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“I don’t think it’s mine. I think it’s Kaden’s, but he made me and created this, so here we are.” The darkness whipped up, grabbing the hanging lightbulb in the center of the room. It burst, leaving the room in pitch blackness.
I drew closer, and he whimpered in the darkness, hearing my heels against the cement floor. He scanned the room for me, but his mortal eyes failed him. As I passed, I leaned down and broke another leg off the table, fear twisting his face as he tried to scoot further away. I stepped over two dead men, victims of Donte’s terrible aim with the gun, and stopped in front of Edgar.
“Kind of cool, right?” I whispered, leaning down and grabbing him by the back of his shirt.
He yelled, startled, as I lifted him with one hand. I tossed him toward the wall and drove the table leg through his center, a scream and then blood exploding from his mouth. He scrabbled at the wood.
“Don’t worry. I missed the vital organs. Gabby taught me all about mortal anatomy. I would help her study for tests over ice cream and notecards when I was home. Those moments were few and far between, but I cherished every one.” I twisted my wrist on the last word, causing him to cry out in pain. “I know if I take this out, you’ll bleed to death in minutes.”
He gritted his teeth harder. “You know, they often wondered what would happen to you if you finally snapped that leash. I guess now we know.”
I twisted the broken table leg a little harder. “Where’s Kaden?”
“I don’t know,” he grunted, trying to get a hold on the wood holding him to the wall.
Pity. I actually believed him.
“Fine.” I lifted a single shoulder. “Santiago. Tell me where to find that fucking weasel.”
He panted for air, his face ashen. “Santiago doesn’t tell us anything other than when to make the drop and what dock he will be at, that’s all. He’s too busy hiding from you.”
“Good, he’s being smart for once.” I didn’t twist this time. “What time is his next drop?”
“I don’t know. He texts us the day of. That’s it, I swear.”
I paused to search through his pockets. I threw a wallet onto the floor. It hit with a thud, my hands roaming over him. I dug deeper, fishing out his cell phone. The screen lit up as I looked at it, revealing a picture of Edgar and a woman. Laugh lines crinkled around her eyes, matching his, and against my better judgment, I paused.
“Who is this?” I turned the phone to him, the screen illuminating his features. Fear, plain and simple, flared in his eyes.
“My wife.”
“Ah. So, you do have someone you love? Great. Tell me where Santiago is, or I’ll find her. She can join Ethan’s wife.”
He snickered at my threat. “You’re too late. Death took her from me years ago. She died in a hospital bed while I was trying to get the money for her cancer treatments.”
Edgar bared his teeth in a blood-red smile at whatever he saw on my face. He nodded, a snort escaping his lips. “Surprised? You shouldn’t be. You, above all, should know that even monsters love something.”
I looked into his eyes, and we shared a moment of brief understanding before I changed the subject. “What’s the code?”
He choked out the numbers, and I stepped back. I let him hang there as I unlocked the phone. The screen lit up, several boxes glaring back at me, containing a few unknown numbers and a new message about the docks.
“Looks like he did give a drop date.”
I turned, taking the phone with me as I headed for the door. I heard Edgar groan behind me, still pinned to the wall.
He laughed, blood gurgling in his throat. “You know, your reactions make sense now.”
I don’t know why I indulged him, but I stopped, my foot resting at the door’s entrance. “What?”
“I lost someone. We all have. Grief is mourning, but you’re not grieving. You skipped straight to anger and revenge, and it’s because you feel guilty.”
Guilty.
The word rang in my head as it charged toward a door wrapped in chains.
I felt my fangs extend, the tips pressing against my lips.
“You hesitated, girl. I saw it during the card game, even through your disguise, and I saw it when you looked at my phone. I know that look. All monsters love something.” He let out a wet laugh. “You and the World Ender. That’s what hurts the most, isn’t it? You fell in love with him while Kaden took your sister. I’ve been there. You guys might not have been fucking when he took her, but you weren’t there when she needed you. You weren’t there because you—”
