Saint kisses my temple, whispering,‘Stand down’into the earpiece, and my mom puts her hand on my forehead, feeling for a temperature. “Oh, sweetie. Your face is flushed.”
“Don’t say the cooking poisoned you.”
Louisa strolls in, giving me a soft smile.
Barry’s words echo in my mind.
Your sister might think you’re innocent in all this.
“You wish.”
She rolls her eyes from behind Mom, who brings me in for a hug. “There’s always Christmas. I’ll make sure to take it before everyone has eaten,” she says into my hair, giving me a kiss on the cheek before moving to Saint.
My sister walks towards me to bring me in. It’s the same kind as always, except, I brace.
Waiting for the moment the knife stabs into my back. But it doesn’t come. Not physically.
The invisible one she wields is scraping along my spine, trying to find the perfect placement before she plunges it into my heart.
15
Indie
siren sounds (bonus) - tate mcrae
Theentireridetothe motel was silent.
Deathly silent.
The rage that lurked within Saint sucked all the air out within the vehicle, to the point it felt hard to breathe. His knuckles white-gripped the steering wheel, and his face remained motionless whilst he watched the road.
I didn’t dare speak—not that I was scared to, more that he would snap and turn the car back around.
When the car pulls to a stop, I notice the entire parking lot is empty, all bar Saint’s people pulling up in various spaces. The motel booking was a last-minute decision, but everybody needs to get some rest. Apparently, it wasn’t hard to source something, and going by the looks of its exterior, I can tell why.
It looks like a rundown piece of shit, and it’s in the middle of nowhere. It screams complimentary murder.
Saint pulls the gun from the centre console, tucking it in his waistband as he exits the car. Barry’s words keep playing in my mind. They’ve been watching us. They know where the Pit is.
How much else do they know? Ultio is entirely secret, and I doubt any of his people would be working with the enemy.
And then his threat to me.
I know what he meant: he’s going to kill someone if Saint and Regina don’t turn themselves in.
How can I let the love of my life and my best friend go hand themselves in directly to the Omnia? I’d never see either of them again.
And the manor…they seem to think it was Regina in there with Saint, not me.
Something isn’t adding up, and I can’t wade through the shit in my head to find the answer. The biggest is why Barry doesn’t wantmeto turn myself in with them both?
I’m the one who killed his buddies.
Saint opens my door, and I click the seatbelt and slide out, scanning across the area. We’re at least three hours out of Harriston. Where we are, I have no idea. But the town appears to be a sleepy one, adding to the silence I’ve endured.
When I meet his gaze, he reads my mind immediately. “They’ll rotate to keep watch.”
Forcing down a swallow, I nod, taking his hand as he leads us inside. I don’t worry about my safety as much when I’m with Saint; I know he’d do everything in his power to protect me.
