Page 30 of Wandering in Darkness
The pig comes over and Ned looks down at him as I question if he’s going to do something to the pig before I see him discreetly slip his hand under the desk to pet him. I can tell by the way Brigs’s tail is wiggling that he’s pleased.
“I really don’t think we should drag others into this,” Grayson says.
“I’ll do it!” I agree with far too much enthusiasm and I don’t even know why. Is it to piss Grayson off? Is it so I can figure out what’s happening here? Grayson gives me a look that makes me want to do it even more. “Anything you want, I’m your man. But I don’t come cheap.”
“No, you’re not cheap. You get to do it in exchange for their lives,” Ned says as he points to Felix and Lane.
“Fine. Tell me what I’m doing, then, and I will do it with perfection.”
“Antonio will be making a delivery for us. You and Blake here will just make sure he doesn’t run into any issues.”
“Fine,” I repeat. “Give me my gun.”
He gestures for his buddies to take hold of Lane and Felix before handing my rifle to Grayson. “If he needs it, you can think about giving it to him.”
I hesitate as I realize that I don’t know who the fuck Blake is, but the way he just handed the gun to Grayson makes me extremely concerned. Slowly, I look up at Ned. “And who is Blake?”
He waves right at Grayson.
Fuck my life.
But if I go, “Anyone but him!” it’ll become quite obvious that I know Grayson. So I just have to grin and bear it. I give him a wave. “Lead the way.”
“I feel like maybe I didn’t agree to this,” Antonio whispers. “I feel like maybe you could have just like… you know… let us go home? Maybe we could go out for brunch if you’d like. Maybe we can just find something delightfully fun that doesn’t include this… and no one is listening to me.”
Ned simply smiles and I head out the door, very aware that this whole thing is going to hell.
“You guys alright?” I ask Felix.
“It’s questionable,” he says.
“Please don’t take any risks. It seems like they know Antonio’s family, which should work in our favor. Just be careful and listen to what they say.”
“He’s looking at you too, Lane! Don’t just assume he’s only speaking to me!”
“I can’t see him, so I have to assume he’s speaking to you.”
I sigh, hoping they can stay out of trouble long enough for us to get back. It really is a big ask. And hell, I have no idea what theyactuallyare planning for us.
We’re led away from Felix and Lane and told to stay still near a greenhouse. Grayson silently watches us, and I can’t help butquestion what I’m going to say to him when we get in the vehicle. Like… if I push him out of the car on some deserted back road and leave him there, will anyone notice or care? I have to assume they won’t. As long as we come back having accomplished what they’d asked for, they likely won’t evennoticehe’s missing.
After about forty minutes, during which Antonio sighs at least four hundred and fifty-two times, we are beckoned over to an SUV.
Antonio stares at it like he’s never seen one before grudgingly getting into the driver’s seat where he stares at the steering wheel like he’s never seen one of those either.
“What am I even doing?” Antonio asks the man who led him to the car.
“Blake will show you,” he says with a smile as he shuts the door. I get into the passenger seat before Grayson can even look at it.
“Just go beforehecan get in,” I say.
“Where are we going to go? A leisurely trek around the block? You know that will gain us nothing.”
“I’m aware,” I say, feeling rather disgruntled about the whole thing. Honestly, they should just let me be miserable alone.
Grayson gets into the back seat and off we go.
“You realize we’re just cannon fodder, right?” Antonio asks. “There’s no fucking way they’re sending us off to do something important just because they suddenly trust us. Hell no, they’re sending us out to get murdered.”
