Page 177 of Three Irish Kings

I hate Cormac for doing this to her. Hate him, for makingmedo this to her. Hate myself for not being able to think of another way.

I haven’t seen a guard in hours, haven’t seen anyone but her ever since we came to this side of the house.

This is the best time to do it.

The bathroom is in the hallway, close to the staircase.

Cormac’s office is on the far side. His guards won’t have time to get to me.

I take a shaky breath. “Irene, I want you to know you've made my stay here bearable.”

She smiles at me again, her eyes lighting up.

Fuck. I don’t want to do this.

I put my hand in my sweats pocket, fiddling with the letter opener.

Is there another way? Maybe I should just wait. Maybe they’ll come for me.

But I can’t count on that. I’ve never waited for a man to save me, and I’m not going to start now.

I’m sorry, Irene.

I put my hand on her lower back and usher her out of the bathroom.

“Where are we going? You don’t want to do a double feature?”

I squeeze my eyes shut quickly and open them back up, walking to the patio with her.

Maybe I won’t see a guard. Maybe I can just sprint down the stairs and?—

Reese comes in through the front door. I look down to see him walking into the kitchen.

Fuck.There goes that plan.

Two guards stand outside of Cormac’s office.

It’s a few hundred feet away, but they’re tall, which translates to long strides. They’ll catch me before I ever make it down the stairs.

The patio is my only option.

I’ll still be on the second floor, but I’ll figure out what to do when I get there.

There’s one guard on the patio, a tall, skinny man who is scrolling on his phone, distracted.

There will never be another opportune moment to do this.

Irene is babbling about the movie and how cute the main actor is, and my heart aches for her. She confessed to me that she’s never had a real friend until me, and now I’m going to betray her.

“Irene.”

She blinks at my sudden interruption. “Yes?”

“I'm sorry."

“Sorry for what?”

I lift the letter opener and hold it to her throat, grabbing her around the waist and dragging her out onto the patio.