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“I told you we plan to make you pay. That means the whole society. Not just us,” she said, looking back at me again. Her eyes were alight with malice. “Those who haven’t tried to flee are gathering in one of the ritual caverns. I’m sure they’ll take great pleasure in punishing you for everything you’ve done to us.”
I smirked and rolled my eyes upward, amused at the ridiculous theatrics in her little speech. “Torturing and killing me isn’t going to change the fact that I’ve wrecked your whole scheme.”
“No, but it’ll make everyone feel a lot better about what’s coming for us, won’t it?” she said, lips spreading in a mirthless smile. “I know I’d personally enjoy prison a lot more if I knew the person who put me there was dead and buried. I’d enjoy it even more if I knew they died screaming in agony.”
“Got it.” I returned her thin smile. “It’s all a big revenge trip now.”
“You deserve it, you traitorous bastard,” Ali interjected. “Do you even know what you’ve done?”
I cocked my head. “Uhh… is that a serious question? Of course I know.”
“Are you sure? Did you really think about it before you steamrolled over our entire legacy? Because you haven’t just destroyed hundreds of lives. You’ve destroyed your own life, too,” he replied. “All the money, power, and privilege you’ve enjoyed since you were born is about to disappear, because it all came about as a direct result of your family’s society membership.”
“And speaking of your family… what about them?” Zara added. “Do you have any thought for your parents at all? Or your sister? Any remorse?”
I looked out the window. “They aren’t my family anymore,” I said in a low voice.
Amerie was my only family now. She was the only one who mattered to me.
Silence settled over the car. Time stretched. Eventually Zara looked back at me again. “I’d like to offer you an opportunity, Jensen.”
I raised a brow. “Oh, yeah? What sort of opportunity?”
“I know you lied about Piper and Amerie heading to Canada,” she said. “If you tell me where they really went, I think I could convince everyone to go easy on you.”
“What makes you think I lied?”
She let out a silky laugh. “You were so clear about them supposedly heading north. There’s no way you’d volunteer that sort of information to us if it were true,” she said. “That makes it quite obvious that they headed in an entirely different direction. So, are you willing to tell us exactly where it is?”
“No fucking way.” I let out a derisive snort. “You’ve already told me you’re going to kill me for being a traitor. So what could I possibly gain from telling you anything now? Not that I’d ever tell you anyway. Not for anything.”
“Like I said, I think we could work out a way to ensure that everyone goes easy on you in exchange for your cooperation. You don’t have to die.”
“You’re so full of shit. If I actually agreed to this deal and told you where the girls went, you’d immediately go back on your word and kill me anyway,” I said. “Besides, I already told you I won’t give them up. Doesn’t matter what you offer me. It’s not gonna happen.”
Zara sighed. “Well, the offer is on the table until we get back to town. Clock’s ticking.”
I rolled my eyes and looked out the window again. Flashing red and blue lights appeared on the horizon a moment later, followed by the faint wail of sirens. I sat up straight and craned my neck. “Maybe we aren’t going back to town after all,” I said in a taunting tone.
Zara looked over at her husband, eyes wide. “How did they find us so fast?” she said, voice dropping to an urgent whisper.
“Stay calm,” Ali said, slowing the car. “It might not be for us.”
The police car flew past us a moment later, followed by a small silver car. Zara breathed a heavy sigh of relief and leaned back on her headrest. “Thank god,” she murmured.
Ali glanced at her and smiled. “See? We’re still okay for now,” he said. “If an arrest warrant had actually been issued for us, our lawyer would’ve called to tell us.”
Zara nodded and took a deep breath. Her eyes met mine in the rearview mirror a few seconds later. “Not so smug now, are you?” she said in a biting tone. “Are you sure you won’t reconsider our offer?”
“I’m sure,” I said, eyes narrowing.
She slowly shook her head. “Please help me understand, Jensen. How the hell did you end up like this?”
“Like what?”
“A filthy traitor.” Her upper lip curled. “We always saw so much potential in you. To say we were shocked when we realized what you were up to would be an incredible understatement. I can still hardly believe it.”
“You’re seriously claiming the society saw potential in me?” I said, voice dripping with scorn. “That’s bullshit. I was always just a grunt. I wasn’t trusted with anything. Not like Piper and some of the others.”
