Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
"Aw fuck, man. Sorry," he says, a look of what I read as genuine sympathy in his tone.
I swipe at tears on my cheeks, unsure of what else to do.
I'm usually so much better than this while undercover. This man has gotten my head so fucked up, I can't even think on the fly any longer. Not being able to do so is fucking deadly.
"She was a bitch," I manage.
"But still your mom," Scott says as if he has lived the same story.
"Did you need something?" Zeus asks as he crosses the room to sit on the little sofa.
"Wanted to tell you both to wear clothes you don't mind ruining today," he says.
"Got it," I say, clearing my throat. "Thanks for the heads-up."
Scott looks between the two of us a second time before walking back out and closing the door behind him.
I turn and stare at Zeus. I don't know where we go from here. Do we attempt to get out? Do I use the stashed burner phone to contact Cerberus and ask for advice? Do we simply show up at the meeting and presume that everything is fine?
Did Scott believe our story?
Is he too high to even consider something other than the lie that was told?
Have we given him any other clues to think in the direction that would lead him to the truth?
He looks back up at me, a slight shake of his head.
"We're fine," he mouths.
I dip my head, wanting to believe it, needing to believe that one second of weakness on my part, my inability to reject him, will lead to not only the women here not being rescued, but also our deaths.
I look toward my duffel bag, knowing the burner phone is in there, and back to Zeus.
He shakes his head, once again mouthing those two words of assurance.
I want to believe that he's trusting his gut and that it's not his ego that's making him believe that we didn't just fuck up so royally that we're going to be walking into a meeting thinking everything is fine when it's really just the beginning of our end.
I pull in another deep breath.
"Think we could get some time to go to the funeral?" Zeus asks, giving more life to his lie, despite there being no conversation prior to Scott barging in here, that it's the truth.
"I don't even want to go. Just fucking drop it," I say, letting him know that we need to put an end to the entire conversation.
The best outcome is Scott forgetting what he saw and heard, or thinking that telling people about my poor, dead mother is a waste of his time. They don't really seem like the type of people to gather around a suffering member, so maybe the lie stays between the three of us.
"Sounds good," he says as he stands. "Let's get ready for this meeting."
"What do you think we'll be doing that we need clothes we can ruin?" I ask, releasing a breath and trying to calm down.
"No clue," he says as he steps around me, giving me a wide berth as if he's scared Scott is going to pop his head into the cabin a third fucking time just to try and catch us doing something wrong. "Probably something with shovels and sewer."
I scrunch my nose and fake a cough.
"Yeah," he says as he pulls clothes from his duffel. "That's not gonna work."
I feel no less calm as we walk toward Bobby's area of the compound. But I do have enough experience working under pressure that I'm certain there are no external clues in my behavior that would make anyone suspicious.
I wave to people as I pass and stop to talk to Chris when he walks toward us.
"Have a good night?" he asks, glancing between Zeus and me.
I know that Zeus is sticking close because of what we might be facing. He'd usually walk ahead of me, his refusal to wait for anyone a part of the role he's playing.
"Why do you ask?"
He looks back at me, pulling his eyes off Zeus as if he's curious about the man, but would never be brave enough to ask him questions.
"Sable," he whispers as he leans in closer. "Heard it was a good night... for both of you."
"Word travels fast," I say, chuckling uneasily.
If they're talking about last night, then either someone who was listening is chattering about it, or Sable was put in a position that she had to talk about it with someone. Either way, it puts a spotlight on us that won't bring anything but bad news.
"What kind of man asks another man how he fucked," Zeus growls.
I fight a grin when Chris takes a step back at the ire in my partner's voice.
He holds his hands up near his ears, a terrified look in his eyes.