Chapter 24
TWENTY-FOUR
My cheek throbs in disappointment, each heartbeat sending pulses of pain across my face as if my body itself is punishing me for getting into this mess.
After what feels like forever, I finally open my eyes to see the gun still pointed at me. My breath hitches, but I force myself to exhale slowly, then shift my gaze to Hill.
The fury that just burned in his eyes is gone, replaced with something colder. Detached. Calculating.
When he finally lowers the gun, sliding it back into his holster, the tension in the room doesn’t ease, it sharpens, pressing down on me in new ways. My shoulders ache with the effort to stay still, not to react, but my mind races, trying to read him. What’s his next move?
I keep my gaze locked on his, refusing to flinch, trying to project a calm I haven’t felt since I opened my eyes. I was ready to go but fuck if I’m ready to stay here in this room with this asshole. My pulse pounds in my ears, drowning out everything but the heavy silence between us.
He doesn’t speak right away, instead staring at me, his expression giving nothing away.
“This doesn’t mean I trust you,” he finally says, his voice gravelly. “It simply means I trust you… enough.”
The fuck is he even talking about?
Before I even have time to process his words, his hand snaps out, gripping my upper arm tightly as he pulls me forward.
I stumble at first, the sudden motion throwing me off balance, but I quickly steady myself, matching his pace as we move out of the security room and down the hallway.
My cheek still throbs, a reminder of the bruising anger simmering below the surface.
A reminder that I’m still here.
The hallway is dim, quiet, the kind of silence that suffocates. When we take a turn, Levi, Koen, and Sylus are standing there, waiting. Hill pulls me to a stop in front of them.
“You’re right. She won’t talk.” He releases my arm, and I straighten myself, rolling my shoulder as I pull away from him, gathering my dignity.
“See?” Levi says, his gaze is fixed on Hill. “Told you we can trust her.”
Trust me?
Trust me?
The pieces slot into place.
Without thinking, I step right into Levi’s space. Sylus and Koen stand behind him, but I ignore them as I lock eyes with him and let my anger bubble over.
“Trust, huh? That’s rich.” I take a step closer, coming toe-to-toe with him. “Real fucking rich coming from a liar.”
There’s a pregnant silence before Sylus’s voice cuts through it. “You fucking hit her, Ez?”
Sylus’s gaze is heavy on me as he inspects me, darkening when he takes in the handcuffs, his lips pulling into a hard line when he zeroes in on my reddened cheeks.
He takes a step toward Hill. “Answer me, Ez.”
Hill is his brother?
Ezra?
Ezra doesn’t react to the accusation besides a slight tightening in his jaw. “You think Veronica Harrington’s people would be gentle with her if they caught her?”
Sylus takes another step toward him, his entire body vibrating with fury. Koen is quicker, pressing a hand against Sylus’s chest, holding him back. “Not you,” Koen murmurs, his eyes never leaving Ezra. Then, louder, he repeats the question, “You fucking hit her?”
I look between them all, feeling beyond over this night. “Yeah, twice. Thanks for the brilliant teamwork, dickhe—”
Koen’s fist connects with Ezra’s jaw, the sound cracking through the hallway, cutting off my insult. Ezra stumbles back and grabs his face as Koen winces, shaking out his knuckles. “Fuck,” he mutters, pain creasing his brow.
What the hell?
A laugh bubbles up from my chest, raw and full of disbelief. “Your form is shit, Koen.”
Sylus’s chuckle is dark and humorless. “So much for trained in hand-to-hand combat.” Then he grabs Ezra by the collar and shoves him hard against the wall.
“Give me the damn keys to the cuffs.” Ezra’s hand drops to his pocket briefly before he slaps them into Sylus’s waiting palm. “Thanks. And fuck you, brother.”
Sylus turns back to me, his expression softening as he reaches for my wrists, unlocking the cuffs with a gentleness that surprises me.
The cuffs click open and fall to the floor, and I flex my sore wrists, the sting ebbing as Sylus’s hand moves to my face.
His fingers brush lightly over the bruise on my cheek, and I flinch at the contact, a hiss slipping past my lips.
“Ouch.”
Sylus’s eyes search mine, concern and anger mingling there as he murmurs, “I’m so sorry, baby.” He leans in, pressing a gentle kiss to the spot that hurts the most. “I shouldn’t have agreed to this.”
I allow myself to savor it for a moment, closing my eyes to better soak in the comfort he offers before I push him away and face what they did. “What even was that? Another test?” I glance from one to the other, but none of them open their mouths. “Is Nicholas in on this too?”
“He’s not.” Koen steps forward, his expression somber. “I’m sorry—”
“Yeah, you’re sorry. I get it.” I cut him off with a scoff, followed by a hard glare. “Fuck you, anyway.”
“You’re right,” Levi speaks up. “We’re assholes. But we needed to know if we could trust you.”
“Let’s go somewhere we can talk.” Koen reaches out to touch my elbow, but I pull away.
“Stop fucking lying to me.” I snap. “Then maybe we can talk.”
There’s a pause, and Koen deflates. “Fine. Yes, planting the card on Ezra and him questioning you was a test. We needed to know if you’d stay loyal under pressure.
Belmont and Nicholas aren’t in on it. We do need you for this, Little Thief.
What we want to do is dangerous for all of us, and if you knew everything, you’d understand why we had to make sure. ”
“She won’t rat us out,” Ezra speaks up, and all of them turn to glare at him, me included. “I still don’t trust her, but… she won’t betray us.”
“Gee, thanks,” I mutter under my breath. My cheek throbs harder now that the ache is settling in.
This is all too fucking much.
I spin on my heel and storm down the hallway, my legs carrying me away from them before I lose my mind, but this fucking building is a maze.
A door on my left stands slightly ajar, the dull glow of fluorescent light seeping out from under it.
I push it open and step into a bathroom, shutting the door behind me with a snap.
The lock clicks into place, the sharp sound echoing in the quiet.
My hands grip the sink as I lean over it, my breaths coming fast and shallow. The mirror reflects a face that looks like it belongs to someone else, eyes too wide, cheeks flushed with anger and hurt, red already blooming along my cheekbone. My pulse thrums behind my eyes.
Fuck them.
I grit my teeth, gripping the edges of the porcelain until my knuckles go white.
I’m so fucking tired of the shit show called my life.
Tears prick at the corners of my eyes, but I force them back. I can’t fall apart. Not here. Not now.
But also… fuck going back to my apartment. The thought of that cold, empty place, the silence stretching around me, makes my situation seem even worse.
I close my eyes and try to conjure Tuscany. The warm sun, the scent of lavender. For a heartbeat, it’s there, a fragile, beautiful dream, but the ache in my chest snuffs it out before it can even begin to soothe me.
If I walk away from this, from them, that dream dies with it.
I’d be stuck in that spiral forever, drowning, with nothing left to reach for.
Koen’s words echo in my mind as I debate what to do next, to the promise he dangled in front of me.
“I need you sober for this mission. I’m sorry, but you can have champagne with Levi when it’s all over.”
My lips curl into a bitter smile. He wanted Glitter for this.
Fine, they can have her. I straighten, inhaling a slow, shaky breath.
My shoulders roll back, my spine straightens, and I tilt up my chin.
The ache in my face becomes part of the illusion, the glimmer of tears hardening into a sharp sparkle in my eyes.
Glitter is here now, and she’s fucking untouchable.
I swipe at the smudged makeup under my eyes, fixing what I can. My lips pull into a tight smile, glossy and false. It’s enough. It has to be.
With a deep breath, I unlock the door and step back into the hallway. Sylus and Levi are already there, leaning against the wall, their faces tight with worry and guilt. They both straighten when they see me, mouths opening to speak.
I lift my hand, cutting them off and stopping them.
“Levi,” I say, my voice smooth and edged with steel. “That birthday party officially blows. Fix it.”
Sylus exhales slowly, his gaze searching mine. He wants to say something, probably sorry or are you okay, but I don’t want apologies. I want action. I need to numb these fucking feelings.
Levi pushes off the wall and approaches as he says, “You’re right, Little Bird. We owe you big time for all that.” He comes to my side and hooks his arm in mine. “Let’s go celebrate for real.”
I give him a questioning look. “Aren’t we going back to your party?”
“No, you’re right. That shit wasn’t a party,” Levi scoffs. “We’re taking you somewhere we can dance, have some drinks, and live a little.”
“Celeste?” Sylus chimes in, glancing at Levi with an arched brow as we walk out of the building, Koen and Ezra having joined again from somewhere, fuck if I know.
Levi’s grin deepens. “You know it.”
Celeste. My pulse quickens at the name. I’ve never been there, but it’s famous even by Vegas standards, a place with a reputation where one drink can cost more than my month’s rent and where you only get in if you know the right people.
I’m still pissed at them, but the thrill of finally seeing it in person outweighs any hesitation.
Levi releases my arm as we reach the parking area, and Koen immediately steps up, his hand on my elbow, while Sylus grabs my other hand. There’s an obvious standoff between the two, with Koen tugging me toward his car and Sylus guiding me to his bike.
“She’s riding with me.” Sylus’s smirk says he thinks he’s already won.