Page 109 of Ricochet

Easy, beast.

He’s just trying to goad me. Logically, I know that. It still doesn’t stop the beast inside me from trying to break free from his cage. And I’mveryclose to letting him out.

The scary thing is that while Callum hasmeon a leash, I keep my beast on one. Even when I let him out of his cage earlier today at the cabin, I kept a tight rein on him because I wasn’t sure what he’d do while killing with Callum in the room. Even the beast wouldn’t hurt him in that way—it only wantsotherthings from him—but I still fear what it would be capable of while I’m like this.

“I’ve seen those drawings,” I tell him, my voice strained from the effort of containing that piece of me from ripping Eric the fuck apart. “They don’t prove a goddamn thing.”

“No.” Eric shrugs. “But the man I witnessed you murder on that dock in Massachusetts might.”

Well fuck.

I was followed bytwopeople that night? I must be losing my touch.

It makes sense though. That weekend was the first time Eric showed up. He must have gotten in the night before and followed both me and Callum.

Callum is stock-still next to me, so he must not have known either.

“So you’ve been suspecting me for a while then for you to follow me that night.” I lean back against the cushions but keep my muscles coiled tight in case I need to strike. “What put me on your radar in the first place? And why confront me now?”

Howdidhe know to follow me that night?

I don’t think I’ve ever been suspected before Callum and Eric, which is why I was never overly paranoid about being followed.

Is someone else on to me too?

That has to be the only explanation.

How else could Eric have known unless he was working with someone else?Forsomeone else?

“Because I’ve been waiting until I could prove you killed my uncle too,” he says, avoiding my first question. “Is that your confession?”

I’m not dying today. I’m also not going to prison because of this fucker. So I guess that only leaves me one choice.

“What was your uncle’s name?”

Eric hesitates briefly before answering, “Jim Adelman. I called him Jimmy.”

I run the name through the database in my mind. I don’t remember every name of the people I’ve killed off the top of my head. But that one does strike a chord.

“Yeah, I think I remember him. I believe he had a thing for little girls.”

Eric’s face scrunches. “Excuse me?”

He’s surprised. Good.

“There’s a phone in that bag over there,” I tell him. “I need you to get it for me. Since I assume you’ll shoot me if I try to get it myself.”

“Are you out of your fucking mind?”

Funny he would ask that when he looks likehe’sthe one on the verge of losinghis.

“No. I’m actually feeling surprisingly rational right now given you’ve broken into my apartment and pointed a gun at the man I’ve literally killed for and wouldn’t fucking hesitate to again. You should be grateful for that, Vaughn. Get me the fucking phone.”

His hand is shaking around the handle of his gun. “Why?”

“So I can prove to you what kind of man your uncle was. I promise that you don’twantto know since he clearly meant enough to you for you to do this. But before you do something you’ll regret, you’re going to learn the fucking truth.”

He raises his weapon and aims it at my head once more. “Or I could just take that as your confession and fucking shoot you.”

---