Chapter 25
SUGAR
Cookie and I escorted Brock to the med room where Hannah was sleeping. Brock let out a loud sob and dropped to his knees when he saw her. “Oh, Hannah, I’m so sorry.”
Hannah’s eyes blinked open. “Daddy, why are you crying?” she asked sleepily.
“Daddy’s happy.”
“Okay,” she yawned and closed her eyes.
“Brock is going to stay here with Hannah, so we can clear out,” I said quietly, motioning for Kalani and Birdie to follow me.
We passed Whisker on the stairs as we were leaving. “Night, Prez.”
“Night.”
Beaver came flying out of his room. “Wait! Ashley just got a text from Trenton wanting to know where the fuck she is.”
Hamster ran out next. “He’s at Liquid Anarchy!” Hamster shouted excitedly. “No, wait. His phone is at Liquid Anarchy!” He looked at Beaver. “Better?”
Beaver jostled his shoulder. “Yeah, man. Good job.”
“Text back and tell him she’s running late. Try to make it sound like it came from her,” Whisker said. “No one goes over to the bar! Somebody get Bush on the phone.”
I called him and put my phone on speaker. “Yeah, man.”
“It’s Whisker. Trenton Pritchard’s phone’s location is at the bar.”
Bush snorted. “I see him.”
“You sure?”
“One hundred percent.”
“Drug him. Text me when he’s out.”
“Got it.”
“Church!” Whisker bellowed.
“Take Birdie to my room. I don’t know how long I’ll be,” I told Kalani and leaned down to kiss her.
“Am I gonna get in trouble for breaking in? Because the last time—”
“Here’s a key, asshole.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I’m not ready for that level of commitment.”
“Kalani!”
“Fine. Kiss kiss. Hug hug.”
“We’re gonna have three bodies to deal with, and two of them have obviously been murdered.” Whisker briefly cut his eyes to me. “So, suggestions?”
“I don’t know what the fuck to do with the one in the tube, but we could make the other two look like a murder-suicide.
Maybe she was trying to kill him. He hits her with the sickle, and she shoots him.
Then she shoots herself. We can pop up a tent and toss them in the woods,” Coochie suggested.
“With any luck, the hogs will find them before anyone else does.”
“I like it. Any objections or concerns?”
Yes.
When Kalani found out she wasn’t going to get to kill Ashley or Trenton, she was going to be an absolute pain in the ass for days.
Before I could stop myself, I lifted my hand from the table. “Can Kalani kill either or both?”
Whisker laughed. “Fuck no.”
“I had to ask.”
“Yeah, I know exactly why too.”
“All right. Let’s get this shit done,” Whisker said and handed out individual orders. “We’ll meet out back in an hour.”
Sighing, I got to my feet and headed for my room, having decided it would be better to tell Kalani the bad news beforehand instead of waiting until after the deeds were done.
“I don’t like the way your face looks,” she said the moment I entered.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and got it over with.
“The decision was made to kill Trenton and Ashley and make it look like a murder-suicide. She tries to kill him. He fights her off with a sickle. She shoots him, then shoots herself. We’re leaving in an hour to drop them off in the woods.
You can’t kill either one. I already asked. ”
“Meh. I worked out a lot of my rage with Ashley, and I wouldn’t like that anyway. Guns are so impersonal.”
I watched her for several moments, waiting for more, but it didn’t come. “Do you want me to get some blood for you?”
“No, not if I don’t get to kill them. It’d be weird to have random people’s bloody trinkets around your home.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yes. No. Um, I don’t know. I don’t want Trenton’s blood because I didn’t do anything to him, but maybe I should keep some of Ashley’s since I cut off her arm. Hmmm. I’d have to make something else with it. Bloody skulls for kills and what for significant injuries?”
“What in the fresh hell are you talking about?” Birdie asked exasperatedly.
“Nothing,” she called, narrowing her eyes at me. “Yes, get blood from both. I’ll make decisions later.”
“Will do.” I pulled her to me and held her tightly. “Part of me wants to thank you for not making that difficult, but the other part of me is wondering if you’re maliciously complying again.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“A good example would be when you were hospitable to Slit so you could excuse yourself and chop off Ashley’s arm. And before you say anything, I know you were sharpening that sickle when you pretended to be in the shower.”
“I’m maliciously complying so I can smoke your weed and rifle through your porn stash.” She held up her middle finger. “Bitch’s honor.”
I shook my head. “It’s in my—”
She stuck her fingers in her ears. “Don’t tell me and ruin the fun!”
Wrapping my hand around her wrist, I pulled her finger away from her ear. “I gotta go. I’ll be home late.”
She grinned. “Is this my home too since I’m your Old Lady?”
“Yes,” I said, kissing her again.
“I’ll see you when you get home.”