Chapter 20 Caroline
CAROLINE
It’s not a straight line for me. I don’t wake up in the morning and think it’s totally fine that I’m trying to kill my brothers.
Rationally, I know they deserve it for what they did to me.
They violently and horribly abused both me and Finn, and I have a feeling they’ve done it to others.
If we don’t take them out, they’ll keep on hurting people, and I don’t know if I can live with myself knowing I could’ve saved other girls from my fate.
But it’s still not easy. I grew up with these men. They’re all a lot older, but still. They were a part of my life, and I was always taught to be a decent person, or at least to try. That’s the whole point of religion, right? If we act good, we get rewarded.
I’m going to burn in hell for what I’m doing.
And I still don’t want to stop.
“You’ve been quiet,” Finn says a few days after our tour of the construction site. He finds me sitting beside the pool with a book and a glass of wine. “If I didn’t know better, I’d worry you were starting to avoid me.”
“Not at all.” I close the book. “You’re the busy one.”
“That’s a fair point, but I was thinking we could go out tonight.”
My eyebrows raise in surprise. “What do you mean, go out?”
“You know, to dinner. Like a normal couple.”
“We’re a normal couple?”
“We could act like it.”
I hesitate and glance away toward the pool.
Is this a good idea? To get more tangled up with him?
So far, we’ve fucked like crazy people, but I’m still sleeping in my own bedroom and hiding away from him, even though he wants me to act like his wife.
I can’t seem to keep all the pieces of me straight these days.
“Dinner could be okay,” I say very slowly.
“I’ve never heard a more enthusiastic yes in my life.” He turns away, but I can tell he’s grinning, his mask firmly in place. “Would it help if I said I wanted to go over the plan?”
I’m strangely disappointed. “So this is business then?”
“Business, pleasure, it’s all the same with us. Come on, I got you something.”
I reluctantly follow him down to the master bedroom. He gestures at a small ring box left on the nightstand. I pause, not sure what I’m about to find, but I open it with a slight click. Inside is a gold band with a single, strangely green stone. I frown and hold it up to the light.
“What is this? I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
“When I got home after our encounter with Shane, I found a piece of glass stuck to the bottom of my shoe.” He gestures at the ring. “I had that made from it.”
I blink at the ring and stare at him. My shoulders get all tense. “You made a ring… from the bottle we used to murder my brother?”
“Do you like it?”
I slip the ring from the box and slide it onto my finger. It’s such a strange little thing. The glass piece looks like a very small diamond. It’s subtle and I doubt anyone would even notice unless they were looking.
But I know what it is. This little piece of a murder weapon. For some sick reason, my heart rate surges with excitement. I turn and push myself into him, kissing him hard. His tongue slips into my mouth and when I pull away, I’m breathless and giddy.
“I love it,” I say, grinning like a maniac. I must’ve lost my mind at some point. All those saunas cooked my brain. No reasonable, rational person would want a ring like this. It’s a cursed object, a totally nightmarish symbol of a vicious and terrible soul-ruining act.
And I really do love it.
“I knew you would, sicko.” He pats my ass lovingly. “Now go get dressed. Wear something nice. I want to show you off.”
“Where are you taking me?”
“A Whelan place. We’ll have some privacy.”
“How’s that showing me off then?”
“It’s all about the entrance and the exit, baby.”
He’s absolutely right. It really is all about the entrance.
The restaurant is a trendy, high-end place called Dolce Vita. It’s filled with women in gaudy dresses and men in expensive suits. More than half the place stares as we’re taken to a table in the very back, tucked away from the main dining space, our own exclusive bubble.
“I thought you couldn’t get reservations here,” I whisper once the waitress pours our wine and leaves us with the menus.
“I told you, it’s a Whelan place. Get whatever you like.” He seems distracted. He sips his wine and glances off to the side like he’s looking for someone. I frown and scan the menu, but it’s hard to choose. Everything looks great.
In the end, I give up. “You order for both of us.” I sit back and drink my wine. “I’ll trust your judgment.”
He laughs softly, eyes coming back to meet mine.
I like it when I have his full attention.
There’s something heavy and addictive about it.
His eyes move to my lips and down to my chest. The dress I’m wearing shows off a hint of cleavage, and I can tell he really likes it.
I don’t normally dress like this—frankly, I couldn’t afford decent stuff before marrying him—but I feel like this was a particularly good purchase.
“I wouldn’t do that, if I were you,” he says smoothly and raises his glass. “I’m going to corrupt you.”
“Yeah, you think so? You’re going to corrupt my culinary tastes?”
“I’m going to corrupt some of your taste. I think I already have.”
I feel myself flush at the memory of fucking him, especially that night in the construction site.
I don’t know why, but it was so cathartic.
I needed him to tell me how ruined I am, how broken I am, and it felt so good that it didn’t scare him away.
He still wanted me, even knowing how fucked up and rotten I am deep inside. If anything, he likes it.
Finn orders when the waitress returns and asks for another bottle. I smirk when she’s gone again. “Trying to get me drunk?”
“Now why would I want to do that?”
“If you think I’m easy when I drink, you’re sorely mistaken.”
“Baby, I don’t need to get you drunk to fuck you.” He leans in close. I feel his foot brush mine under the table. “Besides, it’s more fun when you fight it.”
I laugh at his audacity, but he’s right. We both like the struggle, and in the end, we like it more when I finally give him what we both need.
“I thought we were here for business.”
“Why not flirt a little first?”
“I’m your wife. You don’t need to flirt with me.”
“You’re my wife. Flirting with you is practically all I want these days.”
“God, what a line.”
“I know, and you loved it. Look at you blushing.”
“Don’t be arrogant. Tell me about your plan before I get annoyed.”
He swirls his wine. I can tell he’s having a good time. I am too, actually. His smile isn’t a mask and mine isn’t either. For the first time in a while, it’s like we’re actually being ourselves, and it feels fantastic.
“Did you notice the massive electric generators they use?”
I shake my head. “I was too busy getting railed against a beam, remember?”
“Every night since, I remember in vivid detail,” he says fondly, sips his drink, and gestures at me with the glass. “But I’m talking about the big square boxes with the transformers coming out the top. They’re parked beside all the entrances and exits.”
I frown, trying to remember back to that night. I recall something like what he’s describing. “What can we do with those?”
“Generators malfunction. Sometimes they explode. All we have to do is make sure one goes off like a bomb.”
I chew my lip, thinking it over. The idea makes sense. I want to kill Redmond quickly and without making him suffer, so an explosion would probably do the trick. “But what about collateral damage?”
“The structure might have some problems, but nothing that can’t be repaired.”
“No, I mean, other people.”
“That’s the beauty. Redmond likes to tour the place after hours when it’s empty. We plant the bomb, wait for him to be alone, and blow it when he’s close enough to eat the explosion.”
I fidget with my fork, considering, and catch a glimpse of the murder ring. I like the way it sparkles. I like what it represents.
I’ve done this once before, right? I helped kill Shane, and I can help kill Redmond.
“I like it,” I say quietly and glance up. I catch him looking at my tits. “Do you have to stare at my chest while we’re talking about murdering my brother?”
“Absolutely,” he says, not looking remotely ashamed. “Murder gets me hard.”
“I thought my tits did that?”
“When they’re in my mouth and my hands.”
“The romance is already dead. Looking at my beautiful body isn’t enough anymore.”
“Oh, baby, you sit in that sauna and get all sweaty, the sight of you can ruin me.”
Dinner comes and it’s fantastic. Finn flirts with me mercilessly the whole time.
At first, I think he’s just playing around, but by the time we’re finished and leaving, I realize it’s more than a game.
He holds me close, a hand on the small of my back as we make our exit through the restaurant.
Eyes follow us, powerful men and women, rich and connected New York elite.
Finn really does want to show me off, I realize with a start. He really thinks I’m good enough.
Once we’re in the car, I’m on him. He grunts as I kiss him. “What’s this for?” he asks. The driver rolls the divider up, and once we have privacy, I’m down on my knees pawing at his pants. His belt buckle comes off and he lifts his hips with a surprised grunt.
“I’m in a good mood,” I say, stroking his cock with both hands, marveling at his thick head. Precum beads at the very tip. It sends a thrill of excitement into my core, knowing he wants me this badly. “And maybe when I’m in a good mood, I like to spread the joy.”
He moans when I take him in my mouth. I’ve never felt this sexy before in my life. I push down the shoulders of my dress, grab his hand, and press it against my left breast. He teases my nipple, groaning as I lick and suck his cock, gliding up and down. He grips my hair, holding on tight.
I’m in control right now. He’s melting with pure bliss.
A man like Finn could probably get his dick sucked by a million different women, but when I’m on my knees, with his hand on my chest, it’s like he’s losing his mind.
I love how excited that gets me. I spread my knees and rub at my clit, needy and pulsing with how bad I want to make him cum.
“Fuck, Caroline, look at you, touching yourself on the floor of my car. You filthy fucking girl. That feels so fucking… so fucking good…”
I moan, sucking him deeper. I slip my fingers down my panties and rub my clit faster. He’s shaking, trembling with how much he likes it. I look up and his eyes are heavy and narrowed. His grip in my hair tightens.
“I can’t… fucking wait…”
He comes in my mouth. I keep sucking as he finishes, keep rubbing my pussy, and nearly choke as I try to swallow.
My orgasm rips into me and I have to pull out, his cum drooling down my chin.
I gasp, shaking, moaning as the orgasm tears me to pieces, shatters me into a million little sparkling glass murder diamonds.
I finish, gasping, and stare at him. He stares back and wipes my chin with the back of his hand. “So fucking pretty,” he murmurs.
I get back into my seat and curl up next to him.
“I want to do it soon,” I whisper, sleepy and happy. I’m full of food, wine, and his seed. “I don’t want to wait.”
“We should be careful.”
“I know. And I don’t care.”
He breathes in the smell of my hair. “That’s what I love about you,” he mutters, and a tiny thrill rushes into my heart. I hadn’t realized he loved anything at all.