He’d killed Mike for me.
I gawked at him for a moment, then down at my phone, before I flung myself toward him. He jerked in surprise as I hit his chest and wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug. An emotion I hadn’t felt in a long time crashed through me.
Happiness. It was a foreign feeling but one I welcomed.
“Thank you.” I pressed my face against the soft skin of his neck and breathed him in. He smelled tangy from the blood splattered on him, but it was nice mixed with the fresh rain scent that clung to him. “Thank you for killing him for me.”
He froze. “Wha?—”
“Thank you.” I kissed him on the cheek, hard, not giving a damn about the blood.
He let out an “eep” before taking a step back, dragging me with him. His foot hit something, and I yelled as he went flying backward onto his ass, me on top of him as we crashed to the ground.
I blinked down at him, and he gave me a wide-eyed look. I started cackling. A bubble of joy filled my chest and expanded my lungs. I could take on the world. “You are such a klutz. How did you survive this long?”
He quirked a grin at me and tightened his hold, even though it was his back on the filthy ground in a disgusting alleyway. “Luck, I guess.”
I snorted and gave him another kiss on the cheek, my lips scraping against his stubble. He was the second person to murder for me, and I was cruising on a high that left me breathless and free. He had no idea what his gruesome gift meant to me, what he’ddonefor me.
I rolled off him and shuffled closer, my hip nudging his when he sat up. I tilted my head, smiling. “Seriously, Eddie. Thank you. It isn’t every day a guy commits murder for you.”
His mouth opened, but no sound came out.
I found Ari’s contact in my phone and tapped it. Thethumpof my heartbeat was deafening until Ari’s voice filled the line.
“Tyler? What’s wrong?” His tone was hard and sharp, but most of all, despite the words indicating he was worried, they were emotionless. Void of fear and concern and every other feeling in the dictionary. Others thought he was cold, but I knew better. He hadn’t outright said it to me, but I knew what he was—a psychopath. He didn’t think the way most people did, yet he’d still found love with his boyfriend, Jules.
“I need your help. If I send through an address, can you and Jules come? You can’t ask me questions, especially over the phone.”
“Give it to me.” He didn’t hesitate. Not even a little.
The line went dead, and I messaged him immediately to head to the place where I used to get cash when I was in the homeless shelter. He’d know where to go. He’d had run-ins with Mike, and neither of us liked him. Although, he didn’t know the extent of what Mike had done to me. No one but me and Mike did.
My phone screen went black right after I sent the text, and I sighed, leaning against a wall behind us. I didn’t want to think about this cold, lonely street. I used to do all kinds ofthingsto get money. Blowjobs. Fingering. Fucking. I’d been desperate. I knew this place well and it came with horrible memories I didn’t want to relive.
The two years after I’d turned eighteen were the worst ones of my life.
“What did Mike do to you? He said a few things. Why was he on that list? Whatisthat list?” Eddie leaned against the wall, too,snagging my hand with his, and I didn’t pull away as he threaded our fingers together.
No one knew about these names, not even Ari or my ex-roommate. They were for me and only me so I could dream about getting rich and making them regret what they’d done. I killed them in my fantasies, too. Made them wish they’d never heard my name, but I hadn’t actually expected it to come to this—death.
But they deserved it.
Every.
Single.
One.
“They’re people who hurt me, who did unforgivable things.” I breathed in deep through my nose, sucking in the horrible stench of dried cum, which was probably all in my head, but I couldn’t shake it away. The air was chilly around us, and I shivered. I dipped my hand into the front of my coat and grabbed my necklace, holding it tight. At least I didn’t have to sell the last sentimental thing I owned.
He curled an arm around my shoulders and dragged me closer, and I took the protection he offered. Or comfort. I wasn’t sure which one he was trying to give me.
Did Eddie deserve the truth? He’d killed for me, hadn’t he? That meant a lot. The gun had his fingerprints and Mike’s blood on it, but I didn’t want him to regret this later.
“I’ll need to get my stuff before we leave here.” My attention caught on an ice-crusted puddle forming nearby. Water dripped there from a massive icicle hanging off the building. “Can’t leave behind evidence.”
Not that I had anything important in the bags.
