Page 19 of In the Dark

“Really?” He scanned my face like he wasn’t buying my shit. Who would? But Callahan must have wanted to see how far I’d go.

So, I took the opportunity. I went up on my tiptoes and pulled him toward me. I needed him caught off guard just enough so I would be able to slide my knife from my long sleeve and jam it into his back. I wouldn’t have much leverage, but if I got just enough, I’d get to his heart or injure him enough that I could slit his throat in the sea.

We stared at one another for a moment as my lips ghosted over his, but when I moaned and lifted my leg to wrap around him, he only hesitated a second longer, his eyes narrowed on me before he gave in.

And damn it, I did too. For a heartbeat, I didn’t want to kill him; I wanted to be consumed by him. His large hands were a familiar heat, gripping my ass with a strength that made me clench and whimper. He flexed his hips, the hard, heavy reminder of his size pressing into me. My eyes fluttered shut, and I relished the way his tongue swept through my mouth like he knew just what I needed … controlling, skilled, and utterly devastating.

I let the knife slide into my palm.

When I stabbed him, I didn’t just push; I used my entire weight to shove us backward. I felt the steel sink into muscle, a sickening jolt that traveled up my arm. I held onto him as we plummeted toward the abyss.

“Fuck. There she is. Always ready for the fight, Viper.” His smile was wild and alive.

I knew before I even hit the water: I might have won a round with him by stabbing him in the back, but I was about to lose the war.

3

Callahan

THE SLICE OF PAIN through my back sent a rush of adrenaline and pure heat through me rather than any sort of fear.

I loved a good fight.

And with Jasmina Ruiz, well, that was an epic bloodbath I would be more than willing to drown in.

My one and only irritation with this one was that she’d ended a kiss I’d been craving since the last time we were together.

She didn’t disappoint either. She’d put her body into it, and I swear I’d felt the desire. That whimper had been real too.

Jasmina didn’t just play her part—she put her whole fucking soul into it. She had a way of pulling me in and taking a bite of my pride, because I’d believed that kiss for a moment.

All before she’d tried to kill me, of course.

When I realized her intention and knew I couldn’t pull us back from the edge, I shoved off the ground because her little ass didn’t calculate that she would have cracked her head on the razor-sharp boulders jutting out beneath us.

I needed her alive and well.

And as we fell, she jerked her knife down, slicing at my back as best she could, so I rammed my arm back to dislodge her grip while I grabbed a fistful of her newly blue hair. “You’re going to regret that, Viper.”

“Doubtful,” she spat right before we hit the water.

Headfirst.

Fuck, that water was cold, and the sting of salt in my wound burned as I fought to dislodge the freaking knife from my body before I got rid of the weight of my coat. I lost track of her as we both struggled to right ourselves underwater.

I knew right away I’d need stitches, and Jameson would be pissed when he saw the wound.

There was something wrong with me in that I was smiling instead of cursing her name—that I was looking for her underwater. When I found her, my hand jerked out to grab her.

Rather to keep her in my sights or to keep her near the surface, I wasn’t sure.

I gripped her winter coat, but she struggled instantaneously. Her hands were on mine, scraping at my fingers, trying to loosen them. So, I grabbed a fistful of her hair, extending her out to arm’s length underwater.

Jasmina, even if she was tiny and looked harmless, was damn good with a knife. Not only that, she had some fight in her, because she was expending a lot of energy. I had to give it to her … She’d gotten one past me for sure.

Of course, now, I was going to watch her struggle. Didn’t she realize I was much more prepared for a battle underwater than she was? I’d take her life, drown her, if she didn’t give in.

She didn’t seem to care. She fought me with every last ounce of her energy. She even reached for another knife that she had hidden at her thigh. I outmaneuvered it right before she sliced my wrist. And then she was thrashing it around until I caught her wrist and twisted enough to make her finally release the handle. We both watched as it sank into the murky depths.