the hook too easily in the past. It was time he dealt with him once and for all.
    â€œSo, what are you going to do?” the voice in his head mocked. “Put a hit out on him? What are you? Michael Corleone?”
    No, Evan wasn’t going to order a Mafia hit, though frankly, with the right amount of money, anything was possible. He would find