Page 109 of Heathens

His eyes light up, the same as they do in his most passionate moments.

“I didn’t say anything,” he murmurs, his voice low and raspy.

I sneer.

“We still need each other right now, so no reason to fuck things up any more than they already are, right?”

“I love it when you talk dirty,” he rumbles, a grin spreading across his face.

“Shoot him, Sofie.”

“Yeah, Sofie, do it,” he urges. “Pull the trigger.”

As much as it might feel great in the moment, I can’t. I want to see this promise through to the end. There’s something broken in Dominic, fragments that he’s shown me. Not to put back together, but to understand. I know he’s obsessed with me, maybe even thinks that he loves me, but he can only show it through delusion and violence.

Slowly, I put the gun on the desk and Dominic beams at me, flicking his bottom lip with his tongue. He thinks he’s called my bluff. He’ll find out how wrong he is if he tries to fuck with me.

Ever since he walked into my life, my entire world’s been turned upside down, and there’s no going back. Me, Ruby, and everyone in Nox have been roped into this, and none of us will be free until Rene Deschamps is dead and gone.

“Look, Ruby, you studied pharmaceuticals. We can’t make this formula on our own. We need you.”

“You want to make the drug that’s part of the big evil fucking plan?!” Ruby exclaims. “What for?”

“Because we still don’t know if Theo’s theory is legit. All we have is a formula,” Dominic tells her. “If we can test a small sample, we’ll know what we’re dealing with. Maybe we can even figure out a way to make it benefit the lot of us.”

“And how do I know you’re not just going to use it on Sofie and I, turn us into your fucking playthings?”

“Because, unlike my counterpart, I’m not interested in fucking brain-dead zombies. I like you with a little bite.”

Ruby glances at me, and I nod.

“I’ll sign my half of Nox over to you when this is all over. It’ll be under the full protection of myself and Dominic, but not controlled. It’ll still be neutral ground, no strings attached.”

“So you’re gonna kill Rene and go into business together?” Ruby asks.

Dominic shrugs.

“That was the plan.”

“It’s a good deal, Ruby,” I mutter. “I’ll be able to get you more resources for this place. More money. You’ll never have to do a late-night blood run again. Protected deliveries, protected servers… hell, some of you could even have a day off once in a while.”

Ruby runs a hand through her hair and sighs, staring up at the ceiling.

“This might be the dumbest fucking thing I’ve ever done,” she groans. “Okay, I’ll do it. We makeonesample, test it, and then destroy it. And Duncan, if I get even a whiff that you’re planning to use this stuff for yourself–”

A sharp pounding on the door tears us from the moment. I reach for the gun, but Dominic holds out a hand, pressing it against my chest. He creeps toward the door, prepping for some kind of attack as he moves to open it.

“Dom? Dom, open up, I know you’re back there!”

More knocking.

“Luke?”

“Who the fuck is Luke?” Ruby asks.

Dominic wrenches the door open. The dark-haired vampire from his first night at Nox stands in front of him, looking completely terrified.

“How did you know I was in here?” He growls.

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