Page 104 of Lady Killer

“Because you can’t run around murdering anyone who offends your girlfriend’s delicate sensibilities.”

“Give me one good reason why.”

Ever’s devotion was endearing, except when he wanted to kill our best lead.

“You can’t kill Clayton because one, we don’t know that he’s guilty of anything beyond knowing Melody,and two, if he is, then we need him to get information,” I said, rubbing my temples.

He let out an exaggerated huff and slumped back in his seat.

“None of which has anything to do with my sensibilities,” I added, unwilling to give Nixon a pass.

“What’s the plan then, stab him in the hand?” he said.

“For a man who is part of a family of supposedly notorious killers, you sure do whine a lot about something that was barely more than a scratch.”

Nixon flipped me off from across the study room table, causing Everest to growl and lunge out of his seat to grab the offending digit.

“Stop it!” I hissed at the two of them.

Tensions were high.

While Alister and Everest had acquiesced to giving me space during my time with Autumn, they were adamant about having someone with me at all other times.

Today, that meant following me to the library where I was trying to finish up some of my research for my final economics paper.

One guard dog was typically deemed sufficient, but when Alister discovered that Clayton usually spent Saturday afternoons at the main library on campus,I was blessed with both Everest’s and Nixon’s company during my study date.

“I don’t understand why we can’t just scoop him up and hand him over to Locke and let him do his magic,” Everest grumbled.

Without his knife, which I refused to let him play with in the library, he was extra fidgety, his fingers constantly dancing across the tabletop and arms of his chair.

“Because if he is innocent, then you’ve gone and tortured an influential man from an important family for nothing, and it feeds into the narrative that someone is trying to build that the Blackwells are losing control,” I said.

“So, we find who’s saying that and kill them too.”

I slammed the book I was reading shut. It was impossible to work with the two of them. They were worse than Autumn when it came to chatter.

“If the two of you can’t be quiet, then you will have to wait somewhere else.”

Nixon scoffed, kicking his boots up onto the lacquered table. They landed precariously close to my laptop, causing my eye to twitch. He smirked and flicked the lighter in his hand.

“Starbright,” Everest crooned, spinning in his seat to face me.

“Don’t youStarbrightme. I have to work on this paper, and the two of you have not stopped fighting since we left the townhouse.”

The serial killer’s face fell into such a dramatic pout that I almost felt bad for admonishing him. Almost.

Clayton may have been our main lead, but I also needed to write this paper. “Ever?”

“Have I mentioned that I adore the sound of my name on your lips, darling?”

“Yes,” Nixon snipped, “roughly a hundred times.”

We ignored him.

“Would you be willing to go get us some snacks?” Maybe if I separated the two of them, it would at least reduce some of the testosterone in here. As much as I would’ve preferred to be rid of Nixon, he was more likely to tell me to go to hell than to agree to sneak some verboten snacks into the study room for me.

Everest raised one white brow in my direction. “I know what you’re doing, darling.”

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