Page 49 of Vows From Hell

In a way, he was my superior.

His entire family had been working for the Rapscallion for a while, much before I ever joined. Up until now, I respected his work ethic and dedication. Right now, I was second-guessing everything.

The bastard was too friendly toward Storm. I didn’t like it, not one bit.

I walked with him toward his car. Putting the bag on the backseat, he whisked out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. When he extended one for me, I took it, lighting it and inhaling the nicotine.

It filled my lungs, and I was finally able to breathe freely.

“What did you want to speak to me about?”

“Always so damn stern,’’ he grunted. “But I’m a little worried. It’s not like you’ve removed all obstacles. Storm will have to either quit her job and move somewhere far away with you, or she’ll have to keep you as her dirty little secret.’’

“Aren’t you in the same boat?”

Arlo shrugged. “Not exactly. The opposite, actually. It’s my butterfly who has to remain hidden, and I prefer it like that.’’

“So, what do you want me to do?”

He looked at me, blowing a cloud of smoke from his mouth. “You going down could possibly lead toward us going down. I won’t let that happen, so you better take care of this. No witnesses.’’

“You heard Storm, killing them won’t do us any good.’’

“That’s your issue to fix. Either kill them or make sure they stay silent. Or I will, and I’m not merciful enough to let them live now that they know about your whereabouts.’’

Arlo threw the cigarette bud on the ground, and lightly stomped on it. Then, he looked at me and, somehow, it made the blood in my veins freeze.

“Deal with it, Micah. I won’t tell you again.’’

—

By the time I was finished with my cigarette, Arlo had driven off, and Storm was in the kitchen, washing the few remaining dishes. Quickly, I ran toward her and closed the tap.

“What are you doing?”

“Did I or did I not tell you not to overwork with yourself?”

Storm sighed, wiping her hands on the paper towel. “You need to stop doing that. I’m fine. I won’t break if I was a couple of glasses.’’

“No, but the glass might break and you could cut yourself.’’

The chances of that happening were slim, but they were still there. She needed to rest because after everything she’d gone through, only she knew how she was able to keep herself in one piece.

I had too many things to worry about. The next couple of weeks were bound to be terrible, if not longer. If I wanted to deal with this properly, I couldn’t just find those detectives and kill them. I was bound to get caught that way.

However, the other option, which would have succeeded, meant leaving Storm again. Though this time, she would’ve known for how long and when I was going to be back.

“I’m not a child.’’ She crossed arms in front of her chest, and I picked her up in my arms, leading her out of the kitchen. “Oh, you’ve got to stop doing this.’’

I grinned. “No can do, Bambi. I love carrying you around.’’

Storm was silent while I was taking her upstairs, ready to put her to bed. I’d been really restraining myself from touching her needlessly, since I didn’t want her to overwhelm herself.

“What did you and Arlo talk about?”

My shoulders went rigid, and she caught onto it immediately.

“Let’s sit down first.’’

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