Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 94834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
“If you thought it was from us,” Sawyer says, narrowing his gaze on me. “Then why did you still show up without trying to let one of us know you’d accepted the invite?”
“Because I didn’t want you to know I was going,” I snap back at him. “It was my one shot to try and figure out who you were and what you were hiding from me. If I’d known it was sent from someone who wants to serve my head on a silver platter, then no, I probably wouldn’t have shown up. And you know what? That’s on you assholes too. You could have been open and honest with me from the start. Instead, you wanted to play your twisted little games.”
“We did what we had to do,” Dalton says, clenching his jaw. “That night we were locked up, these bastards were taking out the hitman who was sent to put a bullet between your eyes.”
I gape at him. “What do you want from me? To drop to my knees and worship at your feet because you took out some asshole who’s just as much the monster that you guys are? Perhaps you’ve forgotten that in the normal world, kidnapping someone and holding them hostage in a fucked-up little cell isn’t normal. It’s fucking terrifying. But what you did, Dalton, leading me into Zade’s trap like that and pretending to have my back . . . that’s just sick.”
Guilt flashes in his eyes, and I stand from the table. “Is that everything I need to know, or are there more sordid details you’re keeping from me?”
Zade shakes his head. “Unless you have any light to shed on the situation, then no. That’s it.”
I narrow my gaze on him, not believing him for a second, but for now, that’s more than enough information. So much so that I feel as though I’m drowning in it. All that matters is that someone is out to get me. Someone in this fucked-up organization wants to take my life, and despite how much I despise them, these four assholes are my only chance at survival.
Letting out a sigh, I fix a sharp glare on Zade. “The guy who was working the door at the ball. When I gave him my name, his head snapped up as though he was surprised, and after checking the list and confirming my name wasn’t on it, he still let me pass. Maybe he knows something,” I suggest. “I doubt an organization as put together as yours would allow a random stray in off the street during such a big event. Plus, when I was walking around, a few people were giving me weird stares, like they recognized me but couldn’t figure out why. But that’s all I’ve got.”
Zade clenches his jaw, his gaze shifting to Cross. Something passes between them that I can’t even begin to understand. When they don’t give me any sign of a response, I press my lips into a hard line. “I’m assuming you’re not about to let me walk out the door?”
“No chance in hell,” Zade tells me.
With that, I push out from the table and stride past them, my world burning to ashes around me.
Chapter 18
SAWYER
The basketball flies through the air, swiftly dropping into the basket. Dalton takes off after it, catching it on the rebound before heading back up the court. The fucker should have been in the NBA. He had the contract right there. All he had to do was sign, but apparently punishing himself is more important than securing his future.
I watch him move up and down the court, the rhythmic sound of the ball calming something inside me. After telling Oakley what she thinks she needs to know, she took off to Zade’s spare room, needing some time to wrap her head around everything. Both Dalton and I have tried checking in on her, but it’s something she’s going to have to accept on her own.
I sit beside Cross on the rooftop court as Zade stands, arms crossed over his chest as he peers out at the city below, deep in thought. This past few weeks have been one big cluster fuck. We knew there was a possibility that Oakley’s name would get out eventually and that someone would try to end her life before the night of the sixtieth moon, but there’s no way we could have foreseen just how intense this was going to be.
Oakley fights us at every turn, though it’s expected after the way things have been handled. She despises us, and I can’t fucking blame her. People outside our world don’t understand it. When they see a gun, they shit their pants. But for us, kidnapping, betrayal, and injustices are just a part of life.
Zade lets out a sigh as Dalton launches himself into the air, dunking the ball through the hoop. He swings off it before dropping back to the ground, letting the ball bounce away. “She’s getting too close,” Zade says, still staring out at the city. “This isn’t how any of this was supposed to play out.”