Page 153 of Sin Like the Devil

Lennox looks between us several times. It’s almost comical. He’s stubborn as a mule but not stupid. Xander’s jaw muscles clench, his almost-black eyes glittering like a knife’s edge.

“You’ve spent every single day plotting how to get rid of her.” Lennox steps into his friend’s space.

“Yes.” Xander’s voice drips with disdain. “Far cleaner methods than leaving a dead body floating in a pool. That was sloppy, Nox.”

“You… helped her escape?”

“I did. She isn’t your problem to eliminate.”

“Then whose problem is she?” Lennox chuffs incredulously. “Fuck, Xan. Has the bitch made you go fucking soft? Are you deluded enough to think she’s yours?”

His deliberately impassive expression not wavering, Xander seizes a handful of Lennox’s shirt. He drags him close enough for their noses to touch.

“No, she isn’t mine. Ripley belongs to herself. But dare to even look at her for another goddamn second, and I’ll have your tongue.”

“Who the hell are you?” Lennox seethes, his voice rising. “We only have each other, Xan! She’s trying to tear our family apart!”

“What family?” Xander claps back.

“How can you even say that to me?”

A third voice interrupts their fight.

“What on earth is going on in here?”

Nina storms into the cubicle with her clipboard in hand. She takes one look at the three of us then jabs her finger towards the door.

“This is a hospital, not a boxing ring!” she adds.

Xander releases Lennox’s shirt and steps back. “He was just leaving.”

“I want you all out. Right now.” She points towards the curtain’s opening.

Brushing his wrinkled shirt, Lennox spares a final look at Raine’s hospital bed. He escapes the cubicle without another uttered word then vanishes. I suck in a breath, but I still don’t look at Xander.

Truthfully, I don’t trust him enough not to stop me from what I have to do next. My plan was faulty all along. It isn’t enough to break their family. I know Lennox has lost everything before. Ripping his world apart will take far more finesse.

Killing him won’t cut it.

I’ll feed him to Harrowdean’s monsters instead.

CHAPTER 25

RIPLEY

PLAY DEAD (JUST FOR TONIGHT) – THE MESSENGER BIRDS

Walking slowly with my arms clasped loosely around my waist, I hold the bulge of contraband inside my sweatpants. With my usual, oversized t-shirt on top, the large bag of pills is well-concealed anyway. I’m just on edge and paranoid.

It’s taken me months to build up Noah’s stash. Sneaking small quantities from batches here and there, I’ve had to carefully count each pill, ensuring the plan will work. He’s still sure about the desired outcome, and despite the way it makes me internally flinch, I won’t let him down.

He’s made his choice.

I’m just a means to an end.

Detaching from the reality of my actions has gotten me this far in life. What’s one more scratch on the scorecard? No one ever likes to admit that in order to get what we want, or even protect the ones we love, there’s always a price to be paid.

I wonder if that’s what Lennox told himself before he entered Holly’s bedroom that night. Was she simply just another scratch on his scorecard? A price he was willing to pay? I guess that’s all we ever are to each other in the end. Pawns to be manipulated and wiped out of the game.

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