Page 56 of Fierce Lies


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"How's the leg?" Elena asked quietly as she rested her head on my shoulder. It was gentle, but I found myself relaxing even more now. The handgun was on the floor nearby, easy for any one of us to grab if needed.

Not that we'd hear anything over the distant thunder and rain outside now.

"I've had worse," I muttered. And I had. But that didn't mean this didn't suck.

The silence stretched, broken only by the rain and the occasional creak of the old house settling.

Elena shifted, one arm linking through mine to hold me close, and despite the whole situation, the pain in my leg, I found a small smile touching my lips. It was nice having her close. Ivy had huddled closer to my other side, the blanket draped all the way around her, only her face showing, like she was doing her best E.T impersonation.

Elena's voice hitched after a crack of thunder rumbled through the house. "Why did he rush me?"

I sighed, turning my head to subconsciously press my lips to her temple, making her breath catch. I couldn't help it, it had been instant. Thankfully, she only squished against my side even harder, which was more than welcome as her body heat flooded through me more.

"Why didn't he think I'd shoot?"

I knew Alfeo's death was weighing heavily on her. The first time you killed always struck deep. I still remembered my first, despite the many bodies I'd dropped since then. "Because going home would've ended the same way. He had nothing left to lose. At least this way, he chose how it ended."

Her breath hitched. "Why did it have to be me?"

Ivy reached across me to place a hand on her arm to squeeze it reassuringly.

The soft sniffle that escaped Elena made me shift instantly. I moved my arm, allowing her to huddled into my chest as I closed my arms around her like a shield. Not to mention having her almost on my lap now was warming. But it wasn't for me. I wasn't worried about myself right now.

I'd never wanted this for her.

"Sometimes life's just cruel," I said as I rested my cheek on her forehead, holding her tight. I glanced over at Ivy, who was looking at the pair of us with intrigue. I didn't care. Elena needed comfort, and Ivy wanted to provide that whilst also doing Elena's request of keeping me enclosed between them both. This was the best option.

Ivy's brow furrowed. "Should we have just left him out there? On the ground?"

"Let him rot," I said flatly. "Wildlife will probably drag what's left of him away by morning."

"I hope so," Ivy murmured as she rested her head back against the wall. She reached over, rubbing Elena's arms as I helped Elena drape her legs over me as well so she was fully in my lap now.

If I wasn't still so cold and in pain, I might've gotten a little too pleased with the closeness.

"I don't want to see a rotting corpse when we leave." Ivy flinched just as another crack of thunder broke on her last word.

Elena closed her eyes tight, her shoulders trembling slightly. Ivy shot me a guilty look.

"So how'd you end up working for the Donatis?" Ivy changed the subject. I knew she just wanted to refocus Elena after bringing up Alfeo.

"They gave me a job after I was dishonorably discharged. A purpose. They saw something useful in me when I didn't see anything at all anymore." Considering what we'd been through,how Elena needed the distraction, I was willing to talk. She needed it.

Hell, maybe I needed it to. To just keep talking, to keep us all calm and collected.

"Why were you dishonorably discharged?" Ivy asked, and I could feel Elena listening against my chest. She'd seen my scars but had not pushed for answers.

"It's a long story," I muttered.

"We have all night," she countered.

"I know, let's just say it was a call I made that was right, but they needed to make it go away. I was a scapegoat," I explained, shifting uneasily.

"How so?" Ivy pushed.

Okay, maybe I didn't want to talk.

"What's Meredith like?" Elena asked, shifting the conversation, as if she'd felt my frustration. I was grateful for it.