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Blake obeys, but the look on his face suggests this is a hill he’s willing to die on, and I get it. He’s one of the criminals recruited by Saber, and the military faction of the Keep hasn’t always been accepting of them. Hunter’s potential execution puts a lot at the feet of Blake, Gabriel, Atticus, and the others that were recruited from the pen.
“We need answers.” Cole lifts a remote and brings a map of the city up on the screen. “If it is Hunter, and I’m fairly certain it is, something triggered him. He could have gone after any one of us, but he didn’t, and we’re not seeing other sections of the city with this type of butchery.”
“What if he was hiding his kills initially?” Trent asks. “And he’s just gotten comfortable.”
Cole shakes his head. “That’s not it. We need answers, and the only way to get them is to get close. I’m having you guys double up. Whoever I assign to Hunter will have the job of getting as much intel out of him as possible to help figure out what the fuck he’s doing and why the fuck he’s doing it.”
I raise my hand. “I volunteer.”
His eyes narrow at me. “This might be a long mission. I was thinking of pairing him with someone who’s still single.”
“You might as well pick me then,” I say, figuring it’s better to air my dirty laundry myself than to have people whispering about me.
The room goes silent because the situation is awkward as fuck for everyone. Then, the smirks manifest.
I guess I’ll always be a chump.
It’s Caspian that speaks first. “I thought you and Brit—”
Dane cuts in with, “It’s none of your fucking business.”
Caspian’s grin widens, and I know it’s because he thinks he finally has a chance with her. And who knows, maybe Britney will like him. She’ll be looking for someone now that she knows how good sex can be. Why not him?
The thought makes me clench my fists, but there’s only one person to blame for this: me.
“It makes sense that it’s yes, Alistair,” Cole says, leaning back in his chair. “He accompanied you to Brit’s house and encouraged your actions.”
Several pairs of eyes shift to me, but Cole offers no additional explanation.
“I’ll head out after you tell me which quadrant he’s in.”
“You understand that this is a fact-finding mission, don’t you?” Cole asks. “Any hard feelings you might have get left here at the Keep. We need cold, hard intel, and don’t you dare make a move without my authorization.”
“Understood.” I nod. “I made my bed, chief. Now just tell me where to go.”
“Be ready on the hour.”
* * *
BRITNEY
“I just don’t know how to feel.” I blot my eyes with a tissue and take a shaky breath. “God, there’s gotta be something wrong with me.”
Brooke places a hand on my shoulder. “I get why you’re confused, but there’s nothing wrong with you. You’ve been through real trauma.”
“But my emotions are all mixed up. I thought you’d understand with what you’ve been through, but I don’t think anyone can.”
“Sweetheart, you’re entitled to your emotions and I don’t fault you for them. I’ll be honest, Alistair is the last man here I’d expect that from. Well, maybe Atticus would be, but that’s beside the point. I’m not saying you have to be cool with what happened, but would you care if Alistair had done that to some random guy that hurt you and not your father?”
I look her in the eyes and confess my shame. “I don’t think you understand why I’m so upset.”
“Then tell me. I’m all ears.”
“I’m upset because…I’m glad that he did it. That I want my father to suffer. I don’t even want him dead. I want him in eternal agony for what he did to me and what he did it for. Fucking booze and cheap tricks.”
Brooke’s lips twitch to the side. “Oh-kay, but if you’re okay with it, why did you end up at my door last night?”
“Because I’m ashamed. Nothing bad happened to me at Frank’s. I was never raped, and I came here unmolested. Heck, I’m still a freaking virgin. I have nothing to complain about, and yet, I sit here seething, hating my father so much that I want him tortured.”
