Page 27 of Beautiful Revenge

The smug expression on her face disappears. “Are you…”

“Serious? Yes. I’m completely serious.”

“Did she deserve to die at least? I mean, was she a bad doctor? Hurting her patients?”

“No. From my understanding, she was a great doctor. She was completely innocent. Now, let’s go.” I can feel Aria’s eyes on me as I leave the room.

Chapter Five

Aria

Istare at Finn’s hands as he drives me somewhere new. I’m no longer in the backseat but right next to him. I’m not sure which is worse.

Finn’s hands killed a woman tonight. An innocent woman by his admission. A doctor, nonetheless. He killed her without a second thought.

For money.

I knew Finn was a hitman but knowing it versus seeing it is a drastically different thing.

“How can you do that?” I ask.

“Do what?”

“Kill people for money? How does one get their mind to a place where they can accept doing those things to other people?”

“It’s easy. When you grow up in a shitty home, it’s easy to lack empathy. When your dad is an asshole, it’s easy to want to kill him. And when you’ve killed someone, it gets easier to keep killing. You start to see people as no longer people but as a means to an end. Simple.”

“Simple,” I scoff. “That’s not simple. That’s sad. Tragic. It’s horrifying.”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion on my life, princess.”

“You kind of did when you came bragging to me about the woman you killed. You wanted to know what I thought. Well, I’m telling you. I think you’re a madman. You’re evil. Pure evil.”

He pulls off the road and turns his intense eyes onto me. We’re far from New York now, in the middle of nowhere. I never saw the point of leaving the city. Nowhere is as good as New York. Being in bumfuck nowhere is just depressing.

Finn could kill me out here and no one would know it.

“Let’s get one thing straight, princess. I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not. I’m a hitman. It’s what I do. I never claimed to be a good man. You think you’re so much better than me but your dad is a part of the Mafia. He’s done bad things. He’s orchestrated the deaths of other people and you know deep down that I’m right. So sit there on your throne, acting like you have any moral standing over me. You don’t.”

“Just because my dad has done some things doesn’t mean I’ve done them. I figured, you of all people, would not want to be defined by your father. So, yes. I’ve never killed anyone. I’ve never orchestrated the deaths of anyone. So I am better than you.”

I brace myself for his anger but it never comes. Instead, he smiles.

“You are fascinating, princess.”

“How so?”

“You speak to me like no one ever has before. How are you not afraid of me?”

Oh, I’m terrified of Finn. He just doesn’t need to know it.

“I don’t bow down to cowards,” I say instead.

“Mmm.” He starts driving again. “I’m curious, who did you imagine marrying one day?”

I tense. Why do I feel like this conversation will not end well? “Why are you asking? Why does that matter?”

“Curiosity.”

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