Page 72 of Arranged Scars
Fuck, it feels so good. I pant and try to get enough air. He kisses me, biting my lips, tasting me, devouring me. I stretch my arms up with a silly, stupid, heady grin.
“I should come out to Queens more often,” I say, smirking like an idiot.
And Finn laughs. It’s not one of his fake laughs, but something real from deep inside his chest. I love that sound. He’s light and bright, glowing and happy. I hug myself to his strong body, and I think we can do this. I think that if we stick together, we can pull this off, and afterward? I don’t know what’ll come next. I don’t think I care anymore.
So long as we’re doing it together.
27
FINN
Iyank the ski mask over my face. Liam casually straps on a bulletproof vest and pulls on a hoodie. He glances at me and laughs. “You look fucking stupid.”
“Shut up, idiot.” I shove his mask into his hands. “Put it on.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He yanks it over his face and strikes a pose. “I bet it makes me look dashing.”
I decide to ignore him as I do one last check of my gear. Rifle, pistol, grenades, extra ammo, ceramic-plated vest, and black bags for grabbing loot.
The van hits a pothole and I almost lose my balance. “Sorry!” Caroline says from the driver’s seat. “I’m not used to this big thing.” She keeps her eyes on the road as I exchange a look with Liam. He shrugs, unconcerned, and I shuffle forward so I can talk to her in a low voice.
“You sure you’re good with this?”
“My job’s easy.” She glances at me in the rearview. “Seriously, I’ll be fine.”
“When we come out, don’t hesitate. The second we’re in the back?—”
“I know, I know. Drive like crazy out of the city. We’ll keep a low profile for a few days.”
“My family already knows we’re taking a trip. As far as they’re concerned, I checked into the hotel an hour ago. There are several well-paid employees who will say they saw us enter our room.”
“What’s my alibi?” Liam asks with a frown.
“You’re carrying our bags,” I say.
He laughs and nods to himself. “I like it.”
“Seriously, focus up. The second Caroline stops at the poker house, we’re going straight in. You know the plan?”
“I’m on it.” Liam slams a magazine into his rifle and pulls the slide to load a round in the chamber. “Locked and loaded.”
I sigh and sit back. We’re two minutes away. I don’t like the way this is coming together, but I have to admit, the plan’s solid. Only I wish we had more time to prepare.
A lot can go wrong tonight. Liam says there isn’t too much security at these events, but he’s going off second-hand information. Even though Liam’s good at his job, people aren’t always perfectly reliable. If there are more soldiers tonight than usual, or if just one little random stupid mistake happens, this can all blow up fast.
There’s one target though. Dermot Flanagan. That sadistic prick. I rub my wrists where I still have old, faded scars from when he tied me up with old LAN cables and left me in the basement forten hours. I swear, a mouse crawled over my face in the dark. I still fucking hate rodents to this day because of him. I screamed myself hoarse and nearly sawed my own hands off trying to escape. In the end, he let me out himself, laughing like it was some big hilarious joke the whole time.
I keep that night centered in my heart. That’s the reason I’m doing this. Every time my resolve slips, I go back to those days.
They deserve what they’re getting.
But that’s not really my problem.
I watch Caroline drive. She’s locked in and ready. I love the way she concentrates with her entire body. This is the right thing, getting revenge, but did I need to drag her down with me?
She was innocent before me. She says she was always like this, but that’s hard to believe. I’m turning her into something vicious.
A monster just like me.
