Page 99 of There is No Devil

“You live in his house now. You could let me inside. Let me search the place. I’ll do it when he’s not home. He doesn’t even have to know.”

Hawks is unaware that Cole has cameras all over the house. Regardless, there’s no evidence to be found. Cole’s not that fucking stupid.

He’s only left evidence out in the open one time: insideFragile Ego.I’ve begged Cole to buy the sculpture back and destroy it, but he doesn’t want to. He says it’s too beautiful.

This is the one point on which he is utterly irrational. Cole loves his art. He’d no sooner destroy it than he’d destroy me.

I almost want to let Hawks search the house just to show him how fucking stupid he’s being.

On the other hand, he’s not completely wrong. Cole is a murderer, just not the one he’s looking for.

The only way to deal with Hawks is to keep him at bay until we can deliver Shaw gift-wrapped. Just in time for Christmas.

Calmly, I remove Hawks’ fingers from my arm, grabbing his pinky and bending it back until he lets go.

“You’re wrong,” I tell him, flatly. “You’ll see it for yourself soon enough.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The Beast of the Bay kills three times. Have you noticed that?”

Hawks goes still, eyes glinting behind his glasses. “Last time was four.”

My stomach lurches.

Can’t think about that. Picturing Erin drowned on my bed doesn’t fucking help her.

“The point is, he started a new cycle. Why don’t you try tailing Shaw on your off-hours? Either you’ll catch him in the act … or you’ll save a girl from becoming his next victim.”

To his credit, Hawks actually considers this idea. But then his eyes narrow and he hisses, “Sounds like you want to clear the way for your boyfriend’s nocturnal activities.”

I’m losing my patience.

“If that’s what you think, then there’s no point continuing this conversation. I would NEVER help a man hurt another woman. I’m a ladies’ lady and always will be.”

Shaking off Hawks, I storm into the building.

Sonia is already hurrying over, having seen the whole thing through the window. She looks ready to rip Hawks a new asshole if he hadn’t let go of me.

Sonia is also a ladies’ lady.

When she sees that I’m fucking fuming, she puts her arm around my shoulders

“You want me to call his boss?” she says. “Or better yet—I’ll call Cole.”

“No need. I told him off myself.”

“I’ll bet you did,” Sonia grins approvingly. “You’re turning into quite the little hellcat.”

I let out a laugh, thinking that Cole calls me a pleasure kitty, and Sonia a hellcat. I really don’t mind either of those descriptors. In fact, they suit me perfectly.

“I don’t want to claw his eyes out. But I will if I have to.”

Sonia snorts. “Now you sound like Cole. Must be a hazard of working here. We all become a little more … utilitarian.”

Sonia and I part ways at the stairs, her attending to the monumental labor of running Cole’s empire, and me heading upstairs to work on my newest series.

Sonia is right. Cole is rubbing off on me, and so is she. We always become like the people that surround us. No human is an island. We’re more like rocks in a tumbler, knocking each other’s rough edges, polishing and refining one another as we pass.

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