Page 62 of The Vipers' Vow

Jarl’s gaze darts from me to the others. He’s clearly outnumbered, and he’s weighing his options.

I decide to add something further, just in case he doesn’t understand one hundred percent. “By messing with us, you won’t just invoke the anger of Vani’s MC, you’ll also have the Marseille mafia after you, and the Greeks, too. We will crush you. Don’t doubt that.”

I can feel Vani’s questioning gaze on me, but I can’t deal with her right now. I hate that she might question my motives when she gets the whole story, but I did what I did for the right reasons.

“You said before that you and Vani are on the same side. That you both want the same thing—to find out the truth about Reagan. Well, here I am, offering you the chance to do exactly that, but if I think for a moment that this is going to come back on us, I will just shoot you in the head right now.” I sigh. “Think about it. You’re at our mercy completely, and I could just end you. The fact that I’m not proves what I’m going to tell you is the truth. We have the same goal, which is why you’re still alive.”

Jarl’s lips pinch as he considers my offer. It’s a pretty fucking good one, all things considered.

“Fine,” Jarl agrees. “We have an agreement.”

“The girl you’ve been dealing with at the college, Angelica, I believe she’s the one responsible for Reagan’s death.”

“What?”

Vani’s cry of shock dwarfs Jarl’s stoic reaction. He says nothing.

“Why would you say that?” Vani asks.

“Because Angelica hated Reagan. Despised her, in fact.”

Vani shakes her head. “No, that’s not true. They were friends.”

“Angelica only pretended to be her friend. She told me she took care of the problem, and I definitely got the impression that Reagan was that problem.”

Jarl speaks for the first time. “You’re sure about this?”

“Yes, and I believe she may be a threat to Vani, too. I need you to take care of the problem, because we could do it, but politically for us, at the college, it will make things difficult. You remove her as a threat, and in return, I’ll let you live.”

“If Angelica has been playing me,” Jarl snaps, “I promise you I will take care of it.”

“She’s been playing everyone.”

I shoot Vani a sympathetic smile. I realize this will all have come as a shock to her. She believed Angelica was her friend, when she’s been anything but. Angelica hated Reagan and wanted her dead, and there’s no reason she won’t do the same to Vani, especially when she’s already gotten away with it once. No wonder Angelica was always so insistent on making everyone think we were the ones who killed Reagan. It suited her to have everyone look in our direction. I think she hates us a little too. She wanted me, and I never returned that desire. She probably hates her life, and the narrow parameters of it, and she is lashing out at everything. She’s fucking crazy now, too unhinged, and she needs dealing with.

The others are staring at me, but they know I would never lie about something this serious. I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do when this is over, and I’m not sure all of it is going to go down well, but I hope everyone—but especially Vani—can see I did it all for us.

Jarl gives a curt nod. “In which case, we have an agreement.”

“You’ll have to act quickly,” I tell him. “She’s unaware of what I know, but I doubt that will last for long.”

“Understood.”

Vani steps forward and drops the cross and chain at Jarl’s knees. “You can have this back. Neither I nor my father wants it, not now we know where it came from.”

Jarl reaches out and scoops the necklace into his palm. His fists hold it tight, and for whatever reason, that damn bit of metal means something to him. Perhaps we ought to try to find out why it matters so much. His men have died, but he got what he wanted, eventually.

I turn to the others. “I think it’s time to leave.”

“Oui,” Lex says. “I’ve seen enough of this fucking boat.”

I’m looking forward to having my brother back. Plus, he looks like he needs to see a medic. His hand is swollen, and his thumb is hanging weirdly. I take a final glance at the yacht and the dead bodies slumped across its deck. It’s a strange contrast to the beauty of this place, the calmness of the lake and the call of waterfowl as they alight on its surface. Sunlight glints off the small waves caused by other boats too far away for us to see, but to still feel the effect of.

Let’s get out of here,Zane signs.

“Sorry about your teak floors,” I throw at Jarl with a smirk.

He grinds his teeth but says nothing. I don’t look back again.

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