Page 55 of F*ck Steal Kill

“No. I’ve never heard that before.”

“Why would you go up against a child molester? Do you do that often?” Max asked, changing directions.

“Oh, um…” Shit. Did I tell them I was the killer? I’d really hoped they’d give more information first, but so far, it had all been one-sided—time to change that. I furrowed my brows. “What happened to that man?”

Max looked at Grady, who nodded. “He won’t hurt you again.”

It was all he said, the words heavy with everything he left out. How would we trust one another if we were both holding back? But being the odd woman out, I didn’t feel like I could cross that line first.

Quentin’s arms around me tightened, his breath blowing my hair as he huffed. “This isn’t getting us anywhere. Fuck it. I’m telling her.” He turned me around so I was straddling his waist, our eyes connecting as the others protested. We both ignored them.

This was what I’d been wanting.

“Babe, we’re part of an organization called the Shadows. We operate outside the purview of the government, catching bad guys and recruiting others with a certain skill set. The three of us were sent here to locate and assess the XOXO killer. We believed they were a white male in their mid to late twenties with a criminal history. So, imagine our surprise when you were in the room for the trap we laid for the XOXO killer. My mind tells me you can’t be them, but nothing else adds up.” He stopped, his eyes bouncing back and forth from mine. “So, Holland, are you the XOXO killer?”

I sucked in a breath, both hating and appreciating how he’d laid it out there. I sorted through the information he’d given me.

An organization called the Shadows.

They’d set up the buy.

They recruited killers.

“What does that have to do with the Savages?” I asked, not answering yet. It was the one piece that didn’t fit.

Quentin blew out another breath, his nostrils flaring.

“The Savages are a ruthless mercenary gang that kills anyone who gets in their way, taking any and every contract regardless of the kill. They’re one of the biggest threats in the US and have evaded law enforcement and the FBI on every charge thrown at them.” His face hardened, his nostrils flared, and his hands flexed against me. “They’re the ultimate bad guys and have taken someone from each of us.”

That statement hung in the air, the grief and hatred for this group palpable. Quentin kept his eyes on me, reading every little emotional cue I gave. I had no doubt that he knew the truth but wanted me to say it. Needed me to say it.

“If they were following you, then you’re on their radar, and that’s not good. They won’t stop until you’re covered in blood,” he said, softer now.

He wasn’t trying to scare me but to prepare me for the truth. The Savages knew who I was and would come for me. Therefore, I had to throw myself at their feet for mercy and pray they were enough to keep the people I loved safe.

I couldn’t lose anyone else.

Gulping, I held his eyes as I dropped my shields, letting him see the truth.

“I’m the XOXO killer.”

CHAPTER 20

QUENTIN

The words I never expected to actually hear fell from Holland’s mouth, hitting me in the gut like a freight train. My hunch had been adamant as it slotted the pieces together, but I hadn’t been able to bring myself to believe it.

The moment my eyes landed on her emerald orbs, my world had been turned upside down. She was the other half of my soul, and a few hours ago, I’d thought I’d lost her—another victim of the Savages.

Grady didn’t want to share who we were with her, but I was done keeping secrets. This whole mission had been a bust, mainly because we’d been operating off the wrong profile. Holland had been the one good thing to come from this town, and now she held an even more important role.

The one we’d been searching for. The one to join our fight against the Savages.

I held her eyes, searching them as I tried to understand how. My brave girl stared back, proving to me without a shadow of a doubt she was who she said she was.

She was our killer.

“How? What?” Max jumped up, tugging his dark hair as he paced. “But that doesn’t make sense. Our profile—”

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