Page 157 of The Complete Truth Duet
My entire body strained, swelling until I feared that it would rip free of my skin. My hands ached, and the same burning Cora had tamed within me was back and thrumming with need to—
“Enough,” Drew growled, joining the conversation.
My gaze jumped to him, searching for a clue—any fucking clue—to what was truly going on, but his face was an empty and emotionless pit.
He shoved at Thomas’s arm. “Get that fucking gun out of my face. I did it, okay? You want Catalina? There she is. But this is done—do you understand me? You forget about me. Both of you. I want no fucking part of this anymore.” He planted his hands on his hips and stared at the floor. “I’m sorry, Shane. But I can’t live like this. It’s not worth this shit. I gotta get out of this life. The running, the hiding. The constant looking over my shoulder. I might as well go back to prison if that’s how I’ve gotta live my life. I just want it over. I need it over.”
And then he finally looked up at me, his dark gaze hitting mine with all the gentleness of a sledgehammer.
Oh, yes. I knew Drew Walker.
We’d met in college at MIT. He was two years younger than I was, studying mechanical engineering. The kid was so fucking smart that, in the five years it took me to graduate, he’d caught up and we’d walked across that stage together. He was livid when he’d found me in bed with his sister and refused to speak to me for a whopping six days. But when we graduated and I moved her back to Florida, he bought a house two blocks away. And on the day I slid a ring on her finger, vowing until death do us part, he’d been not only my best man but also her man of honor.
Drew Walker was sewn into the fabric of my life.
I would never for the rest of my life forget the look on his face the night we shook on our commitment to find and kill the man responsible for Lisa’s death.
As I held his gaze from across the room now, it was that same ruthless determination staring back at me—and this time, he really was done.
The hairs on my arms stood on end and my chest caved in on me, but before I could utter a single syllable, Drew spun, pulled a knife from the back of his pants, and, in one fluid movement, carved a horseshoe across Thomas’s neck.
Blood exploded from his skin. Shock registered on his face, and his hands went up to his throat as though he could stop it.
I wanted to gawk as he fell to his knees, relishing in his pain.
I wanted to watch the crimson blood seep from his throat as he coughed and gurgled, unsure if he would drown or bleed to death first.
I wanted to squat in front of him and stare into his eyes as the life slipped from his eyes.
I wanted twenty-nine minutes to make him suffer.
But I was willing to settle for twenty-nine seconds of watching him die.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t have either.
Cora was there, her sweet, soft body trembling at my back. And I was more concerned with Manuel’s reaction and the bullets that were about to soar through the air than I was basking in revenge.
I swung my gaze to Manuel. Waiting and ready for my window to take him down.
Manuel was smiling wide though. “Jesus Christ, Walker, could that have possibly taken you any longer?”
Drew replied, “Do not fucking start with me, old man. I have no patience with your bullshit. You showed up fifteen fucking minutes early. I barely got back from dropping the kids off at the movies in time. I told your ass last night to be here at eight.” Cool, casual Drew turned his eyes my way. “Oh, hey, Shane. FYI, I took the kids to the movies. I know you said you didn’t want them out of sight, but I didn’t want them here for this.”
I blinked and then rumbled, “And what the fuck is this, exactly?”
Catalina caught my attention as she stepped away from her father. “Cora, you okay?”
“Um…no. No, like no…nothing. I have no idea,” she rambled, remaining tight at my back.
Wiping the handle of the knife on his shirt, Drew walked over to Manuel and then traded him weapons.
“Perhaps, next time, you can get me a fucking gun that actually has bullets,” Manuel grumbled.
“Never trust a felon, Manny. I believe you were the one who taught me that.” Drew winked, curling Catalina into his front.
I just stood there blinking, my head pounding as I tried to figure out what the hell was happening.
“What is going on?” Cora whispered.
I had no fucking idea.
Blood was everywhere.
Thomas was keeled over to the side, facedown in a puddle.
