Page 32 of Dark Wishes

My body wants to do the opposite, but I make myself remain motionless. Jamison dangles a thin black strap between his fingers. It has Velcro ends, and a loop along one side. Bending close to me, he wraps it around my right thigh.

All my nerve endings wake up. “I can do it myself.”

“Just let me.” He tightens the strap, his palm cupping my knee.

It’s exactly how he touched me when we had sex.

The tiny twitches going through my body make my leg tremble; he hesitates, locking his eyes on mine. “Are you nervous?”

“Yes,” I hush, licking my lips. “About going in there and killing Caruso, I mean.”

Jamison frowns thoughtfully, then wraps the Velcro into place. “You don’t have to do this.”

“We both know that’s not true.”

His stare grows more intense. With one hand still resting on my knee, he pushes the gun into the loop. I jump when he grabs the hem of my dress, but instead of lifting it higher, he shoves it over the weapon to hide it. “The safety is off. Remember that.”

“Is it really safer there than down my bra?”

“If it goes off, you might lose a few toes, but you won’t put a hole in your stomach.”

Cringing at the mental visual, I look out the windshield. “I’m ready.”

“Selena.” I face him when he says my name; his eyebrows scrunch. “You’re not ready if you’re answering tothat.”

My cheeks burn red at his admonishment. “Not fair. I’m not in character yet.”

“There’s no fairness in this brutal game. You make a single mistake, and at best, they’re calling the police on you. At worst—”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.” Sitting up taller I roll my shoulders, then flip my hair to shake it loose. “Go again. I’m ready now.”

“Selena?” he draws the name out.

Cocking my head with a coy smile, I let out a bird-chirp of a laugh. “Sorry, wrong person. I’m Malory, the girl you called in to audition at 6.”

His blank face hides if he’s satisfied by my act. “You’re sure you can keep the lie going, even under pressure?”

“I lured Sanford back to my room under a fake name,” I remind him.

His jaw is tight. At this rate, he’ll grind his teeth into a fine powder. “That didn’t resolve the way you expected.”

What Iris told me about his last contract coils around my brain. I tell myself it’s irrelevant, but I can’t shake off the uneasyvibe. “What, are you going to break through a window here, too?” I ask coolly.

"If something goes wrong, yes.”

“Nothing is going to go wrong. In less than half an hour, Caruso will be dead at my feet. I’ll run out the fire exit and back to the car. Be ready to get us out of here.”

“I’ll be listening in,” he reminds me, tapping the bluetooth device on his left ear. “Keep that burner phone in your purse on silent.”

Tired of being lectured about the details we’ve gone over multiple times, I reach for the door handle. “I know.”

“Selena.” He grabs my wrist, stopping me from exiting the car. “If you’re in danger, sayAlphabet.I’ll come help.”

Why do I have the sudden urge to let him pull me back into the car? We could drive away... go to that place he mentioned for pasta. It would be easy.

Sunlight dazzles through the window. It creates bands of yellow over my lap, the stripes similar to the ones on my apartment floor years ago. I can hear Valoria giggle... smell the nail polish, see the flecks of pink on the newspaper.

I’d never forgive myself for running away.

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