Page 111 of One Killer Night

With a groan, I follow beside her as we walk toward the big yellow bus. There’s a man standing outside the doors built like a house wearing a Thrills-n-Kills T-shirt. He holds out a black case, almost the size of a carry-on. It has about a dozen phones inside.

“Aww, you shouldn’t have,” Evie says sarcastically, smiling up at the Thor replica. “Do I just pick the one that goes with my eyes?”

He laughs and his cheeks turn red. Jesus, leave it to my sister to turn someone three times her size into a puddle.

He clears his throat. “The host requires top secret level discretion. It was in your contract.”

She sticks out her bottom lip as she pulls her phone from her pocket. But I shake my head. “I didn’t sign ...”

“Yes, you did,” she blurts out, whipping her head to mine and glaring at me. “Everyone in the office did. Remember?”

It doesn’t take a genius to pick up what she’s putting down—I’ve been snuck into this weekend of hell. So I nod and roll my eyes. “Oh yeah, my mistake. Sorry.”

He shrugs, putting my theory to bed, clearly not having picked up anything, including the clue.

“Just turn them off and put them in,” he says, holding the case closer to us. “We’ll meet you back here once you return ...ifyou return.”

He lifts his brows, trying to emphasize the last part, really nailing his attempt at terrible acting, which makes Evie look at me with that shit-eating grin she gets when her thoughts play out on her face.

But she does as she’s told and puts her phone in.

I stand there for a long second, looking down at my screen. She steps in closer to me, speaking quietly so only I hear her.

“You’ll never be strong enough to deal with what happened if you don’t walk away. Give yourself a fighting chance, Golds.”

My eyes well because she’s right: I need to walk away from even the possibility of Noah.But what if ...

Dammit.

Before I can think twice, I turn my phone off and watch the screen go black before I carefully place it in the case, not looking back as I take the bus’s steps.

Evie rubs my back as we make our way down the tight aisle with our bags, one of my hands touching the leather seats as we go. She taps me once we’re in the middle before pointing to the right side.

We sit and stuff our bags under the seats as I let out a steadying breath, trying to process.

Three days ago, I was getting engaged, then breaking up with the love of my life, before now finding myself on a bus heading to my worst fucking nightmare, because I may or may not be safe from a man I never really knew.

I couldn’t write this. It’s wilder than fiction.

I don’t know what the expression on my face is, but my sister touches my shoulder.

“You’re not going to suddenly jump out of the window and fight the Viking for your phone, are you?”

I shake my head. “No. His wingspan is unconquerable ... But I might sleep for another three days, if you don’t mind.”

She chuckles before her name is called and the engine rumbles to a start. I tap her leg and motion with my head for her to go talk with her colleagues, but she stares at me for another beat.

“Go. Have fun with the other horror weirdos. Don’t worry, I have my thoughts to keep me company.”

“If they get to be too much ...” she starts, but I knock her shoulder gently with mine.

“I’m okay. No jumping out of windows to spar with the god of thunder, promise.”

She smiles, then stands and makes her way up a couple of rows, where she falls into conversation easily with her work buddies as I stare out a new window with all the same old thoughts.

It doesn’t take long for it to all hit me hard.

I blink a few times, the tears already perched on my lashes, before I discreetly wipe them away and keep staring outside, even though I’m not really looking at anything. It’s just my cover for ignoring the conversations flowing around me as I go over and over the same bullshit like an emotional sadist.