Page 37 of The Editor’s Choice

I tighten my grip around her, adoring the feeling of her body close to mine. “It’s nothing,” I say sheepishly, not being used to having someone’s appreciation. In my line of work, most things go unnoticed unless you fuck something up. As long as you’re doing everything you’re supposed to, you remain a ghost.

She pulls back, a look of frustration crossing her face. Her eyebrows are pinched together as she considers what to say. “That’s bullshit,” she starts, diving right in. “This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me.”

“Well, you’re welcome. You deserve it. I wasn’t really sure how to help, and this was the first thing that popped in my head, so here we are,” I say, feeling like I need to explain. “I didn’t feel like you would want to talk much, so I thought maybe this would help ease your mind when you were ready to face the world again.”

I can see the stress leave her body as she sighs, even though her eyes are still lost and watery. She looks tired but a little less panicked now. As she looks back into my eyes, I can see the relief filter in. I just pray that relief isn’t as short-lived as I fear it may be.

“Seriously. Thank you,” she repeats, hugging me again. “It means the world to me that you took the time to do this for me, just to give me something to smile about after the rain stopped.”

“I would burn down the entire world just to put a smile on your face, Jade. Without a single shred of remorse.”

She takes the words in stride, not really absorbing the depth of their truth. The words fall on her ears as an empty promise, meaning no more than the breath they were spoken on.

“Eat,” I say, taking her soft hand and leading her to the bed. Once she gets comfortable, I place the tray in front of her and watch as she picks at the food. “Eat,” I say again, more stern this time. “We have some things to do today, and you’re going to need your energy.” I wave away her questions as she begins to eat more enthusiastically.

However, if she knew what I have in mind, I don’t think she would be in such a hurry. Just because I said we have things to do doesn’t mean they’re going to be enjoyable in the slightest. But necessary all the same.

I can’t have her being caught for Emily’s murder so we need to cover her tracks quickly. The police aren’t doing much in the way of investigating right now, but should a tip come in or a detective get a wild hair, it wouldn’t be all that hard to find out the truth. Hell, I did it fairly quickly with just a few resources.

She pulls me back to reality, asking what we need to do once again. “I’ll explain on the way, but you have to finish your breakfast first.”

***

It’s an unusually crisp fall morning as we make our way toward James’s office. It takes about an hour to drive there, assuming there’s not a lot of traffic. Lucky for us, there weren’t many people on the road today. As we exit the Audi, I zip my jacket up to my chin to beat off the chilly breeze as Jade wraps her arms around her chest.

Watching her hair blow in the breeze as the red and yellow leaves fall behind her makes me wish we were anywhere but here. A quiet walk through the park, a picnic once the sun comes out to warm the air a bit. Anywhere else.

But this is a necessary evil. I just wish the churning in my stomach would relax before I hurl up the breakfast I scarfed down before leaving her apartment. I’m not entirely sure how this meeting will go, considering she’s the one who murdered his best friend’s daughter, but I don’t have anyone else to turn to. No one I trust at least. If we’re going to get out of this mess, I need James on my side.

Trusting my gut, I tap on the metal door, watching a few flecks of rust make their way to the ground. The building looks entirely abandoned if you don’t know better. It’s not in a great part of town, so it’s a good cover. Most businesses here went under several years ago when the economy went belly up.

The door slowly creaks open, hinges whining loudly. Otto stands behind the door, sinister as ever. His 6’5” form towers above me, even though I’m not short at 6’3” but his entire aura makes him feel like an impenetrable monster. Simply breathing the same air as him is nothing short of terrifying.

I stand frozen, doing my best to keep my breathing completely even. I swear he’s like a dog and can smell fear from a mile away.

“Who’s she?” Otto asks, deep voice reverberating in the empty space of the warehouse. He doesn’t much more than glance at Jade before his full attention is turned back to me.

“A friend,” I answer simply. I can feel her glare burning a hole into the back of my head, but it’s best to not give any information that could ever be used against us, especially when I’m not sure how this is going to pan out. Coming here might have been a colossal mistake.

“Right. Mighty fine friend you’ve got there,” Otto says, hoping to pull a reaction from me to give us away. When I step back and extend my hand in a ‘go ahead’ gesture, she nearly unravels with fury, though she keeps her face mostly calm and collected.

Instead, he steps aside, ushering us further into the dusty building, away from the safety outside these walls. I swallow past the lump forming in my throat, making my way through the empty room to the stairs in the back. The metal creaks beneath our feet as we slowly ascend to the platform of the upper level, overlooking the rest of the warehouse.

With a deep breath, I turn to the wooden door on my right and raise my hand to knock. Three knocks, then wait. Just like every other time I’ve visited. James has a very specific way of doing things and I’ve found it’s best to follow that to the letter, especially if you’re needing to ask a favor.

“Come in,” his gruff voice sounds from behind the door. Turning the knob, I’m nearly knocked over with a wave of anxiousness as I step into the dimly lit office.

James is sitting behind his desk, laptop open in front of him, no doubt tracking some poor soul’s whereabouts. There’s a small lamp with a stained-glass lampshade on the far corner of the desk that Emily picked out for him when she was a child. He told me that story as he relayed my most recent task the last time I was here. The memory makes my mouth go dry.

He looks up at me from behind the screen, a small familiar smile gracing his features. Hell, it even reaches his eyes for once. Until he sees I’m not alone at least. The smile instantly fades, replaced with a scowl and contempt. He’s not a fan of new people, to say the least.

He raises one eyebrow, turning his attention back to me, waiting for answers to questions unasked. “She’s a friend,” I explain. This time, there’s no glare burning into the back of my head. Jade is standing stock-still, terrified of the man before us. And for good reason. “I don’t want to waste any of your time. But we’ve come here to ask a favor.”

This piques his interest, the hostility leaving his eyes. James loves favors. Everything comes with a price. The more desperate you are for the favor, the higher the price. Except this time, he actually owes me so I’m calling in a favor, not the other way around.

Once upon a time, years ago, James himself wasn’t in such a prime position. He was at the end of his rope, nothing left to his name. The small group of men he had built up around him to do his dirty work had left him high and dry when the money ran out. His wife had left him for the man she was having an affair with, citing James never being available as the reason for her infidelity.

Everything he had worked so hard for – literal blood, sweat, and tears – came crashing down around him. The poor man couldn’t even afford to feed himself for a little while.