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I’m confident Alastair is here with Jo and Vinny, but where does that leave me?
It doesn’t matter, because if he’s here he’s going back to Death Row.
My mind is a mess as I pull up outside the cabin and kill the engine. This is why getting involved with anyone associated with an active case is a bad idea. The lights are on, so they aren’t exactly hiding. I seriously doubt anyone aside from Jo and Vinny would be out here right now.
I grit my teeth as I climb out and head to the door, fingering my gun. If they’ve sided with the killer, this could become an ambush I’m walking right into.
But if there’s a chance this isn’t about killing and instead what’s left between the three of them, I can’t make myself bring my team. Jo and Vinny invited me into their world for however brief of a time, and I can’t look away from it.
I’ve turned weak because of a couple who got beneath my skin. Sleeping with them isn’t something I regret, but I have a feeling it’s going to bite me in the ass before the end of the night.
As I reach the door I take out the gun, knowing I can’t just casually walk in like we’re all good friends. Alastair is an armed and dangerous man, and if he thinks he’s about to go back to prison, he might turn on the two of them. Even if they don’t suspect it.
I haven’t touched the handle yet when it opens, shifting back to point the gun at the person opening. I half expect it to be Alastair ready to do whatever it takes to break out of here, but it’s Vinny.
He has a gun in his hand and although he has it angled at me he doesn’t look prepared to shoot it. His dark eyes bore into mine when he speaks. “Sterling.”
“Move out of the way, Vinny. I know he’s in there.”
His eyes glance past me at the empty front yard. “You came alone?”
“Why would I tell you that?”
He’s quiet for a moment before a smirk spreads across his face. It’s not a happy look, his eyes full of sadness. “Because you know this is the end.”
I narrow my gaze, a grunt catching my attention in the silence and my eyes widen a split second later.
No.A moan.
“Put the gun down,” he tells me, pushing open the door. “If you’re here, I’m sure the rest of your team will follow. We have to make the most of the time that’s left.”
I don’t move, staring into the room. Alastair has Jo leaning over the back of the couch, her knees resting on the cushions as he pounds into her. It surprises me enough that the gun dips a little as I stare at them.
She’s smiling, her moans growing louder like she’s not trying to hide them anymore now that I can see. She twists against the back of the couch to look up at him, and he bends to meet her lips, completely ignoring me.
“Get inside Sterling,” Vinny says again, and I turn and glare at him. “Don’t look so offended. You’re already involved.”
My eyes drift between him and the couple, trying to decide how the hell this doesn’t bother him. He’s missing his shirt but the rest of his clothing is in place, like he was either playing with them or just got dressed again. “Why doesn’t this bother you?”
He raises a brow, nodding inside, and Jo’s moans distract me again. I look over at them; Alastair’s hand has moved from bracing the couch to wrapping around her throat. Her eyes widen, but they are only staring at each other and not atus. “Because I’ll do anything for my wife, Sterling, even if it’s revisiting the past.”
“He’s a serial killer,” I hiss, wondering when that hold will turn to a strangle. Neither of us are all that close to them. He could kill her in an instant. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
“Jo’s comfortable with him,” he tells me, like that dissolves all other problems. “She’s living in the moment, Sterling, like you need to. We know this can’t happen again.”
There’s resignation in his voice. He must know that the FBI would eventually piece together that this cabin exists. It’s on the list of Massimo Ajello’s properties, one of the only pieces of land he claims and it’s close to where Porscha was found. It was only a matter of time.
If Alastair runs, we’d catch him. Even if he managed to take another hostage or turn on the three of us, he’s not escaping from here. Taking a car would just put a target on his back, and as I study the movements of his hips I notice a blood-soaked bandage on his leg. He’s injured. He wouldn't be able to run far.
“You can arrest both of us if you’d like to once we’re done, Sterling,” Vinny continues, and I feel myself go on the alert when he reaches past me to close the door. “Just leave Jo out of the mix. You’re already a part of us. You can reap the benefits for the next few minutes before we go down for this, or you can stand in the corner and watch.”
So, Vinny is just as fucking crazy as Alastair it seems. He keeps his eyes on me while he goes for the waistband of his pants, and without Jo in between us, embarrassment rolls through me. I avert my eyes, clearing my throat.
I worked my entire life for this job. I don’t know that throwing it away for a moment of weakness is worth it when all three of them might end up hating me.
“Gun, Sterling,” Vinny coaxes, and I glance back at him. I can feel the back of my neck burning but, like always, Jo’s husband looks undisturbed with the chaos around us. Her cries grow louder, and I can’t imagine how the hell she’s supposed to contend with two let alone three of us. Two seemed like so many the last time they dragged me in. “Put it aside, and then you can join. We three might be enemies outside these walls, but right now, we can put that aside for her sake.”
He kicks off the pants and I swallow, unable to move. As he turns and walks back to them, I wonder when Vinny decided to dedicate his entire life to Jo’s happiness. I’d say it was the day she almost died, but it feels like even longer than that. I can’t help but study the lines of his body as he circles to the other side of the couch. Alastair releases her throat without question, and I can hear Vinny muttering something in Italian to his wife but it’s too soft to make out the words.