Page 73 of Nitro

“Hit all the major forums and news sites. I want that video everywhere. The whole thing. God fucking dammit.” Scar paces back and forth in front of the television.

“Okay, it’s out there,” Matrix says.

“Throw up a few opinion polls. Let’s see if this is having any impact on the governor’s race,” Scar says.

“It’s probably too early to tell,” I say.

“Yeah, but at least we can monitor it throughout the weekend.” Scar’s phone beeps. He checks it. “I’ve got to take this.”

After he goes outside to answer, the rest of us sit mute. I’m numb. My whole body feels separate, like I’m outside of it, watching my thoughts from a distance. It doesn’t even seem real. It’s almost as if I’m in a dream … or a nightmare.

“I can’t watch this anymore.” Talon shoves an uneaten plate of lemon pepper chicken wings away.

“Me either.” Reaper stands and starts to gather up the snacks the girls left us. I join him. I need something to do. Otherwise, I’m going to lose my shit.

Once we’re alone in the kitchen, Reaper turns to me. “We need to kill Blackstone.”

“I know, but every time we’ve tried to get close to him, something goes wrong. He’s too well guarded.”

“We need another plan, someone on the inside, someone who knows what he is and is willing to stop him.”

“How the hell are we going to find someone like that?” I ask.

“Matrix could get a list of all of Blackstone’s employees. We’ll go through it and see which ones are most likely to turn on him. People with kids. People close enough to get to him without being overly suspicious.”

“We tried that once. Our contact vanished. She’s probably dead because of us.”

“She was a bad choice. We were too reckless and didn’t realize she couldn’t carry out the mission without being caught. Also, Blackstone had eyes and ears in places we never suspected. We know more now. We’ll be better prepared this time.”

“Are you willing to risk another innocent person?” I ask.

“If that’s what it takes to protect countless kids, hell yeah I am.” Reaper’s gaze darkens. “How can we go on living like this? As long as he’s out there, we can’t ever be free.”

“But we are free and we’re helping as many people as we can.” I finish covering the dishes with plastic wrap then put them in the fridge for later.

“It’s not enough.” Reaper shakes his head before repeating, “It’s not enough.”

“We don’t know how this is going to play out. The video was just released today. The full version hasn’t been out for more than maybe ten minutes now. Let’s wait and—”

“I’m sick of fucking waiting.” Reaper stalks past me.

I follow him into the living room where Talon and Matrix are still sitting on the couch. Before I can stop him, Reaper opens the front door, goes outside, then slams it. I pull up short.

“He’s going to go kill something, for sure,” Talon says.

“Nah. Right now, there’s no one we need to kill other than Blackstone. Reaper will go to one of the underground fights in Butte. That’ll calm him down,” Matrix says.

“What about you? Are you calm?” I ask in a tight voice.

“Fuck no! But running around like chickens with our heads cut off isn’t going to solve anything. I’m working the optics of the video. I’ve got chatbots in all the big forums spreading the news that Blackstone’s a pedophile. People are latching onto it. Nobody’s going to believe him once they see the whole video. He’s clearly talking about child trafficking.”

“What can I do to help?” I need to do something. Standing around is making my blood pressure go through the roof.

“Grab an extra laptop. You can respond to comments.”

Daisy’s laptop is in the kitchen, so I go and grab it. It’s pink and super girly, but I don’t give a shit right now.

“What’s her password?” I ask Matrix.