Page 107 of Ricochet

Shit.

My heart is pounding away in my throat as I take a step toward him. I attempt to swallow it back. “Okay. Look, if today was too much for you—”

“It’s not that.”

Relief floods through me, the air in my lungs not as heavy.

“It probablyshouldbe,” he says, his mouth turned down in a frown. He’s doing that thing where he feels ashamed for the things hedoesn’tfeel rather than the things he does. “I probably should be feeling differently about it than I am, but I’m not. I don’t have any regrets.”

“Then what’s going on?”

Callum hesitates. He eyes lower to the ground as he leans his back against the door. He takes a breath and peers back up at me. “If I asked younotto kill someone, would you do that for me too?”

I don’t have to consider it for long. “I want to say it depends, but we both know I’d do anything for you.”

He nods but says nothing for several seconds.

“Callum, talk to me.”

“It’s about Eric.”

Okay, I take it back.

Just the prick’s name coming out of Callum’s mouth is enough to have me see rivers of blood. I swear to God if Callum says Eric hurt him or touched him, the leash he has on me will fucking snap.

“What about him?” I ask through clenched teeth, my jaw tense.

The next voice that speaks doesn’t belong to Callum.

“He knows who you are.”

I spin around so fast the blood rushes to my head. A crimson veil falls over my vision as I see Eric stepping out of my fucking bedroom.

It gets even darker when I see the gun in his hand that hangs at his side.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing in my apartment?” I snarl.

I don’t let my gaze drop to my bag that’s sitting on the coffee table, but I consider how quickly I could get to it to get my own gun. Probably not before Eric could pull the trigger.

“You and I need to have a conversation, Wakefield.”

“Fine. As soon as Callum’s gone.”

Callum steps up beside me, and my arm shoots out in front of him to keep him from going any further. Eric’s hand twitches around his gun, but he doesn’t raise it.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“He’s right,” Eric says. “Neither of you are.”

I haven’t taken my eyes off of him, but my scowl deepens. “Who the fuck do you think you are, Vaughn?”

He stares at me without blinking. “The guy whose uncle you murdered.”

Well…I wasn’t expecting that.

I wouldn’t say I’m surprised. With how many people I’ve killed in the past six years, I was bound to run into someone close to one of my victims. Other than Callum, of course. However, the fact that he suspects me at all is unfortunate.

For him.

---