Page 93 of Provocation
We put the supplies in the cab with us, not wanting to open the bed and chance anyone seeing the big guy that’s back there wrapped in black bags and duct tape.
I surreptitiously watch Blake as he drives us back into Richmond proper. My mind is strangely numb as we back into the alleyway by the club. Less than two hours ago I was excited that I’d got my revenge on the people who’d been so nasty to me. It doesn’t even feel like the same night now. There’s no one outhere anymore, no line down the street. Just the faint beat of the music inside.
Considering we have to unload the body now, I guess that’s some good luck.
Blake gets out of the truck, and I stay where I am. What if he tells the others what I did, and they’re upset? They might finally understand that I’m notnormal. What if John finds out? I hear Stoke’s voice in my head telling me to show the proper emotions. There was a book at the Heath that gave scenarios and the correct responses to them.
What one’s emotional response should be after shooting a criminal in the back wasn’t in it.
He comes to my side just as the side door to the club opens, and I see Mav and Shade. Both are looking grim as they step outside.
‘Hewasbad, right?’ I whisper to Blake. ‘He seemed bad.’
‘Yeah, sweetheart. He was a real bad guy.’
Feeling sick again despite Blake’s reassurance, I take off my seatbelt and slide down to the ground slowly.
I notice that there’s a hatch in the ground by the building’s wall. It’s open.
‘Cameras are off,’ Shade murmurs, squeezing my hand when he gets close.
I peep down into the dark hole as I hear the tailgate being opened and the grunt of someone lifting something heavy. The plastic wrapped body is unceremoniously thrown down into the black, and Mav closes it up quietly, fastening a padlock to secure it.
‘Coal shoot from the old days,’ he murmurs as I stare at it.
He puts his arm around me and leads me into the club. Earlier, all I wanted to do was dance after my plan had worked, but now I don’t even look up as I trudge up the stairs to the office behind the guys.
Inside, the door closes behind me.
‘What happened?’ Shade asks.
He doesn’t sound angry, but I don’t look at him.
‘We were going to the lab on campus to grab some supplies. On the way, I got a message from…one of Kormak’s guys. He said he was headed to Sal’s because the old man still hadn’t paid his dues.’
‘So why did you go?’ Shade demands to know.
‘Because the fucker threatened to assault Sal’s daughter last time. She’s just a kid. Fourteen or so. I told Daisy to stay in the truck. I went in. I stopped him from… what he was gonna do, but he pulled a gun on me and?—’
‘I shot him,’ I finish.
I look up. Mav’s hand finds mine, but I move away a little. I don’t want comfort. I want them to know I’m not evil.
‘Daisy.’
I look up at Mav.
‘Are you okay?’
I frown at him. ‘He was going to kill Blake.’
‘We get it, but how do you feel?’
I open my mouth and close it again–several times.
‘I don’t know,’ I say finally, looking down at the couch and playing with one of the seams. ‘I’m glad my coat is okay. My tummy hurts. I’m afraid.’
‘Of what?’
