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I shake my head, glancing back at him. “Alex Grey is so pretty though. Better than Emeric.”
“I take offense to that.”
Al clears his throat, drawing my attention again. I offer him a smile, and he gives me one in return. He has dimples, and immediately I like him just a tiny bit better. “Not Alex. Alastair. Alastair Constantine.”
“He was a kid thrown into the foster system because his mother died,” Vinny says, and I blink as the memory fades. He’s gotten up from the bed too, leaning against the corner of it as he watches me. “He told us that, Jo. If Porscha influenced him, she led him into the abyss. Alastair had problems but not to the scale he does now.”
Is that supposed to make me feel better? I shake my head, turning my attention to the window. It’s raining outside, making the window hard to see out of. “My mom… she made my life hard too. I know she had her grievances with me, but I didn’t think it extended to other people.”
I didn’t think it extended tokillingpeople. I know mom has to be responsible for at least one body, and probably significantly more too.
“You can’t bear the burden of your mothers sins,” Vinny tells me, crossing the room. “You can fight your demons all night, Trauma, or I can take it away for you.”
My eyes drift to the window again. “What if they’re out there right now?”
“Could be. I remember your mother hating storms.”
“She does,” I reply, continuing to stare at the glass. “She used to hide from the thunder and lightning like a kid, but maybe that’s changed over the years. I used to go out and dance in it.”
“Well, if you want to keep believing Alastair is somehow the hero, he might use this time to escape. You know, if they are still together.”
I lick my lips. “If he’s still alive.”
The words hang in the air around us, and Vinny draws me into his side. His fingers trace down one of the scars but it does nothing to distract me from the storm outside.
Tomorrow, Sterling is supposed to meet up with us. Like he’s done for the past weeks, dropping details of the case but mostly just checking in.
“I want you to make me numb,” I tell Vinny, my voice staying soft. “I don’t want to feel anything anymore.”
He hesitates. “Do you want one of the sleeping pills?”
Shaking my head, I turn and trace his lips with my finger. “I want you to make me forget Florida for a few hours. And in the morning I want you to grovel for my forgiveness after that stunt you pulled at your parents.”
His eyes flash in the light, and then his lips open and suck on my finger. Our gazes lock, and he coats my finger in saliva down to the knuckle before I pull back and pop it free.
“You might be my Master in the bedroom,” I say, circling his lips again with the pad of my wet finger. “But you grovel at my altar for forgiveness.”
He smirks. “Whatever you desire from me, Trauma, just say the word. I’ll give you everything I have.”
Chapter 11
Jo is satisfied with slumbering the morning away once she’s calmed down, and I’m still licking my lips when I answer the door some hours later, the coffee maker coming to life in the background.
Xeno is smirking when he spots me. “Have a good night?”
I narrow my eyes. “Why do you ask?”
“Oh, no reason. Jonathan just mentioned they had some fun background noise early this morning.”
Well, Jo wanted the window wide open so it could rain on her while I fucked her. The clouds are still dark overhead, so there’s a good chance it might happen again. She loves playing outdoors, but the idea of chasing her with serial killers lurking somewhere nearby is a little too risky for our tastes.
Alastair? Maybe I’ll let him get near her again, but I might shoot Porscha if I find her on my own. Scratch that, I know I will. I would unload the clip until her stupid head was nothing but mush from the bullets.
“I see you’re still thinking about it,” Xeno continues, and I meet my brother’s amused gaze as I pull myself from the thoughts. “I had the chance to do some snooping downstate. Massimo did have something of yours in his possession.”
My eyes widen when he pulls a book from the interior of his pocket.Love in Lockup.
I groan when I take it from him. “It disturbs me that Echo had this.”