Fuck yes.
"Talk to Hex. She'll give you whatever intel you need." He glances past me toward Penny, then back. "I'll talk to Devil. Don’t let him kill anyone."
Relief hits me so hard I almost forget to breathe. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet." Dante's voice drops lower, meant only for me. "You bring trouble to my door because of this, we're going to have a different conversation. But you've never given me a reason to doubt your loyalty, Ace. I'm trusting that hasn't changed."
"It hasn't."
"Good." He claps my shoulder once, harder than necessary. "Now go handle your business. And when you come back..."
He looks at Penny again. From the way she's watching me from across the room, worry etched into every line of her face.
"When you come back, introduce her properly. Warn her about the others. They’re going to swarm that poor little girl. Sheiscute."
My chest swells so full I think it might crack open. "You got it."
Dante steps back, returning to his spot on the couch as if nothing had happened before curling his hand at Penny, telling her to join them.
Hardly to my surprise, Penny shyly listens.
She’s going to be okay, they both will. When she sees that I’m not the only one who loves them, she’ll realize just how much she can fit in with our group of misfits.
ten
Ace
Hex's room is exactly how I remember it. Pushing the door open, the bottom brushes against more wires than carpet.
It's like someone shoved a Best Buy into a tiny room. Everywhere I step is a possible tripping hazard.
"Good, you're here." Hex doesn't even look my way as her fingers move in a blur. "You got my message."
"If that's what you want to call that..." Stepping toward her, I notice she's not alone. Surprisingly, against the wall, Trouble's here too. Busy with the activity book spread out on his lap.
She beckons me over, and I take a minute to look at her six monitors. Two of them have camera feeds playing. Another one looks like an open email. Another—
"Right here." She taps the monitor directly in front of her. "Your guy has stationed himself at some motel for the last two days. He hasn't left since checking in, so there's no tellingwhether he's alive. Could've taken himself out for all we know. If he'd been a little more active, I could've found him sooner."
She starts pulling up new feeds, dragging them to the same monitor. Her nail barely bumps the screen.
"That's him?"
I've only seen him in photos, but holy shit. The guy frozen on her screen looks terrible. Sunken cheeks. Hollowed gaze. Like a damn skeleton.
Looks like I gained a few points in the attractiveness pool.
"Looks like it." Squinting as she scrolls through different photos, I pause when she stops at him walking halfway through his motel door. "No fucking way."
"That's what I said too." She leans back. "Less than twenty minutes away. Crazy, isn't it?"
He's in Steelwood's territory. I'll give him credit—what better place to run than your enemy's backyard?
I slap her chair in excitement. She scolds me instantly.
"How the hell am I going to return the favor? Keep me posted if he moves, will you?" Grinning, I return my gaze to her monitor and feel something twist in my chest. Something stronger than excitement.
"I've been babysitting the feed since I found him." She sighs. "But sure, I can do it. Before you go—"
