Page 6 of King of Lies (Mayhem Manuscripts Season One: 1nf3ction #6)

August

I slept surprisingly well after the departure of my late-night, and very much uninvited, visitor.

His genuine surprise at my knowing he’d followed me showed him up for the amateur he was.

Or perhaps I was being unfair. Not everyone thought like I did.

And that’s why they scrabbled around in the dirt while I thrived.

Speaking of thriving, I’d eaten a hearty breakfast. The server had seemed surprised when I requested seconds, his gaze running over my trim form as if searching for where I put it.

I ate undisturbed, with no irate customers seeking me out.

Either the rain had stopped before anyone tried out the suppressants, or more likely, with even the richest of them only purchasing two or three, they were saving them for an emergency.

Like I’d told Ellsworth, it would be a while before anyone worked out they’d paid through the nose for a piece of ancient plastic and water.

Did I feel guilty? It was a question I asked myself occasionally, the answer invariably no.

It wasn’t my fault that people’s greed and gullibility made them such easy targets.

I didn’t rob them. I simply offered things they badly wanted to believe in.

A dream, if you like. And they bit my hand off to get it.

If anyone should take a long, hard look at themselves, it should be them.

I liked to think I offered a service. One that taught them not to be so trusting, that not everything they wanted in life was there for the taking. They should thank me for it.

That thought had me smiling as I left the guesthouse.

It didn’t last long when a man detached himself from the shadows and fell into step beside me.

Taller than I was. Broader than I was. The moonlight last night hadn’t done him any favors.

It had hidden the deep aquamarine of his eyes and made him look older than he appeared in the light of day; the truth being somewhere in his late twenties, the same as me.

I doubted anyone would have described him as classically handsome, but he had a striking face.

Rugged and unforgettable. And then there were those eyes.

I took all of that in at a single glance, not willing to be caught studying him. “If you’re here to apologize…”

“I’m not.”

The bluntness surprised me, and that was rare. It lent Keaton Levine—assuming that was really his name—an air of intrigue.

I took a sharp left, Keaton correcting his momentum to keep up with me, his long stride easily matching mine. “Aren’t you going to ask what I do want?”

“That would assume I’m remotely interested in you, and I’m not.”

“No?”

“No.”

“So maybe I’ll just keep walking with you, then.”

I jerked to a stop and rounded on him. “Or… you could fuck off.”

He pretended to consider that before shaking his head. “I want you to take me to your stash of suppressants. You said you had more.”

“No.” Easiest answer I’d ever given.

A muscle twitched in his cheek. I watched it with some fascination. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring, displaying it on his palm. “It’s an antique gold sovereign ring,” he said, the explanation unnecessary when I knew what it was. “It’s worth quite a bit, right?”

“Maybe,” I said, refusing to be drawn into anything approaching enthusiasm. That wasn’t how you did business, and it was becoming clear that after Keaton’s initial unorthodox introduction of himself that he’d changed tack, and that’s what this was. At least he spoke my language now.

“You take me to where you keep the suppressants, and I give you this.”

I pretended to ponder his proposition. “How many do you want for it?”

“Ten.” I snorted and went to turn away. “Okay… five.”

I turned back. “Four.”

“Five is a good deal.” The muscle twitched in Keaton’s cheek again.

“For you, maybe. I have other customers.” No lie there.

Every community within reach was rife with customers.

The only downside to this con was having to wait until it rained red.

Fortunately for me, in a country not lacking in rain, it was rare to wait longer than a week at this time of year.

Summer might cause more of a problem, but I’d cross that bridge when I came to it.

There were worse jobs. Like having an actual job. Something I’d experienced for a short while before discovering where my talents really lay. Although I couldn’t deny that my year as a butcher’s assistant had taught me some useful knife skills.

Something flickered across Keaton’s face. There, and then gone in a fraction of a second. “Fine,” he said. “Four.”

I reached for the ring, Keaton’s hand snapping shut like an animal trap. “Not so fast. You get the ring when I get the suppressants. Not before.”

Not quite as stupid as I’d assumed then.

I shrugged. “Suit yourself.” It didn’t matter.

Not when I intended to take the ring and lose him well before that point, anyway.

He was a fool to demonstrate having something valuable on his person.

Not enough of a fool to hand it over straightaway, but a fool nonetheless, and I intended to exploit that for all it was worth.

Keaton would rue the day he’d ever thought he could break into my room and get one over on me.

I resumed walking, Keaton again falling into step. “How far is it and in what direction?”

“Shouldn’t you have asked that before we made a deal?”

“Do you always answer a question with a question?”

“Do you?”

Keaton’s sigh said he didn’t appreciate my playing him at his own game. “It’s important. There’s somewhere I need to be, and I’d prefer not to travel in the opposite direction.”

“And which direction would that be?”

“South.”

I offered him my brightest and breeziest smile. “Well, aren’t you the lucky one? It’s south we need to go.”

He didn’t return my smile. “How far from here?”

“Not far.” In truth, I was still working out where I was going to take him.

Somewhere deserted. Somewhere far enough away we’d need to camp for the night.

And then while he was asleep, I’d strike.

There were a few possibilities, but they all had their pros and cons, mainly to do with the number of biters in those parts.

I wanted the ring. I did not, however, intend to take on a horde of biters to get it.

We were almost at the gate when a woman stepped into my path.

I recognized her as the blonde, curly-haired woman from the night before who’d bought two suppressants.

I automatically stiffened, relaxing only when I saw the smile on her face.

“I wanted to catch you before you left, Tobias.” She bit her lip coquettishly.

“Can I call you Tobias? Is that too familiar? Should I be calling you Mr. Breeze?”

“Tobias is fine,” I assured her with a wink. “Mr. Breeze has me looking around for my father.”

She giggled in a way that clearly signposted how attractive she found me.

Oh, sweetheart, I wanted to tell her. You don’t have nearly enough cock to satisfy me.

I didn’t say it, returning her smile and letting her take hold of my hands while Keaton stood like a statue next to us. “I just wanted to thank you,” she said.

“For?”

“For bringing your secrets to us. I realize it can’t have been an easy decision to betray your place of work. And not everyone would have the moral backbone to do as you’ve done.”

“Betrayal is a strong word.”

“You’ll be in trouble, though, if they find out, right?”

If they existed. “I would.”

“Well, there you go, then. You’re a brave man.”

“I am,” I agreed. “You’re quite right, and I appreciate you saying so.”

She finally let go of my hands, her body language screaming her reluctance.

“Well,” she said, not seeming to know what to do with her hands now she had them back in her possession.

“I just wanted to tell you that when you return, you don’t need to stay at a guesthouse.

That is… what I’m trying to say…” She gave an embarrassed little laugh.

“You can stay with me, if you want.” She finished her little speech with a wave of her hand that said, “there I’ve said it. ”

A beat passed. “Do you have a spare room?”

She had pale skin, making the rush of color that seeped into her cheeks and stretched all the way to her hairline that much more visible. “We… I… No, but…”

“It’s a sweet offer,” I said, saving her from having to lay things on the line. “And when I come back here, I’ll bear it in mind.”

She seemed to notice Keaton’s presence for the first time, a small furrow appearing on her brow. “Who’s your friend?”

“Not a friend,” I said quickly. A glance his way showed the immediate rejection of any relationship between us didn’t particularly impress him. If only he knew I was saving him from being lynched once people realized what I’d done.

“Keaton Levine,” he said.

She nodded, but didn’t seem inclined to say anything else.

“Well,” I said with a smile. “We have places to be, I’m afraid.” I turned on my heel and walked off, trusting Keaton would follow.

“Mindy.”

The word shouted after me made little sense. I paused to look back over my shoulder.

“My name,” she said, the blush growing more intense. “Mindy Walker.”

“Mindy,” I said, bringing my hand to my head and doffing an invisible cap. “Until next time…”

Keaton said nothing until we’d cleared the gate, the process to leave a community far simpler than that required to enter one. “Do you always break hearts wherever you go?”

I shrugged. It wasn’t a subject I particularly wanted to discuss.

August used sexual entanglements as another means of getting what he wanted.

Whether that be a place to stay, information, or a meal he didn’t need to pay for.

But with Keaton by my side, I couldn’t become August again, or anyone else for that matter.

I was stuck being Tobias Breeze for a few more hours. “It’s not like I encouraged her.”