Page 4 of The Devil's Thorn
“No,” I say. “I don’t know if he’s innocent. But I know I’m not letting someone else pull my trigger for me.”
That shuts him up.
Kellan finally gets out of the car, tablet tucked under his arm. “So what now?”
I look up at the city, to the glowing rooftop where Rafael still sits like a king in his glass kingdom.
“I get close,” I say.
Both men stare at me.
“I want eyes on his world. Every room he walks into. Every conversation he has. I want to see him up close. Watch him bleed, even if it’s just from a paper cut. I want him to know what it’s like to behaunted.”
Ash crosses his arms again. “You want to walk into the lion’s den.”
“I’m not walking,” I say. “I’m working.”
Kellan’s brow lifts. “You have an in?”
“I will.”
I reach into my jacket and pull out the folded flyer I took from the alley wall three days ago. It’s crinkled, stained. An upscale hotel logo printed across the top. A job fair for anexclusivenew casino floor at Hotel Obshor.
Rafael’s hotel.
“They’re hiring waitstaff for the VIP floor,” I say. “I’ll be one of them.”
Kellan tilts his head, considering. “You’ll need fake references. Background, work history, identification.”
“Can you do it?”
He smirks. “Already halfway done.”
Ash still doesn’t speak. His gaze burns into mine like he’s trying to find the truth inside me. “You’re not going to survive this if you start doubting yourself.”
“I’m not doubting myself,” I say.
Then I open the car door, slide into the back seat, and stare out the window.
“I’m doubting everything else.”
The car is silent as Kellan pulls away from the curb.
Streetlights flash across the windshield like flickering memories—bright, brief, gone.
I press my forehead against the cool glass, arms crossed tightly over my chest, jaw locked so I won’t say something I’ll regret. But I feel it burning inside me. A slow, twisting ache that won’t ease up.
Ash watches me through the rearview mirror, jaw clenched. He hasn’t said a word since I shut him down. But his silence speaks louder than any outburst.
Kellan finally breaks it. “So you’re really doing this.”
I don’t look at him. “I need to know the truth.”
Ash scoffs under his breath. “You had the truth. It was in your crosshairs.”
“No,” I snap, sitting up straight. “I had a target. That’s not the same.”
“Then what the hellisthe truth, Iz?” Ash turns around, eyes sharp. “Because from where I’m standing, you had your shot and you choked.”
