Page 33 of Spies Like Us

“How was the confession with the pastor?” Dayton asks after a few miles. I wrinkle my nose and open my eyes. Both of them are looking at me.

“Gross. He’s definitely a part of the ring. He was trying to see how far he could push me, but we were interrupted before too much could happen.”

Anders leans over the seat and puts his hand on my knee, giving it a squeeze. “Are you okay?” he asks, and I have to take a moment to think about it.

It’s weird. In the past, I just did whatever was required of me to get the job done. There’s a slight disconnect between the role I’m playing and who I am, and I’ve just kind of gone by the Nike motto of just do it. Having someone not only show interest but also willing to talk about it is kind of refreshing. Previously, I would have just bottled it all up, got the job done, and then unloaded on my therapist as soon as I returned from a mission. I have no idea what’s causing the issues, but my mind keeps returning to my relationship with Team Basilisk.

“Yeah, I’m okay. The sex part of it doesn’t bother me, I’m used to it. Not being able to put a bullet in the villain’s brain is really annoying me. In most of my missions in the past, I already knew my targets were guilty, and I was just carrying out their sentencing. Having to wait until we have all these ducks in a row is kind of frustrating.”

He chuckles but leaves his hand on my knee. It feels nice, comforting, and warm. “I imagine that would be difficult. This is normal for us. Our team has always had to gather solid evidence for MITHOS. Although there have been kills during the process, usually we are just putting criminals behind bars and not actually assassinating them. Any that require kill orders are always given to someone else.”

“Yeah, that would be me or one of my fellow ghosts. I’m finding it difficult to be patient.” I sigh heavily, and he gives my knee another squeeze.

“How are you finding working with our team?” Dayton takes his eyes off the road and glances my way.

“To be honest, it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. I thought you or Max would micromanage me, but you seem to be okay with me doing my own thing. I am a little disappointed in how slow this is all going though. I was hoping we could wrap it up within a week.” I’m not unloading my feelings for them or whatever this is.

He chuckles again, and Anders removes his hand, facing the front again. “Unfortunately our assignments are never that quick. You and I have it lucky. Imagine being Max and having to pander to Stella.”

I don’t hide the shudder that rolls through my body. “Seriously, I think I’d shoot her myself.”

“He comes home and spends at least half an hour in the shower after being with her. He says he feels dirty, and they haven’t even really done anything.”

I feel a huge amount of relief at hearing this. Hypocritical, I know, considering I have not only fucked him, but also Lathan, and I have done things with both Dayton and Anders. I have no leg to stand on when it comes to being jealous, but I admit I am. I hate that fucking woman.

“God, I can’t wait to see her face when we arrest her father.” Petty, I know, but so fucking worth all the aggravation.

“I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to have a few months off.” Anders stretches his arms above his head as high as the car will allow. “I just want to eat, drink, sleep in, and play some golf with the guys. I wonder if the king will let us visit and use his private golf course again.” He looks at Dayton who shrugs.

“I don’t know. What do you think, Mac?”

I feel my eyebrows jump. “You played golf with my grandfather? On his private course? Heck, he won’t even let me play on that, says I dig up all the greens with my atrocious swings. I can hit a target at almost impossible distances, but I can’t coordinate hitting a small, round white ball.”

“Yes, he likes playing with us. All his other stooges lose on purpose, so he likes how we don’t let him win.”

“How does my uncle feel when you win?” I’m curious. My mom’s older brother is the heir to the crown and is a little bit of a spoiled man child. He’s not a bad person, simply indulged.

“I think the fact that he knows we could assassinate him in his sleep keeps him from losing his temper. He treats us like family,” Anders explains, and I can’t help the surprised gasp that leaves my mouth.

“You threatened him?” I almost can’t believe what I’m hearing. That’s practically a death sentence.

“No, your grandpa made it a topic of conversation at dinner the first night. He asked us how many ways we killed people in the past and wanted details. I think it was his roundabout way of getting Prince Kahled to respect us. He’s never caused any problems and asked us to teach his son self-defense. He thought it would be good if he didn’t have to rely on his security detail alone.”

“Ugh, my cousin Kamel is a pain in the ass. He is the quintessential spoiled playboy. He makes our act look tame. He hangs out in a lot of the same crowds as Katie and me. Does he know you’re spies? Because he has the loosest lips when he’s been indulging with the latest recreational drugs.”

“Nope, just friends of the family through Sadie.”

“And he would have believed that because my mom is known for picking up strays.”

The car decelerates as we pull onto the dirt road the hot springs are on. Before we get around the corner, Dayton barks out, “Fuck,” before yanking the steering wheel to the side, causing the car to fishtail on the loose surface, but he manages to avoid the other car that took the corner wide and fast.

The back end slides back and forth a couple of times before he gets it under control. Thankfully I was wearing my seat belt, or I would have tumbled around in the back, possibly giving myself new bruises.

“Are you okay?” he asks as we pull to a stop, turning around to look at me.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I tell him, pushing my hair back out of my face. “Did either of you see who was driving?”

“No, but I got a plate number,” Anders says, pulling out his phone and typing in a message. “I’ll send it off to Lathan, but I’m going to guess that was Billy and Ashley fleeing the scene.”

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