Page 30 of Along for the Ride

Thank fuck I’m on the implant, because I have no interest in bringing a child into my shitty situation. I’ve kicked my addiction to opiates, but it seems I’m doomed to always find myself hooked on something that isn’t good for me. This time, his name is Gentry.

ChapterThirteen

Gentry

We’re back on the road a few hours later, on our way to a hit. Karson was in a mood when we returned to the campsite. I told him he could take the lead on this hit to try to cheer him up, and it seems to have worked. He’s keeping quiet and has stopped his brooding and glaring. It’s a short-term solution to a bigger problem, and I need to find the permanent fix. Logically, that’s getting rid of Leana.

There has to be a way to keep her that doesn’t piss off Karson. I just haven’t figured it out yet.

I debated telling Leana what we do so she’d understand why it’s so important to stay in the car while we work, but I don’t know how she’ll take it. Probably not as well as she takes my dick.

We reach the bottom of the driveway and tuck the car into the woods. The man in the house on top of the hill betrayed our boss in the worst kind of way. He acted as an informant to cover his own ass, and now George wants him to pay in blood. Because George wants him to suffer as much as possible, he also gave the go ahead to let Karson off his leash. A professional crew will come in to clean up our mess.

I’m more interested in getting the job done and securing a payday. I don’t enjoy murdering as much as I used to. It lost its shine when I turned it into a full-time job, which is often what happens when someone shifts their hobby into a business. Karson still enjoys it, but he gets so carried away. His reckless abandon is a risk. He doesn’t consider how his actions might get us caught, so I have to do the thinking for the both of us. It’s exhausting.

I turn to Leana before we exit the car. She’s asleep in the back, curled up on her side, and I consider letting her stay that way in the hopes that she’ll remain knocked out while we do our job. I decide against it. Part of me hopes she might try to escape while we’re occupied. That would get rid of so many problems.

“Hey,” I say as I shake her awake.

Her eyes blink open, and she sits up and looks around.

“We’ve gotta take care of something. I need you to stay in the car.”

She nods her head and closes her eyes again. She seems more than happy to go back to sleep, so maybe I’m worrying for nothing.

Karson pulls me aside, and he doesn’t look as sure about this plan. “Do you really think she’ll stay put?”

I shrug my shoulders and start toward the house.

“What’s gotten into you, G?” he asks when he catches up. “You know we need to get rid of her, and you know it should have happened before we took her to a fucking job with us. You’re not only gambling with your freedom. You’re gambling with mine.”

I stop and turn to face him. How fucking dare he be such a raging hypocrite. “You gamble with our freedom every time we do a fucking job, so I don’t want to hear it. Or have you forgotten about the jizz jar?”

He rolls his eyes and throws his hands in the air. “It’s not the same thing, and you know it. I don’t like this, and I want you to promise me something. If she doesn’t stay put in that car, if she sticks her nose where it doesn’t belong, I get to handle her.”

I don’t like this, but I don’t see another way to shut him up. “Fine. If she’s dumb enough to let her curiosity get the better of her, you can do whatever you want with her.”

He nods and turns for the house, but I don’t like the smug smile that springs onto his face.

I grab his arm and turn him to face me. “I have one condition. If she’s gone when we get back, we consider it settled and we don’t go after her.”

“You don’t get it, do you?” he says. “She’s not going anywhere. Maybe you don’t see the way she looks at you now, but I do. She’s got it bad for you, G. And I’m starting to think you might have it bad for her too.”

“Bullshit.”

“Oh, really? So you wouldn’t mind if I borrowed her for a night? Hell, that might make it worth keeping her around.” Karson waits for my answer, knowing he’s called my bluff. Of course I don’t want to share her, but if he knows that, it will only paint a bigger target on her back.

“Do whatever you want. Good luck getting her to agree to spending a night with you, though.”

“Who said she had to agree?”

I’ve had enough of this conversation, so I walk away before my fist finds its way to his mouth. We have a job to do, and I’m ready to get it over with.

Getting into the house is easy enough. The only security camera on the property faces the front. It’s easy to skirt, and we find the back door unlocked. What a moron. It’s not a large house, and Karson finds the target fast asleep in his king-size bed.

While he handles the asshole, I start my search for payment. I find a safe in the study, tucked away in a closet behind a stack of classical music records. What a pretentious fucking collection.

Screams echo from the room across the hall. “Ask him what the code is before you kill him!” I yell.

---