Page 139 of Deceptive Games

He was quiet for a second before sighing. “I went to check in with Lexi at Wet Dreams. Heard she married Archer. Hell’s Demons showed up and Justin Lopez, their leader, lost his fucking shit when he saw the ring on Lexi’s finger. He’s obsessed with her. Probably the reason Lexi married Archer in the first place. Means the crew have to protect her from the Demons. In most crews, marriage means something.”

It was refreshing to actually get information since I was usually left in the dark.

“Is Lexi okay?”

“Yeah, she wasn’t hurt. Reapers lost a few men, and we have some injuries, but the Demons were massacred. They’re all dead.”

I paused, giving him my attention to find him already watching me.

“You took out an entire crew?”

“The Demons weren’t as big as the rest of us. There were less than fifteen of them, so us and the Reapers versus them? They had no chance.”

“You got shot.”

“Archer’s right-hand got me. He’s a fucking snake,” he chuckled, worrying me slightly.

“Will you guys go to war now?”

“Not at the moment. I’ll keep it for a rainy day. My beef with the Reapers has never had anything to do with crew wars, and everything to do with Lexi. I fucking hate how Archer treats her, but it’s not like he’s abusive. He just doesn’t deserve her, and since I give a shit about her, I like to remind him of that.”

“Why don’t you date her then?”

“I don’t love her like that. Besides, even if I did, she’d never let him go. They grew up together and he has his hooks in her. Girls do dumb shit for guys they love,” he said dryly, reaching out to touch my shoulder but stopping himself when I jerked back. “Did Skeet do this?”

I glanced down at the scar on my skin, shrugging. “Yeah. If you know him well enough, then you know it wasn’t done in a violent way.”

“I spent years teaming up with him in the bedroom, so I know,” he murmured, and I shivered as his fingers brushed across it. “He likes to pretend he’s not the most damaged in theroom by leaving a trail of destruction in his wake. Don’t let him destroy you.”

“How do you know I’m not already the most damaged?”

“Eyes don’t lie. There’s life in yours, despite all the things the world has put you through. Skeet, though? There’s nothing good left in him.”

“You’re wrong,” I whispered, taking a step back once I finished patching him, tossing the bloodied towel aside. “He might have jagged edges, but damage can be beautiful too.”

“You love him?”

“I could, but he’d never let me,” I answered, startling when Marco spoke from the doorway.

“A siren is beautiful too, but they’ll still pull you under and drown you. Don’t let his monsters suck you in, Princess. Those pretty, jagged edges will cut you to pieces,” he warned, assessing my doctor duties with a satisfied nod. “Not bad.”

“Why did you shoot him?” I asked Hunter as he stood, grabbing his arm when he didn’t say anything. “Please. I want to understand. What the hell happened between you guys?”

Marco’s face showed zero emotion, but Hunter gave me a small smile.

“Maybe I’ll tell you one day. Right now, I need to wipe the cameras for you and sort out my bike.”

“They can’t know you were here, and this is the last time I’m helping you. Don’t come here again,” I said as I released him, and he nodded.

“Secret’s safe with me, Hot Shot. Thanks.”

I followed them downstairs to make sure they left, before heading back up to my room to clean up the mess, a scream leaving me as I found Slash standing in the bathroom with his arms crossed.

“You want to tell me what game you’re fucking playing? I’ll give you one second to tell me the truth before I drag your ass to the Shed and let the guys deal with you.”

“Slash—”

“Time’s up,” he bit out before grabbing me by the jaw and yanking me closer with a snarl. “I told that prick not to trust you.”

“Wait, please?—”

“I’m done waiting,” he answered bitterly before putting me in a chokehold and squeezing until my vision went black and I went limp in his hold.