Page 63 of Uncontrolled

Talia, I think. Talia would have followed me, waiting for the chance to catch me doing wrong. I bet she was absolutely salivating to tell Allie.

“After I begged you to stay away from them?” she says. It’s not until she looks up at me that I realize she wanted me to answer her, that she’s asking flat out if I betrayed her. “I told you the risk of us being together with even Jamison in your past and you ruined any chance we had!”

Her bare foot slams down on the flowers I dropped. Petals flutter across the floor, knocked loose. She crushes her foot down again, harder, her face corkscrewing in pain and anger. The smell of broken stems and smashed greenery fills the room. She grinds on the plastic wrapper, wrenching it, and then kicks the whole mess toward the kitchen. It flies, remnants of pink and yellow and purple blooms scattering across the floor.

One word breaks from her before she goes silent again. “Why?”

“For us.” Each word is a tentative prayer. “Please,” I add. “I did it for us. What I told you about that guy following me was true, but when I wanted to go undercover with them, you were so against it.”

Her brow creases and then fades into the same mask of hurt.

“His name is Quinn,” I say before she stops me. “When we got back from Talia’s, you lay down, so I went to the square and he showed up like I thought he would, like I told you he would.” I hate my desperation. Not for her to believe me, but for her to be proud, to see I’m as capable as her. “I played it perfect. Quinn took me to meet the others.”

“You said you wanted to help with the rent,” she says.

I nod. She doesn’t seem any less mad though, even if she’s taking in my words.

“And I am.” I reach into my pocket. She reacts on instinct, fisting her knives, and I shoot her a look of disbelief at the idea that I’d ever hurt her. Moving slower to avoid startling her, I withdraw the money Nico gave me today and hold it out to her. On the outside, there’s a twenty, another visible below it. “I have more. They’ve been paying me. I told you I can be useful. I mean, come on, Allie, that’s the whole reason you let me stay here.”

Fading into silence, I wait, watching her process what I’ve said. She doesn’t take the money.

The first of two tears slip down Allie’s cheeks. “You think that’s why I let you stay here?” she asks. “Because you’re useful?”

My brain does a stagger start as I go over how we met, every day since. My gaze flashes to the couch beside us where I sleep each night, the sheet folded up on the armrest. “Well…yeah,” I say quietly. Then I raise my voice. “I was smart about it. I didn’t give them anything real. I can tell you where they meet, names, everything. They have no idea we’re really together.”

Allie scoffs. “We are not together. We can’t be together if you’re a hunter.”

Confusion crackles through me. “I’m not with them, Allie. I’m… I’m with you.”

A disgusted sound escapes her.

“Please, I swear I was going to tell you everything. They’re dangerous. They—”

“You lied to me. Again! You’re a liar! You’ve always been a liar!” she snarls, each word edged with the pop of an insult. “Worse, you risked your life to discover shit I’ve known since I was five. I know they’re dangerous!”

The tiniest flame of anger lights inside me. “Don’t treat me like I’m some clueless idiot,” I growl at her.

“No, I guess that would be me, wouldn’t it?” she says, her head shaking as she stares at the floor. “Who cares, though, as long as you win.”

“What?” I manage. I have no idea what that’s even supposed to mean.

“You wanted to be right about this so you went behind my back!”

My head cocks with irritation. “Allie,” I say.

Resignation slumps her shoulders. The words tremble from her, a miniscule betrayal of emotion she’s fighting to hide. “This was never going to work.”

“Bullshit.” She’s angry, which she has every right to be, but we’re not ending like this.

Daring a step toward her, then another, I wait for her to buckle. Instead, she glares at me. Her knives are still drawn.

“You know what?” I snarl, one eyebrow lifting in a challenge. “Maybe I’m pissed, too! Maybe I’m sick of you pretending you give a shit about me when I’m spread out like a murder speed bump on your couch every night!”

Her flinch surprises me. At least she heard.

“You wanted to find out what they were up to? I did that!” I yell, exasperated. “They’re looking for Corbin! They think I’m looking for Jamison!” I expect some reaction and get nothing, so I keep going. “Who’s CJ, Allie?”

She balks at the name. “How do you know about—”

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