Chapter 26 Kip
KIP
“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?” Death asked, pacing the small bedroom.
I checked my watch for the fifth time, wondering if Holland was still alive, or if Death had given Ella a signal to kill her.
I’m not sure my timing had ever been so shitty.
When I’d kidnapped Holland, I had no idea that Death and Ella were hunting in the area.
Holland had been my dirty secret. One I had zero intention of sharing until we’d figured some shit out.
“I have a life outside of what we do.”
Death’s low, dark chuckle echoed through the space. “You mean kill people and clean the scenes?”
“Yeah.” I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.
“She saw Ella’s face and the body we brought with us. My first thought is to let Ella deal with it.”
I closed the gap between us and got in his space, my chest heaving.
“No. That’s not an option. I’ll vouch for her, but no one is laying a hand on her.
” I stood my ground. It was rare that I ever went toe-to-toe with him, but this situation called for a no bullshit stance. “No one will hurt her now or ever.”
A wicked smile pulled at the corners of Death’s mouth. “Interesting. You’re in love with her.”
That wasn’t what this was. Love alone didn’t claw at your insides until you couldn’t breathe without her scent in the air. I lay awake at night, fists clenched, body shaking with the need to own, to consume, to cage just to keep her safe from the world.
What I felt for Holland was more. Darker.
Addiction. Obsession. A hunger that had lived in me since the first time I thought she’d died in my arms. She wasn’t a woman to me anymore—she was a need.
My need. My possession. My ruin. But I’d never admit that to Death.
He wouldn’t understand. He would see it as weakness. So I gave him the easy answer.
I stepped away. “Something like that. It’s a long story. I met her briefly when we were kids.”
Soft footsteps approached and then Ella appeared, leaning on the door frame. “You knew her before she was kidnapped?”
Surprised that Ella had that information, I shot her a pointed look. “How do you know?”
Ella gave me a gentle smile as she walked in and sat on the edge of the bed.
“Holland shared some things with me. Who she killed, how she knew you. Ya know, chit-chat between new friends.” Her attention turned to Death.
“If Kip vouches for Holland, I’d like to give her a chance.
I just gave her an opportunity to run, so if she’s still here in another sixty seconds, she’s either too terrified to take off, or she wants to be here for Kip.
She might make a good addition to the group. Something inside me says she’s safe.”
I exhaled. I wanted to hug Ella, but Death had to get on board before I could feel any real peace.
Death approached Ella, slid his arm around her shoulders, and asked, “Do you trust her?”
“I do,” I interjected. “Aren’t I the one you should be asking?”
“I agree. This conversation is with Kip, but I do support him at this point. And so, what if she says anything about the dead dude? When Kip is done, there won’t be any evidence left. It’s her word against ours. All of ours.” She paused and looked at me. “Right? Even yours?”
“If you’re questioning my loyalty to you and Death, don’t. I won’t ever betray you. Not for anyone.”
“He loves her,” Death added.
“So? You loved me, and it didn’t jeopardize your friendships. It all turned out well.” She reached up and touched the back of his hand. “Kip, why don’t you see if Holland is still here. If not, then the chase is on.”
“Better fucking not be.” I walked out of the room and down the hall, my throat dry, wondering if she’d bolted out the door as soon as Ella’s back was turned. My body vibrated with tension, trying not to play out the worst scenario in my mind.
I rounded the corner, and to my relief, Holland was cracking open the air fryer and checking on dinner.
“Will Death and Ella be joining us? If so, I need to pop in a few extra potatoes.”
My legs devoured the distance between us, and I pressed her firmly against the countertop. Grasping her chin, I tilted her face upward and claimed her lips with a fervent kiss. She didn’t fucking run. She was checking the damn potatoes.
“You didn’t leave when you had a chance,” I murmured, my words thick.
Her warm palm found its way to my chest, resting over the pounding rhythm of my heart.
“No. I decided you were worth the risk,” she replied, her voice steady and resolute.
A raw, primal growl tore from my throat as I lowered my head, whispering with a fierce intensity, “Your loyalty will be rewarded.”
With a deliberate touch, I trailed my hand down her thigh, pressing against her pussy through the fabric of her jeans.
“Oh, good. You’re still here. Can I help with dinner?” Ella asked from the edge of the hall.
I kissed Holland again, then turned my attention to Death.
“We should talk … outside.”
Death walked around the body as if it weren’t crumpled and bleeding on the floor.
Once outside, the soft chirps of crickets filled the evening air.
I crossed my arms and stared into the darkness. “I need your word that Holland is safe.” My tone was clipped. I wasn’t fucking around about her. I needed to focus on other things, like learning who I killed and Mother.
“As long as she doesn’t turn on us, you have my word.”
Death was a lot of things, but he was brutally honest, and his word was ironclad. It was one reason we’d been friends for so many years. We trusted each other.
“That’s fair. I won’t jeopardize any of us.”
“I know that. It’s why Holland is still alive. Between us, Ella could use another friend.”
My brow arched. Death wasn’t the sentimental type except when it came to Ella, and then, it was only brief moments like this.
“She has Cami.”
“Yeah, but she can’t share her … as Ella calls them, our dates.”
I chuckled. “I get that. It’s not like she can call her and say hey, guess what sick fuck I killed today.”
“Exactly. If Holland has the same darkness, which I suspect she does or you wouldn’t have brought her here, then they might be good for each other.”
I rubbed my jaw, the new stubble scratching my fingers. “She didn’t come by choice.”
Death didn’t miss a beat with my confession. “And now?”
“She’s here by her own free will.”
“Good.”
Silence, thick and heavy, weighed between us.
“Have you talked to Dope? Has he learned anything new about the Pied Piper?” I wasn’t interested in discussing Holland anymore.
“Not yet. I know he’s digging. Have you reached out to him yet?”
“No. I’ve been a little busy. Plus, I was hoping Dope would have some information before I did. Help me walk into the situation more aware of what the Pied Piper is up to. I don’t trust the motherfucker any farther than I can piss.”
Death crossed his arms over his chest and looked out into the tree line. “I wish Ella would tell us what he said to her, but any time I say his name she walks away. I’m not making any headway.”
“Whatever it is, it has to be big, or she would have told us. She’s protecting someone.”
“Or someones. Hell, it might be all of us.” Death walked toward the overgrown path.
I followed him, inhaling the clean country air. It was quiet and calm, not something we got in the city very often.
“That would be a heavy weight to carry all by herself.”
Death stopped and looked at me. “Exactly, which is the kind of game the sick son of a bitch would play.”
I let out a breath, but it rattled on the way out. My hand drifted, almost absently, to the cross hanging at my neck—fingers curling around the metal, the hidden edge biting into my palm. I squeezed. Harder. Harder. Until I felt the skin split.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. The words slid through my mind like a knife through water. My mother’s voice. Sweet, soft, slicing me open from the inside out.
Pain sparked up my arm, bright and jagged, grounding and weightless all at once. I didn’t remember pulling the cross free. Didn’t remember dragging the blade across the inside of my forearm, just shallow enough to sting. Just deep enough to feel.
“… Kip.”
Death’s firm tone snapped the air like a whip. I blinked. My vision cleared, the world shuddering back into focus. Blood welled in a thin, trembling line on my skin.
His stare locked on the cut, then flicked up to my face. “Kip?” Death asked softly, “What the fuck are you doing?”
I swallowed but my throat was dry and raw. “I’m fine.”
A lie. We both knew it. But Death only gave a slow, measured nod. Filing it away. Watching. Waiting.
“Get some rest, man.” He turned, disappearing down the path back to the warehouse, but not before I saw it—that flicker of something rare in his features.
Worry.