“Yes, but you already knew that when you picked it out.” He is right, though, I do look good.
A smirk flashes on his face before he asks, “Ready?”
“Yep,” I clip out and head down the stairs with him trailing a couple of steps behind me. “Let’s get this over with.”
“You won’t have to interact with him that much,” he says like he’s trying to give me the upsides to going. “One night won’t kill you.”
I grunt my displeasure.
I drive. He must read my aggravated energy because he doesn’t even argue with me. The ride goes by in silence. When we reach the Aubert mansion, there are three cars in line before us. I make a mental note of who exits each vehicle, though I’m likely not going to make small talk with any of them tonight. I’m only here to make my presence known. I will not let Aubert think he’s got me running coward. There’s a way to get to him, I just haven’t found it yet.
“You can’t kill him,” Torrin tells me as he pops open the door and steps out. I’ve heard these words from him too many times when it comes to fucking Greely Aubert. I take a second to calm down. I don’t like it, but I know he’s right.
“So you keep saying. I’m going to have no choice but to think you’ve lost faith in me if you keep it up,” I joke as I toss the keys to the valet standing there waiting for assholes like me who don’t ride around in a town car with a driver.
The kid’s eyes go wide. He’s either excited to drive my Challenger for a minute or shocked to see it’s me who’s tossing the keys.
Oh, yeah. That reminds me.
I set my mask against my face and tie it tight behind my head. I don’t like how this thing restricts my vision. I guess it’s a good thing I have an extra set of eyes with me, even if Torrin’s sight is going to be impaired as well. In this case, four eyes equals two, and that’s good enough for me. Besides, Aubert would be a fool to try anything in front of a large group of people.
I discreetly scout the area as we walk the million-and-one marble steps to the front door. As if it weren’t a massive enough sight looming over the city, it sits on a slight hill, which seems to give it more power, or so some would think. To me, this monstrosity is an eyesore.
“I can feel your need to roll your eyes,” Torrin says under his breath as we step over the threshold and onto the polished white marble of the front hall.
I grunt instead of replying to his remark. We both know it’s the truth anyway, so no point in denying it.
We get stuck behind a slow crowd as we enter, eventually making our way to the back of the house where the ballroom is located. Aubert loves nothing more than to host parties and use his grand ballroom. I’ve seen it many times before, and not once have I been impressed with the two-story room or the glass ceiling.
Inside the room, the scent of baked pastries and crisp sparkling wine fills my nose. I might not be drinking, but I wouldn’t pass on something sweet.
“Keep your wits about you,” Torrin says as he catches me eyeing a tray of puff pastry treats across the way. I’m not sure if he thinks I’m hungry for the food or the hot waitress carrying it.
As if she can sense our gazes, she turns and sends me a sly smile. That one’s a fox, and I wouldn’t doubt she’d be down to take a break with me.
I’ll have to save that for a little later. I wrench my gaze away from hers and frown at the fact that I’m not getting a pastry. Despite knowing the area well, I scan the whole room slowly. I’m not looking for exits or bathrooms, though. I’m looking to see who is where.
Aubert is easy to spot across the room. Two horns twist outward from the top of his black half-mask. Even from here, I can see the bright gold coating the tips. I know Aubert, and so, I wouldn’t doubt it was real gold. His smile is slimy as he chats vibrantly, so loud that everyone around can’t help but be pulled into the conversation. He hasn’t noticed me yet, and I move back against the wall to blend in with the shadows. I know this mask covers my face, but there’s no hiding I’m the one underneath it. I stick out as much as a virgin in a brothel.
I nearly snort at the thought. Comparing myself to a virgin is so ridiculous that it should be illegal.
Aubert’s smug. I can see it from all the way over here. The man walks around like he constantly has something up his sleeve. I have enough shit to worry about, I don’t need to chase after a giant toddler too.
“Do you think it was him?” Torrin asks as he casually nabs a glass of white wine. He brings it up to his nose and inhales. I shake my head because his face says how much he doesn’t like the smell.
“I do,” I say.
Sonny’s alive, but we still don’t know if the poison caused any permanent damage. He barely got a taste of it on his tongue before he pulled the bottle away from his lips. But a drop of liko is enough to kill a giant. Having it diluted in the water helped.I guess we should count our lucky stars it went down the way it did. Only it shouldn’t have happened at all.
I can feel the sneer tugging at my lip.
“But I can’t fucking prove it was him,” I say through clenched teeth.
“Why do you think he would do it? Don’t you think if he wanted to take you down, he’d just go after you directly? Like, say, here.” He looks around dramatically while he swings his hand out, the wine sloshing dangerously in the glass.
“Hmm,” I hum. Maybe he’s right. Maybe we’re both just missing something. I’d hate to think I’m getting paranoid in my old age, though I swear thirty-seven isn’t old. All I know is, I’m keeping my eyes on the fucking asshole until I can prove it wasn’t—or was—him.
“That tells me nothing.” Torrin turns his head to look at me for the first time since we found our spot on the outside of the crowd. I can feel him raising his damn brow at me under his mask.
