I nod at her, taking a drag of my vape. Goddamn, I wish it was a cigarette. “Jude’s been trying to get in contact with Byron ever since. He’s convinced the kid isn’t crazy and has been locked away without proper assessment. There are laws in this country that prevent parents or guardians from doing that kind of shit. But it’s all hearsay. They say he can’t even tell what’s real anymore. May as well be dead. Who fucking knows.”
She absorbs it all, and then asks, “So why Jude and not you going inside?”
I snort. “Did you want it to be me?”
“You’re the one who convinced me you have what it takes.” She looks me in the eye. “I think you do.”
“It’s not that. I wouldn’t get to go to some fancy rehab hospital. I don’t have a police commissioner for a grandfather. And I’ve already got a record. They’d stick me in fucking prison and throw away the key. The guys are just trying to protect me.”
“But you don’t want to be protected.”
“Who the fuck wants that? I’m not a pussy.”
Her eyes meet mine, seemingly amused at my outburst. “Then prove it,” she says.
I narrow my eyes at her. “How?”
“How much do you want to kill your brother?” She asks it like she’s asking me if I want a goddamn piece of cake with my coffee.
I stop walking and turn to her. “More than you know,” I say, honestly.
“Then I need you to do what I can’t,” she says, looking up at me.
I frown. “And what’s that?”
Her hair blows across her face as the wind takes hold of it. I want to reach over and tuck it out the way, and then kiss those full lips that always seem to be taunting me.
“Become what your brother wants,” she says. I stare at her long and hard. “He needs to trust before he’ll let the monster in. He’s surrounded by family, and his men day and night. It won’t be easy for someone like me to get close.”
I walk up to her and brush the strand of hair out of her face, then I guide her gently back up against the wall. Her breathing quickens as she licks her lips, making my cock rigid immediately in my fucking pants. “You’re asking me to become what I hate,” I say to her.
“I’m asking you to become like me.” She grabs my dick as my lips meet hers, making me groan as I delve inside her with my tongue. She tastes sweet, divine almost.
For you, Viola. I’ll fucking burn down the world.