It isn’t until I’m seated inside the luxury interior that I start to shake.
Parrish. We found him. But he isn’t with us. He isn’t with us.
“If he dies, I don’t think I’ll ever live a normal life,” Chasm whispers, staring down at his hands. He and Maxx are pressed close on either side of me. I reach down and take his hand in my right one, capturing Maxx’s in my left.
“Here’s what I think,” Maxx whispers, even though keeping his voice down is pointless. This entire car just has to be bugged. I don’t even need the bug detector to figure that out. “He’ll deliver on his promise, but he’s going to want something else in exchange. That’s the part that scares me.”
I glance toward X, and he looks over at me. As soon as he sees the expression on my face, he’s leaning forward and pressing his mouth to mine. His taste mingles with Parrish’s, and, for whatever reason, that soothes me. We kiss, slow and deep, exchanging so much more than physical affection; this is bone-deep, a kiss that cuts right to the core.
As soon as Maxx pulls away, I turn to Chasm, and I take his face in my hand the way Parrish did to me. I kiss him next, and at first, he tries to pull away.
“This isn’t fair to Parrish,” he murmurs, but then he’s grabbing the back of my head, digging his fingers into my hair and kissing me with all of his fear, all of his worry. Once again, his taste mingles with the other two, and a sense of rightness settles in my belly.
I don’t quite understand it in that moment, but that’s okay. It feels good; it calms me.
My initial urge is to panic, but Maxx is right.
I would never have found Parrish if Justin didn’t want me to find him. He gave me the key, and the book; he quoted it to me. This was all planned; I was led here. At any time, he could’ve gone to that house, slipped through the hidden door, and put a bullet in Parrish’s head.
He didn’t.
Because it isn’t Parrish that he wants. He wasn’t lying when he said he didn’t care for the boy either way. He truly doesn’t.
What Justin Prior wants is me, and he knows that if he kills Parrish, he will never have me. Never.
What he can do, however, is keep baiting me, keep me on a leash, convince me to do things that I would never do, like sleep with my sister’s ex-boyfriend. Or throw a typewriter into a car window. Maybe, if he plays his cards right, he could get me to hurt someone.
Perhaps … kill someone.
I exhale sharply, but I can’t stop thinking about what Maxx just said, about Justin needing additional leverage. So … who—or what—is that going to be?
We arrive back at the party, and the very first thing that Raúl does is give me back my pink heels.
Because nothing inside of Justin’s glittering world of shadows is allowed to be anything less than perfect.
The fancy party with all its glittering guests might as well be a gilded cage. I can barely breathe as I stand in that crowd, my arms entwined with both Maxx and Chasm as we watch Justin take the floor in front of the massive screens. He gives a quick presentation on Milk Carton, and then welcomes Seamus up beside him to discuss the merger.
“We’ll have direct access into the lives of every Fort Humboldt Security customer in the entire country,” Justin tells the crowd. From what I can see, it’s made up of people who are equal parts in awe and dripping with jealousy. “This adds more cameras, more raw data, more opportunities to protect our families.”
“More places to spy on people,” Maxx murmurs, but I can’t think about the terrible implications of this app, not right now.
Once Justin is finished with his speech, he approaches me and crooks a finger, drawing me into a tight hug.
“I am so proud of you, princess. So damn proud of you.” He pulls back and presses a warm kiss to my cheek. It almost, almost feels like a true fatherly kiss, like he really loves me the way a good-hearted man would care for his lost daughter. But then I remember that he’s proud of me for finding my lover that he stole and rage sweeps over me a violent wave. “As promised, Parrish is yours. Just stay calm, go home, and wait. You’ll see him soon; you’ll have him home tonight.”
Justin pulls away from me, reaching out to adjust my tiara, and then he heads off to do … whatever it is that the Seattle Slayer does.
I watch him go with a frown on my face, allowing Raúl to once again shepherd us into the limo. Chasm, at least, is able to come with us tonight. We head over to Tess’ together, climbing out and moving inside to find her waiting for us.
