“If Jamef believes his target to be deceased, he can return with proof of demise. If there’s no body, he can bring DNA scans and a nice, cute little illegal human and tell them you did it. He really won’t need much proof after that. He’ll have a perp and some evidence, and then he can get paid.”
I gasp, my hand going to my throat. “But…I didn’t kill anyone.”
“Oh, sweetness.” Bethiah gives me a warm smile. “No one cares. You’re human, precious. That’s all they need to make an open and shut case. They don’t care about getting this bag of szzt dung back to them. They just want to clean another problem off their desks.”
A cold shiver of fear races through me. No wonder Nassakth has been freaking out.
He moves forward behind me and puts a big hand on my shoulder. It’s warm and comforting and I feel better just at that small touch. Some of my terror goes away. Nassakth won’t let anything happen to me. He just won’t.
“But like I said, it’s good news,” Bethiah says brightly. “We can get this guy off your tail no problem.”
“How is this possibly good news?” I ask.
Nassakth’s hand seems to tighten on my shoulder ever so slightly as Bethiah glances at him.
“Because we know where the body is,” Bethiah continues. “We can just hand it over and be done.”
49
KIM
For a moment, it doesn’t register what Bethiah is saying. How does she know where the body of some stranger is? Then it hits me.
I turn to Nassakth. “No.”
His jaw clenches in that stubborn way of his. “You do not understand.”
I really, really don’t. Because right now, I’m a little terrified of the answer I might get. “You know where this guy is hiding?” I ask, feeling faint. Please, please let him know where this guy is hiding.
Nassakth crosses his arms over his chest.
Bethiah coughs.
I feel like a candle that’s just been snuffed out. “He’s not hiding, is he? He’s dead, and you know what happened.”
Nassakth just watches me. There’s sadness in his eyes, and disappointment, too. As if he’s disappointed in my response. Does he think I should be praising him?
“So the good news is that we can just, I don’t know, hack off a nice juicy foot from the corpse and hand it over to Jamef,” Bethiah announces. “Then the bounty hunter’s out of our hair. Problem solved, everyone goes home happy.”
“Did you kill this guy?” I whisper, not tearing my gaze away from Nassakth.
His eyes are calm. Unfazed. But so, so disappointed. “We will speak privately of this, Kim.” He turns and looks at Bethiah. “You have done enough damage this day. If you wish to collect the rest of your fees at all, you will leave here at once.”
“Right. I can sense that you’re not super thrilled with me right now, kitty cat, but I’m okay with that.” Bethiah moves to my side and pats my shoulder. “Even though she’s human and we all know they’re a little ‘simple,’ I think she deserves to know what’s going on around here.” She leans in and whispers in my ear. “I’ll come by in a few days to pick up the rest of my truth fee, Cheem. You’re welcome.”
With that, she pats me on the back and leaves the house, and then I’m alone with Nassakth.
We stare at each other for a long moment, and I realize just how much of a stranger he is to me. How long have we really known each other? A week? I know hardly anything about him at all, it seems, other than what he chooses to tell me. It could all be lies, spun to get me to lower my guard.
That hurts more than anything.
“Well?” I manage around the knot in my throat. “Don’t you think we should talk about this?”
“I do not,” he says flatly. “I do not think we should talk about any of this, but it seems that we must.” His jaw flexes, and he looks like he wants to smash something. “Come and sit, Kim, and I will tell all that I can.”
All that he “can.” Yeah. Somehow I suspect that’s a lot less than I really want to know, and it makes me angry. “Why is it that I find out more about what’s going on from that shitty bounty hunter than from the man I’m mated to?”
“Because she feels no obligation to keep you safe,” he snaps back. “I, however, value you for more than just your wallet.”
“Apparently not that much! What have you lied to me about? Everything? Has anything you said to me been the truth?”
“I have not lied to you about everything,” Nassakth growls, and then admits, “Though I have omitted some things.”
Oh great, so we’re splitting hairs. Scowling, I clench my fists and tremble with rage. I want to hit something, and I look around the house. I spot the mess of crumbs Bethiah has left on the counter, along with a half-eaten meat pocket. I stomp over to it and pick it up. “We can start here. Do you like these?”