Page 71 of Bones
One corner of his lip turned up. “I could tell you were wondering.”
"Great. Thanks for letting me know you're not ok with the horrible thing you're forcing me to do."
His amusement disappeared. “I’m not forcing you to do anything.”
I scoffed. “I would notbe hereif you hadn’t brought me hereby force.”
He shifted, but his grey eyes narrowed. “You’re not the only one who doesn’t have a choice, Bones. Maybe if you stopped trying to be a godsdamn martyr, you’d see that.”
He turned on his heel and slammed the door behind him before I could come up with a response.
11
Only one day passed before Mac returned. I was in the middle of healing a child who’d broken out in red scabby spots and a fever. When the door opened and he strode in, my stomach dropped. He didn’t say anything and leaned against the wall by the door, waiting. I finished my work, endured the tearful mother’s gratitude, and then went to the sink to wash my hands. Mac stayed silent behind me, most likely still pissed, which was fine by me. I turned around as I dried my hands, expecting to see him still brooding by the door, but sucked in a startled gasp to find him right behind me.
“What—”
“I’m gonna ask you one more time,” he said in a soft voice that made a chill walk down my spine. “Did you know that man in the cells?”
“No!” We were back to this again? I couldn’t help yielding back a step, bumping into the sink, but he followed, towering over me. “I told you, Mac, Idon’t know him.”
He stared down at me, his face still expressionless and his eyes so dark they looked as black as his hair. Something must have happened. Something big.
“Why are you still asking me that?” I demanded. He stood just inches away from me, trapping me against the sink.
“Because somehow last night he escaped the watchtower, and nobody escapes the fucking watchtower without help.”
I glared up at him, but internally my heart pounded. If he didn’t believe me, how would I prove that I had nothing to do with it? Trey could back me up, butwouldhe after the horrible things I said to him? Not to mention that I wasn’t happy to hear that man escaped either. I didn’t know who he was, and I didn’t want to find out.
“Madame is on a warpath, and maybe the guards didn’t notice how he looked at you, but I sure as hell did. Herecognizedyou.”
“I know. I saw it too,” I snapped, deciding impulsively that honesty would be the best choice in this situation. “Maybe he saw me before with the Reapers. I don’t know. ButIdon’t know him.”
He stared me down for so long that I had to resist the urge to fidget.
“If you don’t believe me, why don’t you ask Trey if I was here all night?” I caved to the urge to break the silence.
“I already did,” he replied.
My heart sank. Of course, Trey would use this to his advantage. I'd hurt him and gave him the perfect opportunity to hurt me back.
“He said you were here all night,” Mac added.
It took me a second to register what he said. My brows knit together in confusion. “What—” I forced myself to push past my desperate need to understand why Trey hadn’t seized this opportunity and focused on theotherreason for my confusion. “Then why are you in here using your scary asshole act on me?”
His eyes widened, surprise flashing through them before he narrowed them again. "Because I want some answers."
“Well I’ve got none,” I snapped.
“I want to know why you looked so scared when you saw him recognize you.”
My mouth went dry as my mind spun with how to answer him. He studied my face, and I had a terrible feeling that if I lied, he would know.
“I try not to be noticed. Byanyone.” I managed to get out.
“Why?”
My mind raced with how to avoid giving him the real answer while also not lying. “It doesn’t usually end well.”
