Page 73 of Sinners Retreat

“Enough,” I say. “Both of you.”

Kindra steps forward and points to Cat’s ankle. “I think it’s pretty obvious that she isn’t being a bitch, Bennett. She’s hurt. Ezra is taking her back to?—”

Bennett shakes his head. “Not necessary. I’ll do it. I wouldn’t want my dear brother to miss an opportunity.”

“An opportunity for what?” Kindra asks.

I step forward and deposit Cat into Bennett’s arms, if for no other reason than to shut him up expeditiously. Like her namesake, she digs her claws into my arms and tries to remain in my hold.

“What if he stuffs me in a drawer and tries to fuck me to ‘What’s New Pussycat’?” she pleads, though her fear is a blatant put on.

Bennett rolls his eyes and starts walking. “I wouldn’t fuck you with Grim’s dick and Ezra pushing. Just shut up and hang on.”

Cat mouths something to Kindra that looks like,Please don’t leave me with this fruit fucker.I would think I misread her lips if we didn’t walk up on Bennett doing precisely that.

“I’ll be by to check on you after the hike!” Kindra calls out as they disappear around a leafy bend in the path. Then she mumbles, “If we can even make the hike.”

I look at my watch. The hike started five minutes ago, and we’re only halfway to the start. Jim and Jeff are highly anal—and not in a fun way—so she’s probably right.

“We could still go on a hike,” I say. “We can go as far as Galloway’s Bridge, anyway. There’s a nice waterfall near there, and I’d be happy to show you.”

“Can’t cross the bridge because of your fear of heights?” she asks.

“I’ve mostly conquered that fear, but when you see the bridge, you’ll understand. It would be nice to spend the day, just the two of us, don’t you think?”

With a nervous laugh, she forces a smile. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were treating this as our last day together. Is it?”

She’s asking questions I don’t have the answers to right now. If it were up to me, we’d never have a last day together, but it’s out of my control. Bennett is holding my nose squarely in my piss spot, and I’ve been forced to obey.

So, I say the only thing I can without adding more lies to the growing pile. “If I have any say in things, it’s definitely not our last day together.”

She smiles and holds out her hand, and I take it in mine as we venture deeper into the jungle.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Kindra

As the sun rises higher, so does the humidity. When I couple that with the strange chirps and calls whistling over the whisper of our footfalls on the overgrown path, I can almost imagine I’m deep in the Amazon rather than an island in the middle of the ocean.

Speaking of the overgrown path, it appears we’ve gone off trail. Tree roots twist and stretch underfoot, and I can’t see the sky through the foliage.

“Do you even know where we are?” I ask as I swat a large leaf away from my face.

“Of course, pet. I’ve been coming to this island since the Sinners Retreat began.”

Fair point. Not all of us are here on false pretenses, after all.

We travel a bit further. The trees begin to thin, and water rushes somewhere in the distance. Up ahead, the ricketiest bridge I’ve ever seen dangles between two cliffs. Gnarled knots hold together the planks of weathered wood that make up the footholds.

Ezra leans back on the balls of his feet and smiles. “Welcome to Galloway Bridge. Want to know how it got its name?”

“The blind man who made it was named Galloway?”

Ezra laughs and shakes his head. “The first year it was bridge five-three-eight because Cattle number five-three-eight fell to his death during construction. The second year it was Fisherman’s bridge. The Fisherman was a serial killer who also had very poor balance. Now, it’s Galloway bridge. Last year, Jim brought in a silent investor. Needless to say, it was more than just the deal that fell through on that one.”

Well, that’s fucking dark.

I peer past the bridge, at the dense growth crowding the other side. “What’s over there?”

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