Page 63 of Sinners Reunion

I shake my head. I already know. “I would trust it about as much as I trust Casey Anthony to babysit my future children. Unless you want to wind up in a shitty situation, clench and breathe.”

“Oh,” everyone says.

“Oh my god, shut up,” Kindra whispers as she shuffles forward in that hunched position. “Everybody shits!”

A sound squeaks out of her rear, and we all fight the urge to laugh.

Kindra straightens. “Crisis averted. It was just a touch of gas.”

“At least it doesn’t smell,” Frankie says, and we lose the fight.

But when Gary says he’s off to talk to Jim, the laughter fades. The girls glance at me. It feels like everyone is giving me a chance to call it off and take it back, but I don’t.

I won’t.

I can’t.

Because a part of me wants to see it for myself. Does King actually care? Or has something shifted so horribly that I’m at risk of losing more than a stupid bet?

Before this misfit caravan takes off again, I’ll have my answer.

Chapter Nineteen

King

Bennett and Aven mill about behind the farmhouse. A large fishpond stretches before them. In the distance, horses graze in front of a hazy sunset backdrop. Frogs croak, and Aven laughs at something Bennett says.

I’m too far off to discern the joke, both physically and mentally.

It’s been a long day. The women were in no state to continue after their booze-laden brunch, save Eve. She stuck to water while the rest of the hens drank themselves dizzy. Once the last bird rises from her nesting box, we’ll let the lot of them have a final scratch in the dirt before we set off again.

“You got any fish in this pond?” Bennett shouts toward me.

I study the vase in his hand. “Indeed. I’d forgo the pond.” I point to a knoll in the distance. “That spot would be much better. The horses might get a nibble of her, but nothing else will.”

“You hear that, Ma? You get to be horse shit now.” He pats the vase and walks away with Aven in tow.

I’m impressed with how Bennett and Ezra have accepted their brother and sister into the fold. The two of them had grown so close via their mutual hatred for their father and their similar hobbies, and I worried they wouldn’t have the space to let anyone else in. Leave it to Jim to show me that they had room for not only their family, but for love lives as well.

My chest tightens as I consider what that final moment will be like when they encounter the man who doesn’t deserve their forgiveness, but who will probably grovel for it anyway. I nudge the dirt with my sneaker.

“Pathetic,” I whisper.

Ice Pick wanders from the farmhouse and starts up the hill toward Bennett and Aven.

I did a little digging into the Ice Pick side quest, just as I said I would, but I spent most of my alone time staring at those pictures again. Then I tortured myself some more by reading the letters a second time. Or was it my third? I’ve lost count. I only know that each time I peek behind the curtain, I grow more and more afraid of how this tragedy might end.

“You ready to head out?” Josie asks behind me. Her footsteps crunch dry grass as she comes closer.

I don’t turn around. “Is someone finally awake again?”

Leaning against an old fence post, I skip a flat rock across the water. Josie steps closer and does the same, but her rock sinks after the first impact.

I steal a few glances as she searches for another stone. A pale pink t-shirt hangs off her shoulder, exposing her black bra strap. Her tiny cotton shorts contain all but the perfect sliver of cheek. I want to get on my knees and bite that supple skin.

“That’s a good one. Down there.” I wiggle my finger at the ground.

Josie bends lower, searching. “I don’t see anything.”