Ro’s fingers tapped once more against the steering wheel before going still. “Information extraction isn’t the goal,” he said. “This isn’t about getting answers.”
“Then what is it about?” I asked, softer now.
Ro’s eyes shifted back to the house, pale gaze going distant in that way that meant he’d already stepped ahead of us mentally, already inside, already finishing the job. “Pain,” he said simply.
“You said it won’t be like what Daddy and I do,” I reminded him, not seeing how this was any different.
“It won’t,” Ro said.
“But… that’s what we do. Get a guy, tie him up, then torture him to death. Is this not that?”
“I’d rather not be compared to serial killers,” Ronan stated.
“I see his point, though,” Dori commented.
At the same time, I asked a bit too loudly, “Killers? As in plural? Does that mean—”
“Yes, I’m including you in it.”
I leaned my head back against the seat, staring up at the dark interior of the car ceiling. “Wow…” I murmured.
“While he comes to terms with that or… whatever he’s doing… I would be curious to hear your explanation on how it differs, Ro,” Dorian said.
Ro exhaled slowly through his nose, like he’d been expecting that question and just hadn’t wanted to answer it. “Intent,” he said plainly.
Dori’s brows pulled together slightly. “That’s it? Intent?”
“That’s everything,” Ro corrected. “What you and Greyson do—” his gaze flicked to me briefly in the mirror “—it’s driven by compulsion. Enjoyment. Curiosity. You pick targets because you want to.”
I smiled a little at that.Accurate.
Ro continued, “This is work. We don’t choose people based on what we feel like doing that day. We’re hired. There are parameters. Limits. A goal.”
“So what do you call it when you kill not on a job? You can’t lie to us either. We’ve literally seen you do it,” I pointed out.
Ro grunted, “I choose people who deserve it.”
Dori leaned back a little, a skeptical look on his face. “Uh-huh. Based on what? Lane, would you say you kill people who don’t deserve it?”
“No, they definitely deserve it.”
Dorian raised an eyebrow at Ro.
Ro huffed in annoyance. “Well, at least I don’t fuck next to the bodies.”
“Damn,” Dorian muttered. “Okay.”
“Okay, I think I get it. Serial killers fuck,” I said sarcastically.
Ronan ignored me and sighed, “Let’s go,” before opening the driver’s side door.
I repressed a smile at his obvious frustration and pushed the back door open, cool night air hitting my face.
Dori moved around the other side of the car, already pulling his mask up as he scanned the perimeter, all loose laziness from earlier gone.
Ro didn’t waste time. “Stay low,” he murmured, already moving toward the hedges.
I followed immediately, crouching as we slipped into the shadows. The leaves brushed softly against my arms, and somewhere far in the distance, a dog barked once, then went silent.
