Page 29 of Of Sinners & Salvation
“Okay, I think if anyone’s a feral hyena, it’s me,” Heath says, stepping between the two taller men. “At least that’s what I’ve always been told. I prefer the title ‘Heathen,’ but whatever floats your boat, man. I’m not fussy. And Angel is definitely notferal. He’s more calculated, a hunter who stalks through the dark and then, bam! Strikes before you see it. I’d say… An alligator.”
“If we don’t get inside, I’m going to be eating one of you,” Saint says. “Let’s go.”
“I’d think y’all would be the least hungry, what with all the protein you’ve been slurping down in the back of the van,” Walker says.
To my surprise, Heath cackles with laughter instead of pouncing.
Before he can change his mind and eviscerate the outsider, I wrap an arm around Heath’s shoulders and one around Saint’s. “Good boys. Let’s get you inside and fed.”
I steer them to the building, which is more of a dive than I expected from Saint’s description. The sign out front says The Lobster Shack, and a mylar board advertises lobster rolls, chowder, and fried clams. I usher the two boys in before me, keeping an eye on Walker and Angel, who bring up the rear. Angel watches our captor like he might make a run for it at any moment, but Walker saunters in like all is forgiven.
“Wow,” blurts the hostess when she sees his face. “What happened to you?”
“Oh, this?” Walker asks, pointing to his bruises. “That’s nothing, babe. You should see the other guy.”
He winks at her, or at least I think he does. It’s hard to tell, since both his eyes are swollen shut except for the barest sliver allowing him to see through his puffy, purple lids.
She flinches, and he smiles, his fat lips stretching into something even more grotesque when one of them splits and a bead of blood bubbles up.
“Can you stop trying to flirt with everything you see?” Saint grumbles. “You’re scaring people.”
The hostess leads us to a table in the back corner where we’re relatively hidden. The downside is that everyone in theplace stares as we pass—and the place is packed. We couldn’t be more indiscrete if we tried. We slide into the corner booth at last, and everyone picks up a laminated menu while Walker plugs in a charger and connects his phone.
“This seems like a waste of time,” Angel says. “We need to be getting Mercy.”
“We will,” I assure him, checking my phone for confirmation for the boat I booked. “But we can’t think clearly on empty stomachs.”
“Yeah,” Heath says. “She’d want us to eat, to take care of ourselves. How else are we going to take care of her?”
“I want to warn you,” I say gently. “We have to be prepared for anything. For what we might find when we get there. What shape she’ll be in, what they could have subjected her to…”
“I’ll kill them,” Angel growls, his eyes darkening dangerously. “Every single one of them.”
My pulse skips again, the excitement thrumming to life at the suggestion of violence.
I push it away. Angel may lose control for Mercy, and Heath may lose it for everything, but I don’t have the luxury. I can never lose control. Not like I did before.
Honor thy father and thy mother.
The waitress arrives, looking harried and stressed out. When she sees Walker, her eyes widen, and I think she might faint. One thing is for certain. If we commit any crimes in this town, we won’t be hard for locals to remember.
“Bring us the seafood platter,” Saint says, pointing to picture on the menu that shows an obscene amount of indistinguishable fried food piled into a small mountain.
“And an extra-large side of ranch,” Heath adds. “We’ll share that.”
“And two DPs,” Saint adds.
“I do like DP,” Heath says with a wink.
“I’ll take the number three meal,” Angel says. “With an orange Fanta.”
“Okay,” the waitress says, avoiding looking in Walker’s direction by focusing on her tablet.
“I’ll have the lobster roll,” I say. “And just water to drink, please.”
“Oh, and the princess here will have an iced tea,” Angel says, nodding to Walker. “Keep ‘em coming. He’s having a hard time letting the last one go.”
“I’ll take a bowl of the chowder,” Walker says, sliding the menu across. “And put everything on one tab. I’m the only one here who can afford it.”
