Page 32 of Queen Crow
Less than three minutes later, Harley walks out by himself.
“What the fuck is going on?” Lips mumbles as she climbs out, not waiting for him to cross the parking lot toward us.
Morrison curses and tears out of the car after her, glancing back as though he’s keeping an eye on me as well, it’s that same protective nature he’s always had over me. I make things easier for him by getting out and following them over to Harley, sliding my phone into my pocket and running my hand over my gun again just to calm my nerves.
Harley waits for me to reach them and then says, “Well, it’s not a fucking ambush. I’m not sure what the fuck it is except… she really does have a gift for you, babe.”
Lips scowls at him. “What type of gift? Fuck, this is insane.”
He blows out a breath and glances over his shoulder at the warehouse again as though he’s waiting for a monster to come running out. “She’s brought you someone from the murder board… he’s not exactly in one piece.”
What the hell?
I step forward so I’m at Lips’ side. “Lead the way.”
The guys flank us both, Harley’s hand still resting on his gun, and we get inside the warehouse. It’s built the same way Illi’s warehouse would have been originally before he gutted it and built his apartment, but that only makes it creepier.
When we make it to the center of the room, right where the staircase is in Illi’s place, there’s a panel of the roofing tin that’s fallen through leaning against one of the beams and obscuring the view a little, but when we get around it, sure enough, there’s a man strapped to a chair there, a gag in his mouth.
Holden Crawford has seen better days.
I pinch my nose, the stink of him absolutely vile, and I want nothing more than to spin around and run out of here screaming at the sight of him. His feet are bare and blackened, his toenails have fallen off, and the bare part of his calves are purplish too. The veins bulging out of his neck are that same color, but it’s his eyes that are the worst.
There’sstuffoozing out of them.
I don’t know what bodily fluid to even attempt to name it, but my stomach roils the moment I see it. It’s disgusting. Utterly fucking disgusting, and there isn’t a shower hot enough or long enough to get this out of my skin.
I’m burningeverythingI’m wearing the second I get home.
Lucy clears her throat, drawing our stunned and horrified gazes away from Holden. “He’s dead. You can check it if you want, but I dealt with him tonight before the Game. I was going to leave him for later but… this seemed like the right way for him to die.”
We all stare at his body for a second longer, as if he’s going to lurch back up and take a swing at one of us, but there’s no coming back from a death like that.
Lips is frowning at the corpse and, probably, at the why of it all. I understand the sentiment entirely because I am too. None of this makes sense. Except then Lucy speaks again.
“I met your brother. I was there when he killed my aunt.”
Oh.
Ohshit.
Lips’ face shuts down, we’ve been so careful not to let anyone know about her connection to Nate and now here Lucy is, already knowing everything about it. Aodhan glances down at me but keeps his face blank.
Lucy nods and glances around at each of us, choosing her cryptic words with care. “It was the most terrifying thing, but I spoke to him for a second, nothing major. When I met you, I realized… everything. It all came together. I knew then that the little show of loyalty I gave Queen Crow and the Butcher wasn’t going to cut it. I still don’t want in your family, I’d never assume to be added into that kind of thing, but—consider this a show of my allegiance. I’m not going to side against your bloodline, fuck,hisbloodline. Not ever.”
Lips stares her down for a second longer before she nods slowly. “That’s a smart move. You’re going to make it on the Twelve if you’re thinking like that.”
Lucy flushes a little at the compliment and then kicks at the corpse with the pointed toe of her shoe. “He deserved worse. You don’t grow up around here without being able to spot this type from a mile away, but I made it as painful as I could. He was sniffing around after you all, asking too many questions down here so I assumed he was on your list.”
Lips looks down at him for a second before nodding back to her. “You did good. You’ll be a powerful ally and, where possible, we’ll side with you too. Don’t hesitate to call, Scorpion.”
She gives us a sharp nod and walks out of the warehouse, climbing onto her motorcycle and taking off into the city right as the sun begins to rise.
* * *
Lucy leaves us with the corpse.
We already have Bingley on ice just in case we need his body for… well, honestly, I don’t know what we’d need his body for but Luca had insisted, so I’d waved a hand in his direction so he’d deal with it before I puked all over the carpet at the thought of it.