Page 20 of The Verdict

I rolled my bottom lip through my teeth, drawing to the surface of my expression the shock and fear I’d felt when I saw Mercury driving his knife into Les’s stomach.

“Les was arguing with a man, and all of a sudden, the other man stabbed him. Over and over and over…” I turned my head to the side, letting him see I was sickened by the memory.

And I was.But not by Les’s vicious death; I’d seen plenty of deaths like that before. No, what sickened me was the look on Mercury’s face as he’d stabbed him. He’d smiled down the hall at me the whole time—which was no more than a few seconds, but that was long enough to send a message. He enjoyed thekill. Enjoyed watching me recognize him. Enjoyed watching me realize he was coming for me next. He more than enjoyed it; he looked like he was getting off on it.

“Did you recognize the killer?”

I’m sorry.

I ignored the thought—the guilt. There was no room for apologies. I’d made my bed back in Barcelona, and now I had to sleep in it. Alone.

“No.”

He hesitated like he could tell my answer was a lie—fake—but I knew he couldn’t. I was too good for that.

“Then what happened?”

“He started to come down the hall for me.”Real.“So, I bolted out the front door, ran toward the park, and just kept running.”Also real.“I didn’t know if he’d follow me—how far he’d follow me. I didn’t know if he knew where I lived, so I didn’t go home.”

I was in no position to confront Mercury if I could avoid it. He wasn’t just ruthless, he was vicious. It was why it had taken both Jupiter and Saturn to keep him in line. I’d listened to him talk about men he’d killed—men who’d gotten in his way. He told gruesome tales with a smile on his face as he lazily ran the edge of his finger along the curved blade of his knife until it drew blood. And then he smiled wider.

Mercury was soulless.And after Barcelona, I didn’t even want to think about the things Mercury would do if he got his hands on me. Which was why I had to make sure he didn’t—why I had to get to Jupiter first.

“I hoped the police would catch him right away, but when I didn’t see anything on the news…” I paused and swallowed down the bile that rose with each lie. I didn’t have a choice. My life depended on these lies, and I wouldn’t put it all at risk for a man I didn’t know.Even if he had saved my life.“When I didn’tsee anything on the news, I was going to go give them my statement… and that’s when I heard them announce I was their prime suspect.”

“So, you came back here?”

My lashes fluttered, and I let my gaze drift down to the open drawers of Les’s desk.Obviously, I couldn’t tell him I was here to hide any trace of myself from an infamous Spanish gang of thieves who wanted me dead.

“I wanted to find proof that it wasn’t me.” My heart thudded again, each beat echoing one word.Fake.“I needed the police to protect me, but I couldn’t go to them if they thought I was the killer. And the real killer… since I saw his face…” I trailed off, pretending to feel a rush of fear before I looked at him and asked, “He has to be after me, right? Because I saw him—because I could identify him?”

Even though he only knew the fake version of my tale, it didn’t change the very real fact that Les’s killer was after me—that Mercury was after me.

“Possibly,” he said low, his jaw twitching.And for long moments, he stared at me. Like the heat of his gaze was capable of melting through my lies.

Impossible.

I wouldn’t break. I couldn’t. I balled my hands into fists, willing myself not to crack under the intensity of his stare. Willing myself not to weaken under the weight of his warmth.

A decade and a hundred lessons in self-preservation had taught me the only person I could trust to protect me was myself. But one night tempted me—this mantempted me to trust him. To trust him with my past.With my future.

And that might be the most dangerous thing about him.

My eyes narrowed at his. “Do you believe me?”

The words turned him to stone for a split second before he swiped his hand through his hair. Instantly, my fingers recalledthe feel of those locks in my own grip as I held his head to mine.

“It doesn’t matter.” His jaw pulsed.

It felt like it mattered. It shouldn’t, but it did.

“What is it?” I asked cautiously.

His eyes flicked to the window and then back to me, their blue hue darkening measurably. “The police already gave him your identity.”

“Are you… not with the police?” It was my turn to probe. I wanted to know who he was—who was the man who’d saved me?

Again, his jaw flexed. “Not exactly.”

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