She shoots me a look.
‘I’d have thought that was assassin one-oh-one.’ I shrug.
‘If you haven’t noticed, I’m no good at any ofthis.’
There’s something painfully raw in the way she says it. Like she really wishes she could excel in the murder business.
I squeeze her hand once. ‘At least you noticed what she’s doing, that’s got to count for something in the sneaky assassin handbook.’
She shrugs.
Behind us, laughter carries down the corridor. Eddie’s voice rising over it. Like he owns the place.
My stomach tightens.
Whatever’s going on in this house, I’m no longer convinced Maggie’s imagining it.
17
MAGGIE
Sleep doesn’t come.
And neither do I. Which is bugging me. Usually, a quick fumble in the dark with myself clears my head, and I can’t do that while Roman is in my bed.
It might be a bit much to ask him to go into the bathroom so I can rub one out. Or maybe he’d prefer to stay…
No, Maggie. Stop it.
Roman is stretched out on the bed, his shirt riding up and exposing an expanse of stomach that is making my horn-haze even worse.
‘I can’t just ignore it. She crushed something, and it didn’t look like a vitamin to me.’
‘It still could be. Maybe your dad doesn’t like to take pills.’
‘He’s not a bloody five-year-old.’
He rolls towards me and sets those lash-framed eyes on me. ‘What are you thinking, exactly?’
‘I’m thinking we go investigating,’ I say. ‘Everyone will be in bed, so it shouldn’t matter if we need to bust the cabinet open.’
His mouth curves. ‘You’re going to break into a cabinet in your own house?’
‘I need to know what’s going on, and lying here isn’t helping. My head’s a mess.’
There’s a pause before he sighs, swinging his legs off the bed. ‘Fine. But if we get caught, I’m blaming you.’
‘I’ll take the full blame, I promise.’
We creep through the corridors like hedgehogs on a garden snack run. The house is mostly silent, the odd distant TV rumbling from behind closed doors.
The locked cabinet is still locked when we get there. Naturally.
Roman peers into the keyhole. ‘You’re sure you’re no good at picking these things?’
‘I once failed to open a child-proof bottle for a good twenty minutes.’
He laughs. ‘At least I know how to open those.’
