“Yes!” I smile and follow him over to the smell of steamy pork.
The man behind the cart grins with yellow teeth, his denim blue hat matching his overalls.
“Two. One with just ketchup and.” He looks to me, waiting for me to tell the man what I want on mine.
“Oh, I want everything,” I tell the guy, and he loads mine up with ketchup, mustard, relish, and onions.
Romeo pays the man and we continue to walk, eating our hotdogs. Another person walks by us with a dog and I stare at it. I want a pet.
Thunder crackles above us, and I look up to the sky, seeing just a hint of gray clouds through the trees, a plunge of darkness takes over Central Park.
Taking another bite, we both stop.
“Maybe we should head back,” Romeo suggests, sensing the same thing I am.
Rain is coming. Walking back, I finish my hotdog and wipe my hands on my jeans. It was so damn good. I should have gotten two. The way I’ve been eating, I know I have to have been putting on weight.
My mind goes back to tomorrow, curious who will still be left in the ring when I get there. The thought of pistol-whipping the women who gave me a hard time tempting.
The clouds open up and rain comes pouring down. Romeo grabs my hand, and we both run, sprinting toward the apartment. We run through moving traffic, not caring if the walk light is lit or not and make it inside the lobby doors in minutes. Holding my arms out, my shirt looks like an entirely different color. I look up at Romeo finding him soaking wet, just as I am. He laughs and so do I.. We head toward the elevators, his shoes squeaking across the lobby floor. Just as the doors shut, Romeo throws me up against the wall and kisses me passionately. Both of my hands on his wet face, I kiss him back, wrapping my legs around his body. We barely make it to the apartment before we start tearing each other’s wet clothes off one another.
Just because I want to get out there and live a life I’ve never had, doesn’t mean Romeo is going to forget about me, does it? Because this feels like goodbye sex. I can’t explain how I know, I just do.
Romeo
My phone dings multiple times, waking me from my sleep. Pulling my arm out from under Luna’s naked body, I grab the phone and squint as the screen lights up.
It’s Dad.
Same place. At dusk.
I text Kieran and Gideon the same thing and drop the phone back onto the nightstand and curl into Luna. The clock is ticking, and I don’t want to think about it. Kissing the back of Luna’s neck, the sweet smell of her skin, I wrap my hand around her flat stomach and circle her soft clit with my thumb. She stirs awake and I pull her on top of me, wanting one more taste before the job comes and this is over.
17
Romeo
Sitting at the kitchen table after breakfast, I dig out all my ammo and prepare for today. Luna sits beside me, watching me quietly. There’s a tension in the air, one I’m surprised she’s aware of. When Kieran and I would do a job, we would remain silent as we prepared, as if we were silently praying and focusing. Luna doesn’t say a word while she watches. It’s as if she was born for this way of life. She respects the dark energy surrounding us, preparing us for the hunt.
Before we know it, it’s time to meet the devil.
Luna dresses in a black shirt and jeans, wearing the new shoes I got her. In the elevator, we both watch the numbers lighting up each floor we pass. Inside the lobby, we cut to the door that leads to the garage and get into my Navigator. Pulling the black matte gun from my holster, I hand it to her.
“You sure you want to do this?” I ask her, making sure she doesn’t want to back out.
She hits me with those green eyes and takes the gun from my palm.
“I’m sure.”
Heading away from town and toward Brooklyn. I drive us down a recognizable seedy street, I remember it from last time, away from more lights and people, and down the same dark rabbit hole.
My Navigator rocks back and forth as we turn off the road and onto gravel, darkness crawling all around us and eating any light the street lamps may offer. Driving under the bridge with spray-painted symbols all over it, I hear Luna inhale. She recognizes this place. I notice Kieran and Gideon’s car parked just ahead, and then there’s the van and the car that carries the man in charge of the whole trafficking ring. I never did catch his name before. I pull up right behind the van, allowing my lights to shine through the back window. Parking, I give Luna one last look before getting out, this could be the last time one of us sees the other. She leans over and kisses me on the mouth, and I relish her soft lips against mine. This might be the last time we are together. Pulling back, we both get out. Walking away from my car and getting closer to the others, Kieran and Gideon’s headlights shine enough light for me to see the boss get out of his car. He’s wearing a long tan coat, with a scarf around his neck, the men behind him in dark slacks and white button-ups, just like last time.
He smiles, clasping his hands as if he was praying.
“I see you liked my girl.” He smiles, looking at Luna like she’s a prized pig.
Raising my gun, I point it right at him. That’s all it takes for me to want to kill him. His girl? She
