Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 108563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
I scoff, my gaze whipping to her. “That gut of yours is going to get you in trouble,” I warn her. “Don’t think for a second that I won’t kill you when the time comes.”
Siren winks, and something inside me crumbles. “Not if I get to you first.”
“Fuck me,” Shadow mutters under her breath. “The two of you just need to do it already.”
My gaze whips around to Shadow, gaping at her as I mentally go over the words that just came out of her mouth, making sure I heard her correctly. But fuck, there’s no mistaking that, and judging by the way Siren is gaping at her too, it’s clear that I was wrong. Perhaps this kid does know exactly what I want with Siren.
“I . . . ummm . . . what?” Siren says, her face flushing just as the waiter arrives at the table with her wine and Shadow’s soda. Siren takes the wine from him, and before it even hits the table, she lifts it right to her lips and downs every last drop. She immediately hands the glass back to the guy. “I’m gonna need more, and keep ’em coming.”
The waiter scurries off like a good little boy, and the second he’s gone, Shadow launches her inquest. “So like . . . are you two a thing? Working together?”
I scoff. “I work alone.”
A smirk stretches across Siren’s lips, and as she glances at me, a strange fluttering occurs deep in my stomach. “Ahh, so you don’t need me then,” she states, her voice lowered. “You’re content with jerking off alone in a cold shower.”
My gaze narrows on her. Maybe she has a point. Perhaps I don’t always prefer working alone.
“Watch yourself, Little Siren.”
Shadow watches us from across the table, scrunching her lips into a disgusted cringe. “You two are gross.”
Siren simply smiles, more than proud of herself as she settles her stare back on the kid. “Why were you watching me anyway? Do you do that often?” she asks, right as the waiter returns with a burger bigger than the kid’s head.
Shadow can hardly answer the question because she’s staring at the burger as though she can’t possibly think about anything else. “Ummm . . . What?” Shadow grunts, her hands already scooping up the burger.
“You were following me,” Siren repeats. “Why?”
Shadow takes a bite, and her eyes roll in her head. “Ohmygod,” she groans around the food, her words smooshed together. “Thisissogood.”
“Shadow,” Siren pushes.
“I follow everyone.”
“Everyone?”
“That’s what I said.”
“You’re able to track everyone? Just like that?”
She takes another bite, barely having finished off the first one, and before she even chews her food, she shoves the straw of her soda into her mouth as well. The fuck is up with this kid? She’s acting as though she hasn’t eaten in months, but that couldn’t be right because I only just gave her money to make sure she had everything she needed.
Shadow simply shrugs. “You gotta be the best to beat the best,” she says, and as she eats her burger, I watch as she relaxes, getting chatty as she eats. “And you two? You’re the best. Right after me, of course. But you know who’s not the best? Those brothers.”
“You knew they were brothers?” Siren asks, her brow arching, clearly impressed.
“Doesn’t take a genius to figure that one out,” Shadow continues, and I do what I can to not take offense. I didn’t realize that immediately, and it wasn’t until Siren’s confirmation that I believed it to be true.
“Don’t you go searching out trouble with them,” I warn Shadow. “They’re not like me or Siren. If they catch you in a back alley, they won’t offer to feed you. They’ll beat you to death.”
“I know,” she says, a wariness in her eyes. “I’ve already had a run-in with them tonight, but after I saw how they killed Sharkbait the other night, I knew to get out of there. I’m not looking to be a victim.”
Siren clenches her jaw, her eyes flashing with anger. “They targeted you?”
Shadow shrugs her shoulders and keeps her gaze focused on her burger. “Yeah, sure. They targeted me. Or maybe I might have targeted them.”
“Are you insane?” Siren demands. “You’re a kid. You can’t be putting yourself in unnecessary danger like that.”
“Just because I’m a kid doesn’t mean I can’t handle myself,” Shadow throws back at her. “I know what I’m doing.”
“I’m sure you do, but these aren’t the kind of people who are going to take it easy on you because you’re a kid. They’re going to kill you, and it’ll be brutal. They don’t give a shit. You can’t go out looking for trouble. Sure, track them all you want. Do all the recon you need, but choose your targets wisely.”
“Like you do?” Shadow demands around a mouthful of food. “I saw your kill tonight. That was nothing. You should have just let Eagle walk. That kill doesn’t count.”