Page 37 of The Eraser

I knew we'd have to have this conversation eventually, but Christ, I wanted her to settle in first. "Yes," I say evenly. "I love the thrill of the kill. I'm good at it. I'm hired to do what needs to be done, and in doing so, I get to quench the thirst I have for murder."

She tilts her head as she looks at me. "Why is it," she says, her eyes wide and holding a little fear, "that you tell me you're a killer, that you like doing it, and I'm not scared of you?"

I fucking love that she's not. "Because you know I won’t harm you." I'd rather fucking die than hurt her.

"Are you going to kill my dad?" she asks once she's finished getting dressed. There's no emotion in her voice, and that's something that worries me. How will she react to my answer?

"Yes," I say instantly. "He doesn't get to hurt you, Jess. He doesn't get to treat you the way he has and live. If anyone else did it to you, they'd be dead already. That fucker's hiding and we need to find out who else was with him when he was hurting you."

She takes a deep breath, shoving her hands into the big pocket of the pink hoodie she has on. "He's my dad, Stephen."

I nod. "He is, but he's also the man who scarred you, baby, and while I know it's going to hurt you that he'll die, it will also relieve you of the fear that he'll come back for you."

She swallows hard and turns away. "Let's go talk to Freddie and Maverick," she tells me, a tear falling down her face.

Her da fucked up. She's sweet and loving. Even after all the shit he's done to her, she still loves him. But he's made his bed, now it's his time to lie in it. The minute I have details of his whereabouts the fucking better.

I take her hand and lead her out of the room and into the living room. I'm surprised to find plates of food waiting for us.

"Maverick wanted her to eat. He said he wasn't sure when she ate last," Freddie tells me. I raise a brow, knowing Maverick can't cook to save his fucking life. "I may have helped," he says with a shrug.

"Where is Maverick?" I ask, wondering where the fuck he's gone. He'd been on at me all fucking morning to wake her up, something I wouldn't do until she woke herself, and now she's ready to talk, he's nowhere to be seen.

"He's on the phone. Jer's been calling all fucking morning. Mav wants to find out what he knows. Don't worry, Stephen, he's not going to tell him where we are."

"Why?" Jess asks as she takes a seat on the sofa opposite to where Freddie's seated.

My brows furrow. "You want him here?" I ask, glancing at Freddie, who looks as confused as I feel. "I thought you two didn't get along."

She sighs. "I thought he was the reason Mam died," she tells me. "But speaking with Jer last night, it turns out Dad lied. He told me Jerry was the reason Mam was shot, that the Kellys did it."

My entire body stiffens at her words. The fuck?

"Why did your da lie?" Freddie asks. "We've scoured the city, Jessica. We've turned over every crack den in Dublin, trying to find out who took out your ma. It wasn't the Kellys."

She nods. "I know that now. But why would I believe my dad lied?" she asks. "He was so convincing when he told me."

I grit my teeth. "So the question is: why would he lie about that?"

"To get Jess away from Jer. Let's face it, Jerry and Jess have been close. He's always been around, close to all his nieces and nephews. If Thomas could get Jess to hate Jer, it would leave her alone without anyone," Freddie comments.

Christ. Thomas is a fucking lot smarter than anyone has given him credit for.

"But why? Why lie about who killed Patricia? Surely he knew she'd find out eventually?" I'm seething, my anger getting hotter and hotter. Thomas is a fucking cunt and has toyed with his daughter for way too fucking long. It should have never happened. He isolated her and made her distrust her family—the only people who could have helped her. Now we know it was just so that he could hurt her. But why is he doing it? Why would he hurt her? She's his fucking child.

"What did Jer say?" Freddie asks Maverick when he enters the room.

Maverick glances at Jess, his gaze assessing. He cares a lot about her. "He wanted to let me know about what Thomas had told Jess about Patty's death. He also wanted to know where Jess was. Don't worry, I didn't tell him. He's got every man trying to find Thomas, but the fucker's in the wind."

I shake my head. "How the fuck is he in the wind?" I growl. "How the hell has this fucking prick managed to escape us?"

"He's clever," Jessica says. "He's always one step ahead."

The fucker's been playing stupid for years. Now I'm curious to know what else the bastard’s been hiding.

"Jer wants to see Jess. He's worried about her."

I glance at the woman who means a fucking lot to me. It's hard to believe someone so young could break free of the shackles I've had tied to me since I was a kid. She doesn't see me as a fuck up. She feels safe around me, and that's not something I ever thought would happen. To have someone so pure trust me... Fuck, it's the most treasured thing in the world.

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