Page 75 of Blood & Throttle
And I didn’t say no.
I wanted it.
I slide into my jacket with my back still turned when his voice cuts through the silence, low, rough, and sharp as broken glass.
“Did you do it?”
That’s all he says.
But I knowexactlywhat he means.
I go still.
Not because I didn’t expect the question but because it sounds like he wants the answer to be yes. Like a part of him would understand if I said I snapped and buried a knife in that bastard’s chest.
I don’t turn yet.
I stare at the wall instead, letting the words echo in my head.
Did you do it?
They all think I did. The handlers. The press. Half theSyndicate.
A bloody body. No witnesses. The wrong place. My name smeared across every screen from here to the Outskirts.
I was framed. I know that. Riot knows that.
But proof doesn’t matter here.
Bodies do.
I finally glance over my shoulder, giving him just enough of a look to sting.
“What, no good morning? No cigarette?”
He doesn’t move.
Doesn’t blink.
His voice comes again, harder now. Like grit laced with gasoline.
“Just answer the fucking question, Sin.”
I turn to face him fully. Arms crossed. Chin up. And even though my heart’s hammering, I make sure he sees nothing but steel.
“No,” I say.
One word. Flat. True.
He watches me. Silent.
I let the moment drag. Let it twist the air between us.
“But I wanted to,” I add.
His eyes narrow, something sharp flickering behind them.
I exhale through my nose, jaw clenched. “Doesn’t matter, though. I’m already guilty in their eyes. The Syndicate wants a body, and mine’s the cheapest option.”
