Page 143 of Kiss of Deceit

I shoved through bodies, not caring who was in my way. The leering comments from men who probably hadn’t seen a woman in years were barely coherent in my mind as my past swallowed me. I’d waited years for this. The fear clawing in my chest was suffocating.

But my vengeance?

That pull was far stronger.

Someone grabbed my arm, and I threw my fist at the stranger’s face, hearing his nose bone crack. I was already moving again when his screech filled the air. I cursed under my breath, losing sight of him for a few seconds. Until I spotted him darting behind the closest building. My boots slapped the packed snow as I chased after him.

I skidded around the corner, nearly losing my balance on the slick ground. He was far ahead, running toward the condos. Since we were behind the buildings of the main street, there were no lights out here. The forest was on my right as I upped my pace, trying to keep him in my sights. All I could make out in the dark was his shadow. I forced myself to breathe evenly, mad at myself for not staying in better shape.

I ripped down the zipper of my jacket, giving myself more space to move as I kept running. We passed mine and Kole’s condo as I gained on him. Until he lunged inside a back door. I was only a few moments behind, and I slammed into the door, knocking it open before it closed all the way.

The lights were on, and I froze in the doorway. The set up was the same as my house, with the kitchen in the back where I entered. He was standing about twenty feet away in the empty living room.

I sucked in shallow breaths, his malicious stare like a punch in the chest. Other than some extra skin sagging under his chin, and wrinkles around his mouth and eyes, he looked exactly the same. My vision blurred, and I shook my head, reminding myself that this was real life. He was standing in front of me. It wasn’t another nightmare.

“Look at you.” The taunting, vicious lilt in his voice shot ice through my veins. “The one who got away.”

“You should have killed me,” I hissed, my words trembling with hatred. “Because you’re not going to survive the night.”

“Really?” His eyes raked down my body, and I forced myself to stay still as disgust slithered through me. “You were feisty that night too. Have you thought of me since then?”

“No.” My lie was bitter on my tongue. “You’renothing. A piece of scum who fails at everything. You couldn’t even finish the job that night. I’m sure your partner wasn’t very happy about that.”

He scowled, a vein throbbing above his eyebrow. I forced a small grin, knowing it would get under his skin. He thrived on fear—meaning I would do everything in my power not to give him mine.

He chuckled, his anger just beneath the surface. “Mark was pissed about that. He tried killing me for it. But he learned not to start a fight he couldn’t win. That night fucked up everything. Mark ended up in a shallow grave, and me? I had to stop my fun.”

His words had my head spinning. The other man who had helped kill my friends was dead? I didn’t have time to ponder anything else when he stepped toward me. I whipped out my knife, flicking open the blade.

He eyed my weapon, dark amusement in his eyes. “I must have made an impression on you. I bet you carry that everywhere, don’t you?”

Bile burned my throat as I glared at him. The way he was looking at me proved he still saw me as prey. A mistake on his part.

“What are the odds that we both ended up in this town?” His question was laced with something I couldn’t place. Ice raced down my spine. He knew something I didn’t. What if this wasn’t a coincidence? Was my internship here something more than I thought?

“You caught up to me too quickly,” he murmured. “We were supposed to go to the woods.” He backed up toward the front door as he spoke. “Come with me.”

“You’re fucking delusional,” I spat out. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

He shrugged. “Then I guess all of this doesn’t end tonight.”

He turned his back to me, walking slowly toward the front door. Panic stabbed me as I took a step forward. There was no way in hell I was letting him leave. What if he disappeared again? This could be my only chance.

I repositioned the knife before hurling it at his back when he reached for the doorknob. He let out a pained yell, the blade hitting him lower than I intended. I wanted to take his arm out of commission, but I missed his shoulder blade. He stumbled into the door, a violent laugh tearing from his throat.

“Fuck,” he forced out, blindly reaching for the knife. “I underestimated your skills. That won’t happen again.”

I was already sprinting across the small space, and I shoved him into the door before grabbing the hilt of the knife. His scream when I cruelly twisted the blade filled me with satisfaction. I wanted him to feel every fucking thing I would do to him. Before I ended his life, he would suffermorethan I did.

I wrenched the knife out of his back, and he lashed his right hand up, attempting to grab it from me. He dodged out of the way, and I grabbed his shirt, forcing him to turn around before shoving his spine into the wall. There was no way I was letting him get away.

I pressed my blade to his throat, meeting his eyes. His leering grin shot unease through me. He wasn’t scared or nervous. Did he have no regard for his life, or did he just not care?

“Going to torture me?” he asked, amusement in his voice. “You think you’re better at it than me?”

“You’re going to find out,” I snapped, my chest heaving.

“Go ahead,” he dared me, his voice gruff. His knife injury must be hurting from me sitting on him, but he was refusing to show it.