Page 62 of Behind the Shadows

Only then did I notice the gloves. She’d been wearing them the whole time, but I hadn’t even paid attention.

The lifeless corpse at her knees was leaking a slow, syrupy trail of red into the cracks between tiles. It struck me that neither of us had called the dead man by name.

“Why did you kill someone?” She returned to her chair and sank into it.

“When I was young, my sister and I were kidnapped and woke up in a cell.”

To my surprise, Ella flinched and her back stiffened. Had she lived through something similar?

I continued, trying to mask the amount of pain I was feeling as I shared with her, “We were sold for sex, starved, and beaten. My sister died there, but I killed someone and ran for my life. That man’s brother is hunting me. He found me at Velvet Vortex one night, and Kip helped me out of a bad situation.”

Ella tilted her head. “Is he still in town or did Kip handle the situation?” She added air quotes to the word handle.

I understood what she meant. “I’m not sure if he’s still in town or not, but my guess is yes.”Unless he followed my parents.

“Have you shared all of this with Kip? You’re not just kissing my ass in order to live?” She gave me a soft smile. “I can read people really well too. I worked for a defense attorney that represented some of the biggest mastermind criminals in the US. For some reason, not only do I believe you, but I already like you.” She stood and pushed her chair under the little table. “I’d better check on the guys. They’re awfully quiet.” She began to walk away, then looked over her shoulder at me. “I highly recommend that you don’t run, Holland. It won’t go well for you. With me on your side, I might be able to talk Death off the ledge. Maybe.”

The second she left the room, my gaze snapped to the front door.

And for the first time, I let myself wonder.

Could I make it out before one of them decided I was next?

26

KIP

“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?” Death asked, pacing the small bedroom.

I checked my watch for the fifth time, wondering if Holland was still alive, or if Death had given Ella a signal to kill her. I’m not sure my timing had ever been so shitty. When I’d kidnapped Holland, I had no idea that Death and Ella were hunting in the area. Holland had been my dirty secret. One I had zero intention of sharing until we’d figured some shit out.

“I have a life outside of what we do.”

Death’s low, dark chuckle echoed through the space. “You mean kill people and clean the scenes?”

“Yeah.” I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.

“She saw Ella’s face and the body we brought with us. My first thought is to let Ella deal with it.”

I closed the gap between us and got in his space, my chest heaving. “No. That’s not an option. I’ll vouch for her, but no one is laying a hand on her.” I stood my ground. It was rare that I ever went toe-to-toe with him, but this situation called for a no bullshit stance. “No one will hurt her now or ever.”

A wicked smile pulled at the corners of Death’s mouth. “Interesting. You’re in love with her.”

That wasn’t what this was. Love alone didn’t claw at your insides until you couldn’t breathe without her scent in the air. I lay awake at night, fists clenched, body shaking with the need to own, to consume, to cage just to keep her safe from the world.

What I felt for Holland was more. Darker. Addiction. Obsession. A hunger that had lived in me since the first time I thought she’d died in my arms. She wasn’t a woman to me anymore—she was a need. My need. My possession. My ruin. But I’d never admit that to Death. He wouldn’t understand. He would see it as weakness. So I gave him the easy answer.

I stepped away. “Something like that. It’s a long story. I met her briefly when we were kids.”

Soft footsteps approached and then Ella appeared, leaning on the door frame. “You knew her before she was kidnapped?”

Surprised that Ella had that information, I shot her a pointed look. “How do you know?”

Ella gave me a gentle smile as she walked in and sat on the edge of the bed. “Holland shared some things with me. Who she killed, how she knew you. Ya know, chit-chat between new friends.” Her attention turned to Death. “If Kip vouches for Holland, I’d like to give her a chance. I just gave her an opportunity to run, so if she’s still here in another sixty seconds, she’s either too terrified to take off, or she wants to be here for Kip. She might make a good addition to the group. Something inside me says she’s safe.”

I exhaled. I wanted to hug Ella, but Death had to get on board before I could feel any real peace.

Death approached Ella, slid his arm around her shoulders, and asked, “Do you trust her?”