Page 139 of Himbo Hitman
We pull up on a grassy stretch of dirt near where Colin was last seen, and Tommy kills the engine. Unlike me, the other three don’t look at all bothered by the fact we’re going out there and looking for a needle in a fucking haystack.
“Right,” Tommy says, unlatching his door. “Reilly and I will head down that street. You two head that way.”
“No worries,” Ever replies, climbing out of the car. Tommy follows him, and I turn to Perry, not bothering to keep the worry off my face.
“You good?” I ask.
“Of course. We’re going to find your brother, so that’s one less thing for you to worry about.”
“Right.” Before I talk myself out of it, I lean in and kiss him. His lips claim mine like magnets, the natural force bringing us together where we belong.
He pulls back before I’m ready and flashes me a smile. “See you in a bit.” He pops his door too, and I hurry to follow suit, not wanting to be left alone in the silence.
Tommy switches his ear comms on. “You good, Arlie?” After a second, he glances at Everett. “Masks on. Let’s find this fucker.”
Perry and Everett leave, and then it’s me and Tommy and the eerily still silence all around us.
“We’ll see what places we can get inside, but I’m not overly worried about searching locked buildings. If we can’t get in, your brother can’t either.”
I hope he’s right about that. I tug my mask up over my mouth and nose, then hurry to fall into step with him. I’m taller than Tommy, but he walks fast. “Why can’t you find him on the security cameras like you did earlier?”
“Because there has tobesecurity cameras.” Tommy points toward the nearest building. “Not everywhere has them, and the ones that do are more concerned with keeping their buildings and goods protected rather than what’s happening on the street. There are a lot of blind spots down here.”
I can’t wrap my head around why Colin would be here in the first place. We’re not exactly rich and privileged shitheads, but we’re still on the side of rich and privileged that stops us hanging out in creepy places like this.
“Do we yell out for him?” I ask, which is a stupid question when I’m asking in a whisper anyway.
“Do you want to advertise we’re here?”
“Not particularly.”
“Then maybe no yelling.”
I concede he has a point. We make it to the end of the street with no sight of anyone, and Tommy sighs, then reaches up and turns off his comms. “Gives me a headache,” he explains. “I’ve already got too many voices in my head to deal with all of them too. I’ll check back in if we find a building we can get inside.”
“You work well together. How long have you known them?”
We take a left and walk along the side of another building. The cement path is overgrown and shadowy from twiggy trees. “A while. I knew Arlie first, then Everett not long after. Perry showed up a few years ago and never left.”
“But he’s only new at … all this?”
“I wouldn’t even call him new.” Tommy’s grinning, eyes bright. “I don’t classify him as even starting. That man is way too pure for this world.”
“I’ve seen a side of him that says otherwise.”
He runs an amused glance over me. “No you didn’t. If you did, you’d be dead.”
Well, he’s got me there. “Tell me about Arlie.”
“Why? Do you want to sleep with her? Everyone wants to sleep with her.”
“I’m gay, so no. Lars might though.”
Tommy shrugs, pushing up on his toes to look through a high window. “She’s single from what she’s told us, so he might have a chance. Super picky, though, and a very short temper.”
“I guess it’s lucky Lars is infinitely patient.”
Tommy’s attention turns back to the street and we keep walking. It’s freezing out, and I’m coiled so tight in anticipation of someone jumping out at us that my back is aching.
