Page 50 of Cruel Charming Psychos (Necessary Evils 2)

I deserved that and I definitely deserve the blue balls as she pushes me off of her, hitting my head on the roof of the car.

ChapterTwenty-Three

ADDISON

He’s still recovering as I climb out of the car, maneuvering myself around him. He recoils, his head slamming against the roof of the car. He rubs his hand over the back of his head, soothing the bump that I presume is now there, as he turns to face me.

“Was that really necessary?” he questions.

I cross my arms defiantly, concerned I might try landing another blow on his sorry ass if I’m not able to restrain myself. “You have lost your fucking mind.”

“You need to relax…” He holds one hand outwards, gesturing. “I promise you that Emily isn’t in any danger.”

“She’s been kidnapped, Nick. I’m not sure why I even need to point out the danger you’ve put her in.”

“It’s not a real kidnapping.”

I take a measured step towards his sorry ass. “Did she know beforehand, or did you leave her in the dark too?”

“For this plan to work, I need it to be believable.”

“If the answer is no, just say it,” I seethe. “Tell me that you are using your sister as a pawn in your stupid little game. Did it even occur to you the damage this is going to cause? We rescued her from the clutches of your parents to protect her mental health and you’ve thrown her back into the lion’s den.”

He grits his teeth, looks to the side, and shakes his head. I can sense the agitation written all over his face. “Do you think I didn’t think about that? At the end of the day, this was the only way-”

“You know that isn’t true, and besides, this was supposed to be me and you. Or, have you forgotten that too? We agreed that we were going to work together as a team, and you’ve decided you’d rather go rogue. What is your master plan, Nick?”

“We need something from my dad. Whatever was on those videos, we need them. The only way he’s going to willingly hand them over is if he feels as if it’s the only way to save his daughter.”

I step closer, my palm forming into a tight fist. “Do you really think your father cares if she lives or dies? If there is something incriminating on those tapes, he’s not going to hand them over. You should know that better than anybody. He’s not going to negotiate with the enemy, no matter the cost. He isn’t like you and me. I’m not even sure if the deranged lunatics that raised you have souls.”

“My father might be a lot of things, but do you seriously think he’d risk losing Emily?”

“Gee, I don’t know, Nick,” I say as sarcastically as possible. “Given everything that’s happened these last few weeks, what could possibly make you believe that he’ll suddenly have a soul?”

He doesn’t answer because he knows I’m right. Perhaps he’s seeing the error of his ways and beginning to regret his decision.

“Call it off,” I say lowly, trying to plead with him. “Don’t put Emily through this. Don’t use her as a bargaining chip because while none of it might be real, she doesn’t know that. She tried killing herself, Nick.”

“I’m sorry.” He bows his head. “I can’t do that. The ball has already been set into motion.”

I lock eyes with him, hoping that I can reach him before this spirals further out of control. He can’t bring himself to look at me though. “I can see it in your eyes, you’re hiding something else.”

“Shit,” he groans under his breath. His gaze wars with mine until he lets out a sigh and digs a key out of the pocket of his jeans. He holds it up in plain view. “When I went to pawn my parents’ things, I found this in the bottom of one of the vases. I don’t know what it unlocks, but it has to be something important as the key was hidden in the furthest depths of my parents’ never-ending closet.”

I rip the key from his hand to inspect it further. “We have no idea what this opens. For all we know, it could have fallen into the vase. It could be a key to a jewelry box, or a worthless key from an old storage unit. It could be anything.” I stuff the key into my own pocket, an action which Nick seems to take great notice of. “Please tell me this isn’t what persuaded you to arrange the kidnapping of your own sister.”

He shrugs, refusing to confirm or deny my suspicions.

“You’ve officially lost your fucking mind,” I scowl before twisting on my feet and making my way to the main road.

He follows close behind, grabbing me by the shoulder and spinning me around to face him. “I can’t let you leave, and I can’t let you keep that key.”

I shake free from his grip. “What are you going to do, Nick? Are you going to wrestle me to the ground and pry this key from my cold, dead hands?”

“Don’t say stupid shit like that. You know that I wouldn’t.”

“I obviously don’t know anything because as much of an asshole that you can be, this is a new low for you.” I eye him up and down before turning once more, and this time he doesn’t follow me. I don’t even have the nerve to look at him behind me as I fade into the distance.

---