Page 77 of Please Save Me

This agent, though? He didn’t do it for me.

He was far too gruff, and I didn’t like the way he looked at me. The spark in his eyes said he thoughthewas in charge, and that wouldneverbe true.

“Thank you,” I said, reaching for the short glass he offered me.

The amber liquid rippled as I brought the drink closer before taking a small sip. The whiskey was smooth, but it still burned on the way down, as alcohol should. For a beat, I enjoyed the pleasant warmth spreading through my chest, then I realized mydateprobably expected me to wince, or at least protest.

And while I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, I needed to get him to leave me alone with his drink.

I kept the glass to my lips as if I was hesitating before taking another sip. After a moment, my nose wrinkled, and I set my drink down on the railing.

“It’s really strong,” I mumbled, pretending to be embarrassed. “Do you have anything I can mix it with? Maybe soda?”

The man smirked, and I hated the fact that I’d stroked his ego.

“Not much of a whiskey drinker, huh?” he teased in that gross way men with small willies did.

I swallowed my pride and forced a sheepish smile. “I don’t usually drink at all.”

That was a lie, and if this man had paid any attention to our messages, he would have known I liked to end my nights with a glass or two… or three, if the kids were extra psychotic, of wine.

“No problem, sweetheart.” He chuckled before placing his glass right next to mine. “I have a few diet colas in the galley.”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and gave him an appreciative nod. He turned away from me, and I let my smile drop. Listening to his steps, I watched him disappear below the deck, and once I was sure I was out of his line of sight, I turned back to our drinks.

I quickly fished the small vial of clear liquid out of my bra. I wasn’t exactly surewhatwas in this vial, but it was a poison of some sort that S.H.A.D.E’s pharmaceutical department developed. It was completely odorless and tasteless,which made it undetectable—perfect for someone in my position–and it workedfast.

With the flick of my thumb, I popped the silver cap off before dumping it into his whisky. The poison needed to be ingested to kill someone, and normally I threw it away, but there was no trash can nearby, and I really didn’t like the idea of getting any on my skin. Reluctantly, I tossed it into the water and hoped there weren’t any nearby fish. If there were… well, I hoped they liked fish Jesus.

Once the man got back, all it would take was a sip and he’d be dead within the next few minutes. It wouldn’t be a painless death. Normally, the men I drugged screamed before a bloody froth filled their mouths. It was kind of funny, watching the high and mighty fall, and it gave me the satisfaction of watching the men suffer without getting my hands dirty. According to S.H.A.D.E, no one other than Sebby really liked the mess that came with stabbings.

At first, that was surprising to me. Actually, this whole thing was. Growing up, Sebby was a sweet boy who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Then, word got back to me that he used to hate killing, he was just forced into it, as we all were. But, apparently, he used to make a point to kill people as mercifully as possible. That made me wonder what had shifted in Sebastian to make him the man he wastoday.

Chapter 25

Sebastian

The truth had a funny way ofalwayscoming out. For Lucian, it was time; for Cameron, it was apparently alcohol. And Mason… All she needed was to be away from me. Luckily, I had cameras posted around almost every inch of the house. I’d need to stick one in the basement now. Not like it’d do me much good, anyway.

As much as I wanted to claim the cameras were for watching Cameron and gathering evidence… deep down, I knew they were there so I could monitor Mason. Unfortunately, I bit off more than I could chew when I listened in on the movie night she and the other adults shared.

That’s when I learned Mason was roughly two years away from being my sister-in-law. Lucian had finally gathered the courage to ask her, and she said yes. But Lucian’s mom’s side of the family would have a fit if he got married without a wedding. They still needed to find a venue and plan the wedding itself. That meant I had approximately that amount of time to win Mason over…again.

All I had to do was be myself… but that was theproblem. No one liked me for me. Every positive quality I possessed was so intense that it became a fault. I was so smart that it was obnoxious. I was so direct that it became rude. I was so loyal that itbecame obsessive.

That’s why I toned myself down. And, if that weren’t enough, I forwent the way I wanted to look in favor of a pretty, professional package. But… Mason didn’t like that package, which was a shame because I did it all forher.

I made myself into a man who was worthy of her. I made myself strong, and handsome, and successful…. But Mason didn’t want any of that. She wantedme. That would have been fantastic if I had any idea who Iactuallywas.

I hadn’t been myself since I was sixteen. How could I be when the world forced me to be a monster?

But I didn’t want to think about that. So, I snuck out of my apartment and ventured to a local drugstore where I stared at the wall of hair dye like it’d be able to tell me what I was missing.

The last time I dyed my hair was to go undercover for work. I was working in a local high school trying to figure out which of the faculty was slaughtering members of the cheerleading squad.

Spoiler alert: It was the tenth-grade history teacher.

And when I came home with chocolate brown hair, my mom threatened to disown me. She liked my golden waves, and it was an insult to her that I changed them.

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