"I don't know," I admitted.
I kept replaying last night over and over in my head. Being thrown inside the industrial vat while the water heated rapidly. I could have drowned or been boiled alive. All while the detective's blood literally coated my hands. Hypnos had rubbed them in a pool of it before dragging me to the vat, to remind me I'd used Getzoff as bait to try to catch him.
Ihadcaught him.
I still didn't like the price paid for his death.
"He can't hurt anyone else," Cass said, leaning over closer to me.
"Better him than us," Jules said.
"I know," I told them all. "I just wish…"
I shook my head. It didn't matter what I wished. It wouldn't change what happened. I should have been on guard. I should have checked under the tablecloth to make sure there weren't canisters ready to put us to sleep.
I should have…
I don't know what. Told Getzoff to leave right after he finished eating? If I had, he'd still be alive. Or would he? It was possible Hypnos would have killed him anyway. I could guess multiple different hypothetical scenarios and not necessarily be right.
"You know what you need?" Boner asked. "A vacation."
"I don't have time for a vacation," I said, shorter than I intended. "I have two restaurants to run."
"If you repeat this, I'll deny it," Jules said, "but Boner is right. You need a break from all of this."
"What I need," I said slowly, "is for Zeus to be dead. Then I can relax for a little while."
"Statistically, tired people make more mistakes," Archer said. "If you take a couple of days off, dealing with him will be easier."
"Assuming he doesn't deal with us in the meantime,” I said, rubbing my temples with my thumb and forefinger. "He might be right outside the apartment building as we're sitting here talking about it. Ready to shoot one of us the moment we step out the door."
I pictured him shooting us, one after the other as we stepped outside, leaving us lying on the sidewalk, bleeding into the gutter.
Shuddered.
"Let him try," Boner said. "I have a newsflash for you. We aren't that easy to kill."
He gave me a cocky smile, but he was as mortal as the rest of us. None of us would survive a gunshot wound right through the middle of our brain, or a direct stab wound to the heart.
"It would be easier if we knew who he was," Cass said, looking regretful.
"Yeah." I couldn't bring myself to meet his gaze. I didn't know why I hadn't told them. I'd tried a couple of times, but the words wouldn't come.
It made no sense. I knew they'd believe me. I knew they'd help me deal with him. I just…couldn't say anything. Not yet. There were too many things I had to think through. Hypnos, Yvette, the whole thing.
The mistakes I'd made.
I had to figure out how to avoid making further mistakes. Mistakes that would result in these men being dead. I told myself I was trying to protect them. If I could do this myself, there was no need for them to take any more risks. No need for them to be in the firing line. Or the stabbing line. Or the line to have their skin peeled off their bodies and used as shoes.
Okay, that was specific, but I knew a guy. The less I say about that, the better. I'd never been inclined to wear my victims as footwear or a belt, but I couldn't say the same for others. Some people like having a trophy. I had a collection of hearts in jars. I wasn't in any position to go around pointing fingers.
Also, they were very nice shoes.
"Would it help to talk about it?" Boner asked. "I know you went through some traumatic shit last night. Anything you want to get off your chest?" He gave me a 'give it to me' gesture with his fingers.
The rest of them listened with intense gazes, ready to hear me out and not judge me.
I toyed with my long red ponytail. "I don't know what else there is to say. I woke up in that basement. Hypnos killed Getzoff. Then he tried to kill me."
