Page 11 of Hell Hath No Fury

He turns in my direction, takes two steps, and then immediately stops in front of me. He turns his gaze to me and asks, “You gonna follow me, Lils?”

“Should I?”

I’m torn between wanting to pummel the ever-loving shit out of him and hugging him for dear life, but I do neither. Instead, I remain leaning casually against the side of the building, staring up at him with a completely neutral expression.

He tilts his head and sighs before responding, “There wouldn’t be much point. I’m not the one we need to worry about.”

I nod, pushing off the building and standing up straight. I take a step toward him, coming to a stop when I’m maybe a foot from him. I look up at his face and ask, “Does this mean you’re back?”

He raises his brows at me, his lips twisting, but then he looks away, glancing around the streets before turning his eyes back to me. He nods shortly, then leans in and whispers, “Just keep chattering. I’m listening.”

I frown, confused at first, and before I can find any words, he takes off in the opposite direction. I take a step to follow him and then stop, knowing it’s entirely pointless. Because he’s right: Antoinette is our main focus right now, and we don’t have time to be fucking around with his bullshit.

Kaian exits the restaurant, stopping beside me. “Should we follow him?”

I shake my head, annoyed as I reply, “No point in wasting our time on a guy who’s obviously not in trouble.”

Kaian stares off in the direction in which Darius left, then sighs and turns back to me. “Do you think he knew where she was?”

“Not a fucking chance in hell,” I reply without hesitation. “But this confirms Matt’s theory that somehow he’s keeping tabs on us.”

“I don’t know if that makes me feel better or not.”

I laugh humorlessly as we both walk toward the van I abandoned. I remain quiet until we’re both situated in the van and then say, “I think even on his worst day, having Darius Hughes waiting in the wings is a good thing.”

I put my headset back on, immediately having to turn the volume down as the voices of Matt and Tony blare through. They’re still cursing, obviously arguing about something, and so I wait until there’s a lull in their pissing and moaning to break in. “Calm the fuck down.”

“What did that motherfucker say to you?” Tony asks angrily.

“Not much,” I reply calmly. “But he confirmed that he’s definitely listening to us, so as he said, keep chattering, and he’ll be back.”

“That dirty motherfucker,” Matt snarls. “I don’t know how you kept your cool out there, Lils.”

I don’t bother replying to the outburst because we all know that Darius is a dirty, no-good motherfucker. But he’s our dirty,no-good motherfucker. I turn my attention back to the screen, switching the voice COM over to Camilla’s channel just in time to hear some comment about a party. I groan, not at all excited about any type of party I may have to attend, regardless of the reasons.

And then Camilla says excitedly, “I don’t know if we RSVP’d to that one or not. But either way, I’m sure it’s never too late to change that to a yes.”

Agatha shifts uncomfortably in her chair, and I laugh, knowing she feels like I do about parties. But even still, she finally says, “Oh, do you think I’d be able to tag along?”

Antoinette reaches her hand out and rests it on Agatha’s forearm as she gushes, “Oh, I’m sure. The more the merrier.”

I laugh again, this time more loudly at how completely out of character it would be for Antoinette to get excited about a fucking party. And especially a party where she would likely be surrounded by a bunch of fucking douchebags.

Their conversation shifts to the more mundane and generic, and then, after a while, they’re saying their goodbyes. Antoinette gives Agatha and Camilla a tight hug, and I smile sadly as Agatha releases her reluctantly then watches after her as she disappears onto the street.

Camilla and Agatha grab their things, speaking softly to each other. I remove the COM, turning to the van door just as it opens, revealing Antonio, who asks, “What’s the verdict?”

I roll my eyes, sprawling back in my chair, the most defeated position I can come up with, as I reply, “Looks like we’re going to a fucking party.”

7

Party Animals

Antonio

Itjustsohappensthat I quite like parties.

Not because I find them overly enjoyable but mostly because it’s an opportunity for me to sit back and watch a bunch of idiots kissing ass.

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