Page 55 of A Deadly Game of Cat and Mouse

Ghost sat by my bedside that night, and his first word to me had been, “You will achieve nothing the way you’re doing things.”

I laid there silently, holding back my anger. Even if I’d wanted to say something, I couldn’t because Hayes had broken my jaw.

Ghost saw my mutinous expression and sighed. “When you’re ready to listen, I can show you another way.”

The man had put something in my hands before leaving as soundlessly as he came in.

When I held up what he’d given me, I discovered a mangled picture of a one-year-old. He had picked up the pieces of the photograph and put it back together for me.

It made me cry for the first time since my parents’ funerals.

This was our first face-to-face meeting since the incident, and all I could think was, what the hell did I do wrong now?

“Come.”

“Where are you taking me?”

“Somewhere you and I can talk.”

We walked down the corridor and into a narrowed hallway, before heading to an open space outside, about twenty minutes from the compound.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll run?”

“To go where, exactly?”

I watched as he lit up candles along the path.

“I don’t want to be rude, Team Leader, but is there something I can help you with?”

“Hayes is right.”

“About?” I asked in a bored tone.

“You’re holding your arm wrong. I may not agree with your team leader’s techniques, but he’s right. It’s the reason your punch isn’t as strong as it should be. You should hold them more tightly to you. Like this,” he said as he pivoted and mimicked an uppercut to the chin.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I can teach you how to fight.”

“And let me guess, all I have to do in exchange is give you a blow job.” The man frowned.

What? Was I supposed to stand there and pretend there wasn’t plenty of that crap going on? That I was a teen didn’t make me blind.

“You need to mind your tongue, Trainee. I’m happily married. I have been for the past thirty years. Even if I weren’t, I can reassure you my taste does not run toward children.”

“I apologize, Team Leader, I meant no offense and am grateful for the offer. I simply would like to know what it is you want from me in exchange for this favor.”

“Why do you believe I want something?”

“Because nothing is free in this world. People always want something from you.”

He looked at me pensively before saying, “I’m sorry you feel that way.”

“Don’t be, it’s just the way of the world.”

“My daughter used to say that a lot.”

“You have a daughter?”

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