Page 32 of Fallen to Thievery
He rolledhiseyes atmethen fastened the bandage with a clip. “And you’re my hostage. There is no reason for you to be so nosy.”
I sighed. He was so frustrating. Or maybe it was the fact that I didn’t know what to expect from him next that frustrated me. Would he smile at me? Would he kill me? Or both those things at the same time was also a possibility.
Grayson got up and started a fire. He then proceeded to pitch the tent. While he was busy with that, I decided to start with the food. I took the pot out and two of the dehydrated food pouches. It said mutton casserole on the label. My face scrunched up at the thought of it. I hoped it tasted better than it sounded.
“What are you doing?” His sudden loud tone made me jump.
“I’m starting on the food,” I declared, confused and a little shaken.
He pointed a finger at me. “Don’t you fucking dare. I don’t trust you with the food.” He raised a brow at me. “That’s how you did it, right?”
I couldn’t help the smile that crept onto my face.
“Yeah, I thought so. Now drop it.”
I did as he said, dropping the pouches back into the bag and putting my hands up in mock surrender. I still couldn’t get rid of the smile. It felt good knowing that I bested him.
He looked at me curiously. “What did you use?”
I contemplated whether I should answer. “An answer for an answer. If Hunter’s not your brother, then what is he?”
He sighed, letting his head fall back; clearly frustrated with me. At first, I thought he wasn’t going to answer, so I added, “I’ll take your secrets to my grave.”
Grayson’s eyes sparkled at my dark humour. “His parents took me in when I was young. It was those blue flowers, wasn’t it?”
I chuckled. I liked that I had some leverage over him. “Yes, amongst other things.”
He frowned at me. “What else?”
“Why do you rob banks?”
He glared at me, not liking this game. “We don’t just rob banks. Now what else did you use?”
I lifted my chin in defiance. “No, you haven’t answered my question.”
He sighed and pulled his hand through his hair. “It’s fun, that’s why.”
I gaped at him. “You’re lying! There’s no way you just do it for fun.”
“I’ve answered your question. Now answer mine.”
If he was going to lie, then so would I. “The other ingredient was unicorn poop. Freshly harvested.”
We glared at each other. His mouth quirked up before shaking his head, coming over to start the meal. He added water into the pot and placed it into the fire.
“I wasn’t lying.” He leaned back against a stump, placing his hands behind his head. “We don’t do it for the money. I do it because I enjoy the challenge. We steal gold, art, jewels, artifacts…” he trailed off. “Whatever the wealthy keeps locked away in their most secured safes.” His lips curled upwards. “It makes for an exhilarating experience.”
That couldn’t be true. But looking back, he’d been very unserious in the bank, making an awful lot of snide jokes. “It sure as hell wasn’t fun for me.”
His smile faded. He dropped his arms and eyed me. “It’s not our usual MO. Contrary to what you might think, Princess, we’re not in a habit of taking hostages.” He gave a quick, half smile.
I didn’t know what to think. “So, why did you go through with it? Why not just leave the gold… and me?” I added.
“It was personal.” His mouth was set in a grim line. “The fucker whose gold it was, was moving it the next day. It was our only chance.” He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. “But you’re right. We should have waited. I could have found another way.”
“What did this man do to you?”
His eyes flashed but softened when he looked up at me. “Wasn’t this supposed to be an answer for an answer?”
