Page 69 of Merciful Lies

“So, I know you’re the, um, king of the Vipers,” I mumble, a little embarrassed to be saying this out loud. “But what does that mean?”

“What do you think it means?” he counters.

“I don’t know. I assume you do illegal stuff?” I squeak the question.

“You’re not wrong. But I’ve learned that illegal, or legal, is only a matter of time. Laws change. And sometimes people wearing collars and badges are the worst crooks,” he says, and I nod.

I agree.

“Do you, uh, do you hurt people?” I ask.

“Sometimes.”

He doesn’t shy away. He is very still, his eyes on mine, but he answers. And I love him for it.

“Do you use a gun?”

“Sometimes. But I prefer fists or a blade.”

“Why?”

“It's personal that way. And killing should always be personal,” he says nonchalantly.

“So, you kill people?”

“If I have to.”

I wait a beat, absorbing the fact my husband just admitted to being a murderer.

It doesn’t bother me. But it should. I feel like maybe I understand Nico enough to know he wouldn’t kill someone without a reason.

“I’ll never lie to you about who I am, Rosebud. But I won’t tell you all of it. It could put you in danger, do you understand?”

“Yeah. I understand.”

I think about what he’s already admitted to me about Sammy. About wanting me and that being the reason he took his marker.

I should be angry. But I’m not.

If it wasn’t Nico, it would have been someone else. The assholes who killed him probably, and I actually feel sort of grateful to my brother for bringing me and Nico together.

I probably need all kinds of therapy for that. But not now.

“Have you, um, found who is responsible for Sammy?” I murmur.

“No one is claiming it. But we’re working on it. I promise you,” he says, and squeezes my hand.

“That reminds me. There is some stuff going on right now with a rival of mine, Sanchez. He wants my territory, but he won't get it.”

“Are you okay?” I ask.

Fear flashes through me. And worry. For him. I can’t imagine a world without my husband, and I don’t want to.

“Of course, I’m fine. But while this is going on, I need to know where you are at all times. No leaving the condo without telling me. And absolutely no going anywhere without a bodyguard.”

“Okay.”

“I’m serious. I need you safe, Wife. Understand?”

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