Page 56 of F*ck Steal Kill

“Was wrong, obviously,” Grady gritted out.

I could feel his eyes on us, but I wasn’t ready to drop Holland’s yet. She needed something from me. There was a small amount of fear present, something else she was scared of being discovered. Whatever it was, I’d let her keep her secrets for now, preferring for her to come to me. I wanted her to trust me implicitly, so I wouldn’t disclose whatever she was hiding… for now.

“You’re safe with us, Temptress. We won’t let the Savages near you.”

Holland let out a breath, leaning her forehead onto my chest. She’d fought that man just a few hours ago and was injured. We shouldn’t be pushing her this hard, this quick. My protective need to keep her safe reared up and I held her tightly to my chest.

Max and Grady wanted more answers, but they could wait a fucking minute. Smoothing my hand down her hair, I gave her the moment she needed to collect herself. Holland took a deep breath and nodded, her body relaxing as she sat up. She went to move off my lap, and I growled. Holland grinned, patting my cheek.

“I’m just moving so I can see the other two, MF,” she whispered.

“Still don’t know why you call me MF,” I muttered under my breath, letting her go so she could turn. I didn’t miss the coy smile at the corner of her mouth. I’d have to show her later how she could use her mouth better. Once she was healed, of course.

“I know you both have a lot of questions, and I’ll try to answer as best as I can, but maybe ask only the pertinent ones right now since, you know, I’m injured and all.”

I hid my smirk in her shoulder, loving how she gave it to Grady. I was grateful he’d been there to save her, but I hadn’t forgotten how he tried to push her away from us, either. He needed to figure out his shit and get on board before it was too late.

“Fine. Max, you can ask first,” Grady offered, huffing as he leaned against the dresser shaped like a bar top from a western.

“Oh, um, hmm.”

Max paused in his pacing, the cutest look coming over his face as he tapped his finger against his lip, his brows furrowed. Wait, cute?

“I guess I’m just curious how you fooled the profile. Do you do steroids? How strong are you?”

Holland chuckled, shifting in my lap. “I don’t take steroids, Max. And I fooled the profilers because no one expects me. Simple as that.”

She shrugged her shoulders, but I caught how her body tensed up at his question. There was another reason she was hiding. How likely was it connected to the thing she was fearful of us discovering as well? Pretty likely.

Max spluttered a protest, so I shot him a look, narrowing my eyes to drop it. He clamped his mouth shut, pressing his lips inward, and sat down on the bed, pulling his computer back into his lap.

“Why?” Grady asked, not wasting words when it was his turn. His arms were still crossed as he observed her, his ice-blue eyes narrowed and calculating.

Holland took a deep breath, her body softening in my arms. I didn’t know if it was to calm herself or out of relief that he hadn’t asked any of the questions she dreaded.

“A guy attempted to rape me one night,” she told us, pulling me from my thoughts.

My hands tightened on her, a growl rumbling in my chest. With how I kept reacting around her, I was beginning to believe I had a wolf shifter in my bloodline. Holland rubbed my forearms with a soft touch, her fingers gliding over my skin and sending soothing ripples through me. She peered down at the comforter, picking at it with her fingers as she resumed.

“As I lay there, trying to figure out how to get away, hating how helpless and weak I felt, he had an allergic reaction. I’d eaten peanut butter earlier that day, and I guess it was still on my breath or lips.” She shrugged, her voice utterly defeated. “I didn’t question it. I scrambled out from under him and grabbed my clothes. As I sat there getting my breath back, I watched him struggle to breathe just like I’d been. He kept pointing to his pants, but my mind was too fuddled to realize he was telling me where his Epi-pen was. I watched him die and regained my power with each second he gasped for air. By the time he was done, I’d realized I could’ve called an ambulance, but it hadn’t even crossed my mind. So, yeah, it was an accident, but it made me feel powerful.”

The truth in her story rang true, and I knew she wasn’t an unhinged serial killer. In a moment of desperation, she’d found a way to survive and used that to become something new. Not one of us in this room could say we hadn’t done the same. We’d all faced darkness, letting some of it attach itself to us, and used it to justify our actions.

The three of us hid behind the Shadows, making us feel better because our kills had been sanctioned. Holland was at least more honest about hers.

“How did you go from an accident to choosing victims?”

“Life had never been sunshine and rainbows for me. I’ve seen more horrors than most people before I was twenty. Once I had that hit of feeling powerful, I wanted more. I saw all these horrible people thriving off the pain of others, and I couldn’t let it stand any longer. So, I decided to do something about it. I found people on the dark web who needed help. I’d investigate assholes to make sure they truly were scum, and then I’d make a plan of attack. I learned how to defend myself, took classes in different fighting styles, and trained with weapons. No one ever expects me, making it easy to get away with a crime when you’re not even considered a threat.”

She took a deep breath, her head swiveling back and forth. “What now? I’m sure you think of me differently. I understand if you don’t like me anymore. I just need to know if you’ll turn me in since I’m not this man you thought I was?”

The three of us all erupted, shouting out different answers.

“You’re not going anywhere.”

“No one will hurt you.”

“You’re safe with us.”

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