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He lied. About all of it.

What the fuck did I expect?

I seize his hair and pull him onto his back. Veins press against his throat as he struggles to breathe, and I straddle him, my knees against his shoulders to keep him pinned.

I squeeze his cheeks and he dribbles, fighting me—but he’s too weak, and, eventually, he opens his mouth. His tongue is swollen and an angry red, and I drop the acrylic nail inside—one from Mercy’s collection from the suitcase they thought was mine.

I shove his jaw closed and cover his mouth with both hands.

Ryker’s eyes widen, and he struggles beneath me. I press harder into his shoulders to keep him down, and he tries to slap me away as he chokes on the poison. He twitches and writhes, but he’s already weak from the suicide plant.

My attention never leaves his face.

It’s a minute at most until he stills.

His eyeballs protrude from his head, permanently open, and I remove my hand just as foam bubbles up his throat and over his lips.

On shaking legs, I stand.

It’s still dark when I step outside. Cold air touches my cheeks, cooling the sweat on my skin, and I sit on the steps. Resting my arms on my knees, my hands dangling, I breathe, slow and steady.

“You good?” I raise my eyes to Charlie and nod. He sits beside me, and for a moment, we’re quiet. It wasn’t easy to convince him to let me do this, but somehow, I did, and he agreed to stay close if I needed him. “What a day, huh?”

I huff a laugh. “Yep. Is Quinn okay?”

“She is. Got it out for me, though. Both professional and personally.” He winks, tucks his hand into his inner jacket pocket, and produces two lollipops. He gives one to me, and we both unwrap them, placing them in our mouths.

“What are you gonna do now?”

He shrugs. “Lie low.”

“What about the business?”

“I’ve got backup in place, don’t worry about me, little Silver. Besides, it’s been a while since I’ve been on the run. It’s kinda peaceful, y’know?”

I suck on the strawberry lollipop. “I really don’t.”

“Living day to day, with one goal—survival.” He shivers, his smile wide. “It’s like going back to nature.” We sit for a while, eating our candy, until eventually, I stretch. “Ready to go home?”

I nod. “I am.”

Chapter 44

Zayden

My throat is dry. My head hurts. Opening my eyes feels impossible, but I do it anyway. I’m not home, but the room feels as homely as a hospital room can be. There are flowers, gifts, cards, a strangely high number of stuffed bears—and someone curled up next to me.

Silence is sleeping, her arm over my stomach, head resting on my shoulder. She’s breathing steadily, and my heart lifts at the sight of her so peaceful. I should wake her, but I can’t. The moment she opens her eyes, she might hate me.

Still, I can’t hide forever, and the sooner we talk, the sooner we get through this.

So, I kiss her forehead, and she pulls in a deep breath. Blinking her eyes open, she looks up.

And bursts into tears.

I want to beg her not to cry, but my throat is too painful, so I let her press her face into my neck and sob, her tears damp on my skin. She kisses my cheek, my jaw, eventually straddling me to kiss my mouth.

“I love you, you idiot,” she mumbles. “I love you so much.”