I pull my hand away. “But Hayes mentioned a van. I assume that means we’ll be going in with wires, right?”
Benedict nods. “I will be.”
I still. “Why?” I whisper. “I thought we’d do it together—”
He pushes off the bed and wanders over to his bag. There, he pulls out a ring box, and my breath catches in my throat. When he walks over, he opens it and shows the silver ring to me—a skull with the Brotherhood ‘V’ etched into the forehead.
“This is the ring all Directors receive.”
I stare at the silver piece of jewelry. “Will there be many people there?”
He takes my hand and slides the ring onto my left ring finger. The motion—and its significance—causes my heartbeat to thrum against my ribs.
“Maybe twenty people.” He brings my hand to his lips and kisses it softly. “We go in together, but if anything happens, you need to act indifferent. Making a scene will give us—and Hayes—away. If you can do that, you can go to sleep tonight knowing that you helped to take them down.” He pauses. “It’s probably safer for you to stay in the van, but I can’t take that away from you.”
My face warms, and I smile. “Damn straight.” But then I consider that the retreat to safety is only for me.Why? What does he fear?
Take All of Them Down
Benedict Martin
Edinburgh,Present
I keep my promise to Hayes. The one he asked me the night she first turned up at Blackfriars. The one on the tip of my tongue all week, all day, every second.
She can’t know.
I am surprised she’s not more scared, but then again, she laughs in the face of danger. She thrives on it, like a little psycho. And I love that about her. I know she’ll be safe. Hayes has the whole situation covered. His men are on top of their shit. But the Offering is a live wire. We move in too fast, and they’ll scatter, fleeing the scene. I have to earn their trust, distract them, cause a commotion. And there’s only one way to do that without anyone else having to die.
We finish up our late lunch, and though Evelyn puts on a brave face, I can tell she’s a little nervous about tonight. As I mount her, as I trace her collarbone with kisses and bury myself inside of her… I can see it, the tiny vulnerability sitting pretty in the crease between her eyes. In the way her gaze doesn’t leave mine—and how her hands grab onto my back like she never wants to let me go.
So, I give it to her—every last ounce of myself. I make sure she comes three times, one after the other, rolling hills of pleasure as her hips buck against mine. I make love to her like it might be the last time—like we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. As I caress her—and as she climaxes on top of me, her body strong and lithe on mine—I know she never would’ve let me to do it alone.
If there’s one thing that’s held true since the day we met, it’s that we’re in this together, haunted by the same kinds of nightmares. Our darkest hell was the same hell—ruled by the same man. And we both chose to be better, do better. To save others from the horrors of men like him. I can’t imagine doing this without her.
We order dinner in and get ready. I have Hayes send up the dress I bought her. Long, black sleeves. Form-fitting, flared at the bottom. But the thing that sold me on it was the plunging V neckline. She takes her time, and I watch as she applies makeup, curls her hair, slips into the black heels I picked out. I’ll forever be grateful to Lily for relaying her sizes. As she uses the restroom, I call Lily quickly and ask to speak to Delilah. My voice catches when I say hi, when I ask about her day. Evelyn comes out and we chat with her for a few more minutes, and both of us get misty-eyed when Delilah blows her little kisses and says, “I lub you, Aunty Ebie and Unc Bennie.” All I can hope is that this isn’t the last time I’ll hear that. And when I look at Evelyn, I admire how her eyes soften in the presence of her goddaughter—ourgoddaughter. I swallow thickly.
I don’t possess the courage Evelyn carries so well.
However, the innocent souls give me strength. People like Victoria—innocent people taken off the street.
Like Evelyn.
There will be an entire underground ring of people tonight, connected by the Brotherhood, complicit in dozens of murders. It’s the underbelly of any large, powerful group of people—first, Catholicism. And now, the Brotherhood. It’s as if no matter what, the ugly, terrible parts of human nature always make themselves known. You get enough people in a room, and awful things can happen. If it’s not a group of priests, it’s a group of Directors. Like somewhere along the way, something soured in their genetic makeup. Like the power went to their head.
Around half past eight, I meander over to Evelyn, who’s applying dark red lipstick. It brightens her eyes, makes her skin seem so otherworldly pale. Smiling, I watch us in the mirror. Me in my suit, her in her dress. I take a step behind her, looping my arms through hers. I’m nearly a head taller than her, but I like the way we look—the way we fit together.
“Ready?” I ask, glancing at her hand to make sure she’s wearing the ring.
“Ready,” she repeats. “The pillars of this house will set us free,” she murmurs, her eyes finding mine.
My cock stiffens at the look she’s giving me, the darkness swirling around her like a cloud.
She was going to march into that meeting, and, to her, she would be taking my father down again.
And like with my father, she was going to help me takeallof them down.
Tell the Demons I’m Back
