20. Reed
Chapter twenty
Reed
Abuser.
The one word written on Galene’s office walls when her body was discovered earlier today. That whole section of the hospital is covered in yellow tape and was restricted the moment authorities arrived. Everyone was stunned by the violent death of the hospital’s director.
As Burton communicated quietly to whoever he was on the phone with, I stared in stunned silence at the massacre. Not because I couldn’t believe it, but because I didn’t want to think of who could have done something of that caliber with little to no time.
Someone dangerous.
Someone like—
“Reed.”
I blink myself to the present, turning to face Taryn. “Huh?”
She frowns off into the distance. “They’re leaving.”
I follow her sight to the crime scene cleanup crew, the detectives, and the cops all packing their things. The yellow tape is yanked off the doorway of Galene’s office as if nothing ever happened.
“Why are they leaving?” I ask quietly.
My friend shakes her head. “I have no idea. They never end an investigation this early.”
None of this makes any sense…
I push forward, flagging down a detective. “Excuse me!”
A man with short, curly hair turns to me as he dismisses himself from the group of investigators. “How can I help you?”
I tuck my hands into the pockets of my coat. “Uh, we were wondering about the case—”
“No case here,” the detective says firmly. “It’s been ruled a suicide.”
My head rears at the absurdity. “Suicide? How—”
“Listen,” he sighs, “we just follow protocol. Everything points to an apparent suicide. She was cheating on her husband, and her fingerprints are all over the weapon used. It’s unfortunate, but that’s just how some of these cases go.”
My brain is still buffering. I can’t quite catch up with anything he’s saying because it doesn’t make any damn sense! They never even tested the DNA. They’ve only been here long enough to clean up and cover Galene in a body bag. There should be more steps to this, right?
“So you mean to tell me that DNA testing only takes a couple of minutes?” I ask incredulously.
He shrugs. “Give or take.”
Taryn comes up behind me before placing a hand on my shoulder. “Sorry, detective, this is just so sudden.”
He nods. “I understand, trust me. Hopefully, you get the answers you’re looking for.”
Once he’s out of earshot, I whip around to my friend.
“You don’t even have to say anything,” she mutters. “We’re both thinking it.”
I place my hands behind my head as I pace in front of her. “There’s something I need to tell you. Before this happened, Galene confronted me in the hallway and assaulted me.”
Taryn’s eyes widen. “What?!”
I nod solemnly. “She grabbed me.”
“Oh, that fucking cunt!” She rages before taking a deep breath and pressing her fingers to the sides of her nose. “If this were Thalia, I’m on her side.”
A startled laugh escapes me as I shake my head in disbelief. “Is it crazy that I am too? Are we insane?”
Taryn throws a hand in the direction of the office. “Are you kidding me?! Galene touched you without your permission, Reed. If anything, she was the insane one.”
I release a breath I didn’t know I was holding until now. For some reason, I expected Taryn, my friend of ten years, to look at me differently after this. Instead, she’s enraged by it…
“Thank you,” I say quietly.
Her face softens. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
She nods in understanding before her attention is called back to the now vacant office. It smells strongly of pungent cleaning supplies, and more people are beginning to wander over into this part of the hospital again.
“So, what do we do now?” She asks.
I catch sight of Burton across the walkway, his hand moving animatedly as he argues low with someone on the phone. “We go to a gala.”
I stare out at the bustling city through my kitchen window, listening to the honks and sirens of life continuing all around me. My hands tighten on the edges of the counter, biting into my skin unpleasantly as a reminder that today has been very real.
My mind hasn’t stopped since I clocked out. Every possible dot is connecting to a truth I can’t quite grasp, yet I can’t ignore.
I’ve never been the type to praise violence—I’m a natural pacifist unless it comes to those close to me. But it doesn’t stop me from turning over the inevitable in my psyche.
Am I okay with Thalia’s lifestyle?
If this is true, can I see past the bloodlust and be with someone who kills for a living?
Yes, the little voice in the back of my mind whispers without a thought. Why would that change a thing?
It wouldn’t. If this insane possibility has at least a speck of truth behind it, I don’t think it would change a single damn thing for me. Hypothetically.
Am I really this stupid?
I still can’t believe the truth when it’s sitting right in front of me…
I groan as I rest my forehead against my palm. I’ve lost all of my morals when it comes to her. I remember a time when I told Burton I would never support senseless violence. Apparently, my exception is Thalia. Because I’m weak for her. So very weak.
Hands slide along my shoulders, making my whole body coil tightly as breath fans the back of my neck.
“You seem tense,” Thalia whispers softly in my ear.
My eyes flutter at the serenity that washes over me—the pure comfort I feel in her presence. Even that hasn’t changed after this revelation. “Yeah, I am, aren’t I?”
Her hands travel further, spreading over my chest as her fingers splay. “Did anything interesting happen?”
There’s something hidden in her tone. A playful note that causes a sudden laugh to squeeze from my lungs. “Wouldn’t you know that?”
She hums. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
I take her wrist gently, lifting her knuckles to my lips as I try to still my pattering heart. My mouth ghosts over her flesh in a tender caress as I soften my tone and let everything spill over. “You were there the night Arthur Stout died.”
I no longer feel her breath fanning over my nape. She doesn’t even move as I continue. “You weren’t just some unlucky bystander who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“Reed.”
“Brooks isn’t just an ex-boyfriend—”
“Stop.” Her hand tightens on mine, but I don’t listen.
“—he’s a part of it too. You were completing a bounty—”
She grabs my cheeks between her fingers, forcing me to look over my shoulder at her. There’s desperation in her eyes—a silent plea to stop while I still can.
I swallow past the tension, keeping my expression calm and collected. “You killed Galene, didn’t you?” I whisper.
Every ounce of normalcy drains from her features. It doesn’t happen gradually. One moment she looks like herself, and the next it’s as if someone has reached inside and switched off something essential.
The warmth vanishes first.
Her eyes lose all trace of recognition, settling into a cold, half-lidded stare that seems to look through me rather than at me. It’s utterly empty and calculating.
The muscles in her face go still. Every tiny unconscious expression—the flicker of amusement, the twitch of uncertainty, the subtle signs of life that make a person feel human—disappears. The change is so complete it steals the air from the room.
A second ago, I knew how to read her. Now I can’t find a single familiar thing. Her features harden into something impossibly controlled, a mask stretched over thoughts I can no longer reach. There is no mundane hesitation in her anymore.
The silence between us thickens. Instinct screams that something has shifted, though I can't say exactly what. My pulse stumbles, and every nerve suddenly feels tuned to her, waiting for the smallest movement. The half-lidded gaze remains fixed on me.
And whatever humanity had been visible in her face a moment ago is gone without a trace. It’s almost as if she’s made up her mind, but I don’t know about what…
“And what if I did?” She asks, her tone so alluring it has the same effect as a siren calling out to a passing sailor. “She deserved it after what she did to you.”
She lifts a hand to my cheek, and I don’t recoil. I lean closer into her touch, unable to resist whatever spell she has over me. No matter how crazy all of this may seem, I still can’t find it in myself to think differently of the woman before me.
She’s my mystery girl.
Thalia sucks her teeth as her face softens. “No one gets to hurt you except me, Reed. No one.”
My eyes flutter as her thumb brushes over my skin. There’s so much…security in what she just said. She isn’t erasing what happened; she’s handling it for me.
“Okay…” I whisper. “Only you.”
Some of the life returns to her as she smiles. “And are you going to be my good boy and stay home tomorrow night like I asked you to?”
My spine shivers. “No.”
She tuts as her fingers comb through my hair.
“Then I need you to realize something, Reed.” She grabs a fistful of my strands so tightly that pain licks across my scalp as she drags me closer.
The air rushes from my lungs as my lips part and she nips at the bottom one.
“If you do this, there’s no going back.” Her eyes shift downward, trailing until they touch my chest and rise again. “I can’t let you go after this…”
“Then don’t.” I breathe.
She braces both hands on my cheeks, staring into something much deeper than just my being as her eyes round with faux innocence. “You would give yourself completely to me?”
Maybe it’s the desperation inside of me that calls to her, or even the intensity of these growing emotions, but it’s what causes me to nod in agreement slowly. If what she needs is full control, then it’s hers. She can take everything and I’ll fucking thank her for it.
Her thumb brushes over my skin tenderly. “You have no idea what you’ve just done.”
“I know plenty,” I say, but it sounds unsure even to my own ears. I take her wrist in my hand before turning my face into her palm and placing a kiss on her skin—the same appendage possibly used to kill someone.
It’s a silent declaration.
I’m not going anywhere.
A phone rings, cutting through our moment as Thalia’s jaw twinges and she takes a step back. I lose her heat in seconds, and I have to physically stop myself from reaching out for her as she answers the call.
“Uh, huh,” she hums, staring at me with a look that teeters on contemplation. “I’m coming.”
She ends the call before pocketing her phone and turning away from me. “This is your last chance, Reed.”
There’s something in her voice—an edge of sadness that makes my chest squeeze. She expects me to come to my senses and reject her right here. She’s preparing herself for a mental strike of her character, but that’s not me. That’s not us.
Instead, I reach out fast, snatch her wrist, and drag her back to me before curling my fingers into her hair.
At her sudden gasp, I take the opening and slam my lips to hers with so much passion that our teeth narrowly miss each other.
It takes a moment for the shock to wear off before she becomes pliant against me.
Everything morphs and moves within this moment—the emotions, our connection, and the desire shared between us. It’s so intense when mixed with the taste of her that when I finally do pull away, I feel drunk.
“Be safe,” I whisper.
From what? I’m not sure…
She tucks her lips in before nodding. “I should be telling you that.”
I release a breathless chuckle as I tuck her hair behind her ear. “We’ll look after each other, okay?”
Surprise flickers in her gaze. “Really?”
“Yes. We’re in this together.”
Her eyes turn glassy, causing my heart to trip. “I’ve never had anyone besides my family…”
I tilt her head up, chasing those enchanting blue pools. “And now you do.”
She gives me a small, wobbly smile before stepping back. “I have to go.”
“I know.”
She quickly wipes at her cheeks before the first tear can fall. “If you don’t show up, I’ll understand.”
“Not gonna happen, Little Devil.”
And just like that, all life returns to her at that nickname. She gets some color back into her cheeks as she offers me a smirk. “Just promise me you’ll listen when things get out of hand.”
I nod once. “I’m yours to control.”
The space between us stretches into something profound—a promise that won’t be broken. She’s giving me the full truth and allowing me into this part of her life. She may expect me to tuck tail and run the other way, but I have every plan to show my girl that I’m not going anywhere.