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STAR

THE FOLLOWING EVENING

“I’m telling Nyx.”

He arched a brow at the mention of the Sinner whose hobby was hunting pedophiles. “What’s to tell? I thought you said he wasn’t doing this anymore.”

“Priest took his place.”

“Priest? Oh, the kid. The one that Da…” His nose crinkled. “Never mind.”

“He’s an adult,” I corrected. “He isn’t underage. I’m not about to let this continue.”

Maybe it was fate that the first email that cropped up which stopped the protocol Conor was running was this one.

A ‘thank you’ for a satisfactory purchase .

I wanted to throw shit at the wall. Needed to break stuff. Wrecking things felt good when I was beyond frustrated with this shit show of a world, so tired of the depravity which I waded through trying to bring justice to these pieces of shit who didn’t deserve to breathe the same air as me.

To many, I was a monster. I killed without compunction. I had very little conscience. But I was a fucking saint by comparison to the animals I’d come across in my dealings with the Sparrows.

Conor didn’t stop me when I picked up my cell phone and tapped out a message.

Only…

I thought about Nyx, Giulia, and their son, Samael. Then the Newfoundlander and Chihuahua that followed the family around like they were Bo Peep and the dogs were sheep.

Nyx had found something I’d been seeking for over a decade—peace.

I couldn’t rupture that, not when Samael’s future was at stake.

Priest was seeking peace of his own thanks to the rape and murder of his baby sister by an animal who Nyx had put down, but I knew I couldn’t approach him directly.

Conor, peering over my shoulder, said, “The Five Points will help. Da was on a crusade once he found out about, you know, everything.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

Deleting my message, I switched out the contact and texted:

Me: Nyx isn’t in the game anymore, is he?

Rex: Never knew he whored himself out.

Me: Har. Har. Har.

Rex: We talking about hunting?

Me: Yes.

Rex: No, he’s out of that. He’ll help though.

Me: Do we really want to tempt him?

Rex: Probably not. I’m guessing you have someone who needs to die?

Me: Yes. Excruciatingly. He needs to hurt, Rex.

Rex: Where are you?

Me: Can’t say.

Rex: More like WON’T say.

Rex: Heard you tore Maverick a new one.

Rex: When, IMO, you were both at fault. What the hell were you thinking, just going silent like that?

Me: I didn’t message you for a lecture. I know I fucked up. It won’t happen again.

Rex: He wouldn’t give me any details…

Me: I was taken captive so the circumstances were less than ideal.

Rex: You’re safe now?

Me: I am.

Rex: How did you find this piece of shit if you’re out of the country?

Me: My source is solid.

Rex: They always are.

Rex: Priest isn’t ready to deal with this on his own.

Me: Can someone help him?

Rex: Amara?

Me: LOL.

Rex: Yeah, sorry. Bad joke. I just figure she’d probably get a kick out of it.

Me: She would.

Rex: Shame she doesn’t know how to keep a crime scene clean.

Rex: I can think about it. How urgent is the situation?

Me: Urgent.

Rex: Shit. At the risk of sounding like a fucking pussy, I don’t want to know the details.

Me: Trust me, you’re not a pussy.

Me: You know Conor O’Donnelly?

Rex: Know of him. Know Declan better.

Rex: Why?

Me: He says the Five Points will help.

Rex: Okay. With what in particular? Has shit changed with their father’s death?

“Making sure no arrests stick,” Conor answered, reading the message thread over my shoulder.

Me: Keeping you guys out of jail.

Rex: Sounds good. Send me the details. We’ll get Priest out there ASAP.

Me: Needs to be more than ASAP.

Rex: We’re on it.

Conor cupped my shoulder but neither of us said anything.

What was there to say?

This was just one more victim in an ocean of them and we were fighting for them.

I closed my eyes. “Thank you for doing this with me.”

His hand slipped down to tangle with mine. “We’re in this together.”

A shuddery breath of relief whooshed from my lungs.

Together meant a problem shared, and when a fourteen-year-old girl had just been purchased like she was a loaf of bread, we needed all the help we could goddamn get.