Chapter 27
Quill
“Penny for your thoughts.”
“Huh?”
“Penny for your thoughts.”
I blink, looking down at Piper. She’s still snuggling up against me, and the forkful of food I’d been preparing to feed her is suspended in mid-air. Josh’s chewing is the only thing I see as I blink again, trying to banish the sudden thoughts that have invaded me.
“I was just thinking about I’d forgotten how adorably vintage you are,” I say, kissing her curls. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone use that expression other than you.”
She giggles. “Penny for your real thoughts.”
“Well, I was just hesitating between shoving you stomach down on the table and fucking you from behind, or asking another question.”
“Quill!”
I’m back to being addicted to the splotches of red that paint my cricket’s face every time she’s embarrassed, and seeing Josh’s clear discomfort is just icing on top.
I know I’m an asshole for acting like this with him, because as Piper said, he did save my life.
And, far more importantly, he saved her from the fate that clearly awaited her, and that I was helpless to prevent.
Seeing him shoot that man and save Piper pushed him right past the divide that separates the very few things I care about from the rest of the world, and put him firmly in the territory of people who do matter.
Still, it’s a lot of fun to make him uncomfortable.
“I think asking another question would be the better idea,” snaps Piper in answer to the thought I’ve just shared. “At least until Josh finishes his meal.”
“Oh!” Josh swallows the last bite of his steak, and I click my tongue at how slow he is. He hasn’t even touched half of his steak yet. If I have to wait for him to finish, we’ll be stuck here for all eternity. “Sorry!” he chirps. “I’ll go.”
“Great idea,” I tell him.
“No,” huffs out Piper. “Stay, Josh. Don’t let Quill bully you. He’s just a mean bully.”
“You would know, wouldn’t you?” I tease, poking her in the rib, and her glare turns into a hiccup of laughter.
“Uhm.” Josh looks at her and at me, then stands and takes his plate, preparing to leave.
“Didn’t you hear her, Josh?” I say through gritted teeth, because I do want him to go. But not as much as I want to prove to Piper that this time around, things will be different. This time, I’ll listen. “Piper wants you to stay, so stay.”
“Right.” He looks more confused than ever as he sits back down.
Piper gives me a radiant smile, which makes Josh’s presence more than worth it.
“What’s your question?” she asks.
Fuck. Back to that.
I sigh, because there are definitely a few questions I want answered, and that I really should get answered.
I do have a to-do list, after all, and I’ve never ignored a to-do list before.
I’m a list kind of person, and right now, the list of things that I have to deal with are searing through my eyeballs, leaving an imprint on the back of them that I know will drive me crazy if I don’t mark them done.
“I was wondering,” I begin, taking a gulp from my glass of water, “how long it takes people to die of starvation.”
“What? Quill!”
“A few weeks. The thing people die from first is dehydration. That takes three days.”
Josh is the one who speaks those last words, and I glance up at him, my eyebrow raised. “You sure have a lot of random knowledge.”
“My parents are CSI fans,” he shrugs.
“A few weeks,” I repeat thoughtfully. “I should be okay, then. The soldiers left them with some food and water and there’s probably still some left. I guess they’ll survive for a while.”
Piper stares at me. “Who will? What are you talking about?”
Instead of answering, I ask Josh, “How about dead bodies? How long before they start to stink?”
Josh doesn’t look half as uncomfortable now as before, when I was talking about fucking Piper in front of him. He shrugs again. “Hard to say. It really depends on a whole lot of conditions. If it’s winter, and the heater wasn’t on, maybe…”
“Well, it doesn’t really matter anyway,” I interrupt, absentmindedly feeding Piper another bite of food, which butts against her closed lips. “I don’t think anyone would bother me anyway. People in the building suspect what I do for a living. It would take a lot for them to come up and bother me.”
“Quill!” insists Piper. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“No swearing, cricket.”
“So hell is a swear word now? Stop deflecting and tell me what you’re talking about!”
“I’m talking about the items on my to-do list,” I say, clenching my jaw. “I need to check them off. That’s my second item. Now for my third—?
“If you’re talking about what I think you’re talking about,” intervenes Josh, “Logan said he dealt with it.”
I flash an angry glance in his direction. “What do you mean?”
If Logan killed Liam and Dane, so help me…
“He said he’d gotten rid of the bodies. And had made arrangements so that they would stay alive until you decide otherwise.
He doesn’t want you to feel like it’s necessary to come home.
He wants us all to stay in Oregon, and he says you’ll have all the time in the world to deal with that situation later. ”
I grit my teeth. I’m both relieved to learn that Liam and Dane are staying nicely alive and ready for me, and aggravated to be taking orders from the Devil founder. Not that I’m not used to taking orders. But I’ve always made my own decisions when it came to anything even remotely related to Piper.
“He did say he wondered what they had done,” adds Josh a bit nervously. “I didn’t tell him. But he might look into it on his own. Hopefully, though, he’s too busy with the whole Seraphina thing for the moment. I know that’s something… you wanted to deal with.”
By now, Piper seems to have figured out what we’re talking about. She’s grown tense in my lap, listening quietly.
“How many items are on your to-do list?” she questions suddenly.
I answer without thinking. “Four.”
“And are they all… as violent as the first one?”
“That was the second one. And no, not all. Not unless it’s necessary.”
“What was your first one?” asks Piper curiously.
I squeeze her to me, pressing my lips to hers, and say, in a much softer voice. “You were, my little cricket. I’ve checked you off already.”
She returns my kiss, deepening it. “I wish I were the only thing on your list.”
“You’re the main one,” I promise. “But I can’t leave the others alone. You know that. I always follow through on my lists.”
She doesn’t answer, only nestling against me again, and I can tell I’ve made her sad. I wish I hadn’t. But I can’t help it. I can’t allow the people who hurt her to get away with it. And now that I’ve started asking questions, I need the answers. No matter what it takes.
“I have another question,” I say slowly.
“About Tragen.” I swallow with difficulty, because even though I’ve tried to tell myself no one matters to me but Piper, it’s been a strange few days, realizing the people who once stood right at that divide separating the rest of the world from Piper are all traitors. “What happened to him?”
Piper glances up at me, worry and pain in her green-blue eyes. “I know how much he meant to you…”
Meant. Past tense. I hear the word that tells me everything, but keep a mask on, even though there’s a weird tightness in my chest. “He didn’t mean a thing to me.”
Bullshit. Piper sees right through me, and she brings up a hesitant hand to stroke the side of my face.
“He put up a brave fight.”
I clench my jaw, because if there’s one thing I don’t want, it’s Piper finding anything good in that asshole.
“It’s true,” adds Josh. “He shot most of those guys in the cave. He’s the reason they didn’t get to you and Piper sooner. Which gave Logan and me time to intervene.”
“He was a manipulative piece of shit,” I fume, “and I knew his reason for wanting to save Piper wasn’t a good one. I’m glad he’s dead.”
“Yeah.” Piper casts her eyes down. “He is dead. I know he was like a father figure to you, Quill. I’m sorry. And I don’t mean that like as a real sorry,” she adds hastily. “More in like an I’m sorry for your loss sorry, so it doesn’t count.”
“It counts,” I breathe into her ear, before turning back to Josh. “Tragen was a hitman,” I tell them both.
Josh nods. “Yeah, Logan said he was being paid by the capo. Or rather, those loyal to the capo. Piper is the last descendant of the Moretti family, and they wanted to use her as someone others could rally around. They’ve been growing stronger over the past few years, and lately, they’ve gotten more reckless.
They’ve been taking advantage of the whole Angel situation and Damien’s distraction.
Logan says he’s glad they’re defeated, for the moment at least, because he doesn’t want Damien to know.
He said it like he thought Damien didn’t have the emotional bandwidth to deal with it right now.
But I got the feeling they’ve fallen out, and he’s worried their friendship wouldn’t be able to protect Piper anymore.
If the mafia gains more ground, Damien might not hesitate again to kill her, since as their main rallying symbol, she’s a big threat to Devil. ”
He takes a deep breath after his speech, and bites down on a forkful of steak. Then, between chews, he explains, almost apologetically, “Logan and I had a lot of time to talk, with you and Piper out cold for so much of the trip. I’m just repeating what he said.”
I frown, deep in thought. The idea that Piper could still be in danger has me hugging her more tightly than ever.
Though the threat of the two opposing factions of the mafia seems to have died down for the moment, I realize it’s probably temporary.
And now, Devil once more represents danger.
A pang of nerves twists in my stomach. Damien Wells may have spared Piper before out of loyalty for Logan, and because he didn’t take the mafia too seriously.
Now, if Josh is right, and Damien finds out, well…
it feels impossible to go against the most powerful man in the state.
“Do you have any other unchecked items?” asks Piper carefully, as if she’s trying to suss out my state of mind. “On your to-do list, I mean.”
Yes. One more.
“No,” I lie. “Well, nothing that can’t wait.”
It’s surprisingly easy to bury once more the mystery of that paper with her name on it, and kiss her instead.