Page 147 of Lock Up the Darkness

“Neither of you are as close as I am to the situation. I’ll send you what I’ve discovered.”

He was stumped, clearly unprepared for things going this way—my way. “All right then, good. In the meantime—”

“In the meantime, you and Valerie will search for a new match. And you’ll give me your word as an Infidel that you won’t attempt anything like this on my territory again.”

He sneered. “You’re becoming more and more like your father every time I see you. And not just in the looks department.”

I didn’t know how the hell I managed not to react to that one. It was one of the worst blows anybody could ever make. It made me sick to be compared to my father.

I returned evenly, “Then I’m sure he’s proud.”

He scowled at me, but knew what was good for him, and meandered past me and started for the door.

As he did, a notification pinged from his phone

He pulled it out and took it in.

“You son of a bitch!” he roared, spinning back around to me, his hazel eyes aflame.

“Right, you’d better hurry home, you have a lot of explaining to do to the law.”

Roaring again, he lunged at me.

I caught his arm, used it as leverage to wrench him around, then shoved it up his back, just shy of breaking it.

He cried out at the blinding pain as I jerked it higher, then thrust my knee between his legs.

As he lurched, the door flew open and Jonah stood there flanked by a half a dozen of Security. He grabbed Sam by the shoulders and tossed him at them. “Get him out of here.”

As Sam was dragged away, he bellowed out at me, “I’ll break you.”

“My father couldn’t manage that, you have no chance.”

Jonah gave me a chin lift, then followed Security, overseeing Samuel’s extrication.

I turned back and re-entered the locker room to find Killian now slumped against the wall, doused in blood and dirt, his normally cherished black and gold jersey in a crumpled ball near him.

His head rested against the wall and he opened his eyes as I approached, emotion swimming in them like a volatile storm. “I couldn’t fight back,” he murmured. “It’s not part of the façade.”

I knelt down in front of him and tipped his jaw up, raising his gaze to mine. “You can now.”

He frowned. “What?”

“The façade is over. Effective immediately.”

He didn’t know what to do with that.

“I don’t understand.”

I smiled. “You will.”

He squeezed his eyes shut and pulled from my grip. “Go,” he murmured. “I’ll… I’ll be out in a moment. Just… give me some time.”

I watched him bite his lip, trying to fight the pain and emotional anguish that was threatening to overcome him.

He’d done enough of that.

Enough pretending.

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