Page 102 of Pretty Monsters

He goes to the door to greet our visitor. I hang back, but hear Ted ask, "Did you get approval for the deal?"

"Yes, it didn't take long either. I thought it would be days of convincing the justice department this was a good deal. Apparently, a few dead bad guys didn't outweigh the potential gain to bring down Damien Blackthorne."

"In that case, follow me to the office so you can meet Lucien and Sin." Ted's footsteps grow closer as he leads the officer to my location.

"Sin?" the agent asks on the way.

"It's part of the story," Ted replies.

They stop in the doorway. "Shouldn't we grab Lucien?" I ask.

"I texted him already. He's coming downstairs now. He was just getting out of the shower," Ted informs me.

A couple minutes later and Lucien strolls through the office, droplets of water clinging to the same black hair his sister has. Speaking of Raven, she follows him in shortly after and closes the five of us inside the small office.

He said there was a deal to offer, but my anxiety has spiked regardless. I've never been this vulnerable before. Now that I've got everything I want within reach I'm terrified of losing it.

"Raven," I call out to her, and motion for her to come next to me. She doesn't hesitate to move next to me, and I pull her to sit on my lap.

Agent Holbrook doesn't waste time. "I can offer you full immunity, and protection if necessary, in exchange for any evidence you can provide and your testimony."

"What if you aren't able to convict him, no matter what we turn over?" Lucien asks.

"The deal remains either way. As long as you are honest and turn over everything you know, you won't be prosecuted for your crimes."

Lucien, Ted, and I exchange a look. "What about any events that occur where we need to protect ourselves?" Lucien presses.

"Those will be covered too," the agent agrees too quickly.

"There might be a few more people you will need to include in the agreement in that case," Ted inserts.

"Was it really self defense?" Agent Holbrook asks.

"I swear to it. We learned of an ambush and set one for ourselves. Men died, but they were there to kill us," Ted replies.

Holbrook takes one of the chairs near the desk. "I'm assuming we're talking about the warehouse fires a few nights ago."

Ted nods.

"Considering the dental records confirmed the identity of the men to those in some of the photos I shared with you and Raven earlier today, I think we can include this in the deal."

Ted takes a seat, seemingly confident with the honesty of Holbrook. He kicks out a chair for Lucien. "Sit, I'm vouching for him. If you don't trust him, trust me."

Lucien relents and moves away from the door. "Okay, you've got questions. Ask away."

"Ted introduced you as Sin. What is your actual name?" he asks me.

I shrug. "I'm not sure. I've always been called Sin. I overheard someone call me Jackson Sinclair when I was first brought to Devil's Crossing, but I can't be sure if that's actually my name."

"How old were you when you were brought to Blackthorne?"

"I think around three or four. Maybe even two. I really don't know. I was told the year I was born, 1999, but I don't know if that's accurate either."

"I need to hear the entire story. How did you end up being trained to be one of Blackthorne's assassins?"

My arms tighten around Raven. It's been years, but the stain of the things done to me have never washed away. "I didn't start out as an assassin."

I almost choke trying to form the words. "I started out as a whore."

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