Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 120186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 601(@200wpm)___ 481(@250wpm)___ 401(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 601(@200wpm)___ 481(@250wpm)___ 401(@300wpm)
In this case, I’m not covering my own ass. It’s Allie who needs help. My help. Mine alone.
That’s all it takes for any indecision to blow away, like smoke in a strong breeze. Keeping this between us means keeping her closer. It gives me an excuse to watch her, to hover. I’m her only lifeline right now, and I plan to make the most of it. In the end, she might regret ever needing my help. But she requires it anyway.
I only wish I could’ve killed the fucker myself. Remembering the scene in her house takes the air out of my lungs and makes my head pound. I know exactly what happened. All it took was one look. The fucker got what was coming to him for thinking he could take what belongs to me. He assumed my little filly wouldn’t fight back. Clearly, she did. I can’t help but be proud of her, even if the cleanup was a headache.
She’s probably lying in bed now, wide awake, wondering what comes next and how she can live with herself. I felt that way after my first kill too. But I told myself I was doing it for the family. For Dad. She doesn’t have that to fall back on.
Not that I feel sorry for her. I can’t feel sorry for her. My fucking mangled mess of a heart can’t afford to feel sorry for her.
So when I park at home and pull out my phone, it’s not because I want to reassure her. Comfort is for people who didn’t throw me away like a used tissue.
She picks up immediately, whispering, “Hello?”
“You still alone in the house?”
“As far as I know.”
That means yes. I don’t think Emma will be quiet when she gets there. “Repeat the story.”
She blows out a breath. “Jackson dropped me off at the house. I only wanted to take a shower and go to bed. He drove off and never told me if he planned to go anywhere else. I assumed he would return to the country club,” she adds.
I don’t normally approve of riffing at a time like this, but the added detail makes sense and feels natural.
“Good,” I grunt. “You’re going into town tomorrow.”
“What? Why?”
My eyes close, and my head falls against the padded rest behind it. Christ, she needs to use her imagination. “We want to make sure you’re seen. If you hide out, it looks like you’re guilty of something. You have to act as normally as possible.”
“Did you forget what you did earlier tonight? I probably would have stayed home tomorrow, anyway,” she spits. There she is, my little filly. Even if I want to shake her, it’s nice to hear her fire.
My teeth grind against the rush of bitterness rising in my chest. “You’re going out, and you’re acting like everything is normal. Pretend you’re, I don’t know, keeping your head high. Like you’re telling everybody to fuck off.”
She releases a shaky breath. “I see what you mean. Make sure everybody sees I’m fine.”
“Right.” I look up at the house. Most of the windows are dark. Blank. Like so many eyes looking down on me, counting my sins. I added a few new ones to the list tonight. “Give them your attitude if you have to. Stare them down.”
“Right.”
“You’ll get through this,” I add.
Am I comforting her? No, just stating facts, because I’m helping her.
“I guess I don’t have a choice, do I?” She’s in misery, and I hate the dull tone seeping back into her voice. “I never have, really.”
That, I find hard to believe. Allie has always made her own choices up until a few months ago. “Try to get some sleep. And don’t forget. The only thing on your mind tomorrow is showing your face after you were embarrassed at the country club. That’s all you need to think about.”
“You make it sound so easy.” Then she snorts. “I guess you have more practice than I do.”
“Sleep tight, killer,” I reply, waiting for her sharp intake of breath before ending the call. It wasn’t necessary, but I didn’t like her attitude.
Once I’m in the silent house, I head straight for my bedroom, stripping off my jacket while I go. I need to be as careful with what I’m wearing as Allie was. This will all go into a burn pit tomorrow, first thing. For now, I leave the tuxedo wrapped in an old towel on the floor of my bathroom before climbing into the shower.
There is no reason for me to feel as weighed down as I do now. In the grand scheme of things, the night couldn’t have gone better. Allie might as well be sewn to my side now. I have leverage over her that I couldn’t have dreamed of. It’s shitty how it came about, and I wouldn’t have allowed the fucker to touch her with his dick, but it didn’t happen. Thankfully, I got there in time.