Page 124 of Unholy Obsession

His eyes narrow. “You think this is funny?”

This is the problem with feeling ambivalent about death. It really makes you lose a proper scope of situations. I realize, somewhere in the back of my brain, I ought to be shitting my drawers right now.

But all I register is being pissed the fuck off.

“Oh, no. Iknowit’s funny.” And then Icharge.

Look, I don’t do things by halves. I goall in. So I sprint at him like anactual lunatic, shrieking at the top of my lungs, flailing my arms like a windmill in a tornado.

It works.

The guy’s brain short-circuits, his gun goes up, and that’s all I need.

Ilaunchmyself at him, clawing at his face like a feral raccoon that’s just been evicted from a dumpster. I get a handful of his ear, yank, and hehowls. The gun wobbles in his grip, and I slam my knee right between his legs.

“Oh—FUCK—!” he grunts, doubling over, and I use the opportunity to rip the gun from his hand.

I take two steps back, leveling the barrel at his forehead while he groans and tries to collect himself.

“Damn,” I say, catching my breath. “You are terrible at this. Didn’t they teach you anything in goon school?”

He blinks, then scowls. “Where’s Veronica?”

I freeze.

Veronica?

Who the fuck is Veronica?

For a split second, my brain does the math—and then it clicks. Oh.Mads. He doesn’t know her real name.

Right. Time to improvise.

I let out a bitter little laugh, rolling my eyes. “Thatbitch? She’s the reason I’m in this mess. She set me up! And has been bamboozling my brother. Soon as I got loose, I bolted. Fuck her.”

He studies me like he’s deciding whether to believe me. So I do what any good liar does: I double down.

“You think I’d waste my time saving someone whobetrayedme and my family? Please. You’re stupider than you look. And listen here. I’m not an idiot. My brother and I areout. I’m breaking it off with Blackwolf Jr, got it? I don’t need this shit.”

His lip curls, and for a second, I think he’s gonna say something. Maybe call me a liar. Maybe take his chances.

Too bad for him, I don’t give him the opportunity.

I swing the gun, cracking him right in the temple with the handle. His eyes roll back, and he drops like a sack of potatoes.

I step over him, adjusting my grip on the gun. “Nighty night, asshole.”

It’s only right as I’m about to leave him in the dust and get the hell out of there that it clicks.

Mads suggested this was blackmail or a rival for my spot who wanted me to break up with Bane.

But why wouldn’t they have tried offering memoney first instead of this elaborate plot?

And then my stomach drops.

Because there’s only one person who has both the power and the spite to go this far just to rip Bane and me apart. Somebody whodidtry offering money first.

Fuck.

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