Page 39 of Cruel Bargain

Now that I’ve eaten pussy two nights in a row, I’m beginning to feel invincible.

After months of being the joke, I’m a goddamn stud.

“Hey, Ali,” Remi chirps as I round a corner. She’s walking with Selina, whose stomach is turning into a basketball.

I give a curt wave. “Good morning, ladies.”

Remi cocks her head to the side and whispers, “Is he getting laid now?”

Selina slaps the back of her head, and they continue down the hall.

Like a damn teenager, I want to tell everyone. I want to scream it from the tallest point in the Keep, announcing it even to the dead outside.

But for now, I’ll settle for whispers and head smacks.

Strolling into the command post, I see Atticus is already talking with Cole. Neither of them looks happy, which means my good mood is about to sour.

“You wanted to see me?”

“Take a seat.”

I inhale a deep breath, annoyed. “Mind telling me what this is about?”

“Do you remember when we discovered Ji-hoon was a poultry necromancer?”

“Ah, yeah. It’s kind of hard to forget.”

“After that, we said we’d look into everyone’s background?”

“And?”

“I have some questions about Hunter.”

“What about him?”

He pushes a file he and Atticus were looking at in front of me. I open it up, seeing a picture of Hunter in an orange jumpsuit.

“So…he wasn’t special forces?”

“Nope.”

“It’s not like he’s the only guy recruited from the pen. Blake,” my eyes dart to Atticus, “you, Gabriel, and a few others served some time.”

“Yeah, but he lied. Not like Gabriel, who served in the military and chose not to mention his time in the slammer. He actually lied about his service.”

“Who the hell cares? The fucking dead rose and he’s damn good at taking care of the issue.”

“Look what he got thrown in for.”

I look back at the file, focusing on the charges.

“He’s a goddamn murderer…” I mutter under my breath.

“That’s an understatement.”

“There are almost a hundred victims.”

“Uh-huh,” Cole says.

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