"Just don't get in my way, Moretti," I replied with a frown. "I'm bringing Nix back. And if I have to choose between you and him, I'm choosing him."
She frowned. This dance between us was the ultimate ultimatum. I'd never choose her. These last five years, I felt an obligation toward her but also struggled to share Nix’s memory with her. We were two people craving the same soul. And at the end of the day, I'd never love her the same way I loved him. And I was a man that refused to share.
"I'd expect nothing less of you," she whispered before digging through her purse and pulling out a book. She cracked it open—some textbook about gemstones. She was going to school for geology. I had no idea what she would do with that degree in a city like New York, but I didn't really care.
"Glad we are on the same page," I added, though she had already settled into ignoring me and studying. I observed her openly, like I always did. She was stone, steel, hardened resolve in a beautiful package. I might not have been attracted to her, but I respected the beautiful depths of her gaze and the honesty of her heart. We never danced around the truth. We breathed it throughout the entirety of our suffering.
I opened and closed my mouth, thinking of something else to say. We sat in silence for the duration of our flight.
Chapter Three
Nix
I always drank coffee when I watched her. Sunshine. I felt closer to her that way. Sipping on her sugary drug of choice while watching the computer monitors from my apartment was my only reprieve.
I fucking missed my best friend.
I missed pancakes at midnight. Binge watching trashy television. Cuddles on the couch. Bubble baths. Foot massages after work. I missed talking about life and having someone that knew everything there was to know about my life. I missed my fucking soulmate.
I’d been following security footage for years, making sure those asshole boyfriends of hers took care of her. Okay. They weren’t assholes. I actually kind of liked them. Especially Blaise. She wasn’t allowed to have favorites in her little harem, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t. Blaise was my friend, too. All of them were. I didn’t miss them as much, but I was invested. I wanted what they had: I wanted the freedom to live my life.
Sunshine was currently at the registration building at Penn State. Her black hair was tied up in a bun, and she wore a tight pair of yoga pants with a white crop top. She was shifting her weight from side to side and counting to herself, likely trying to keep calm and patient.
Some woman with purple lips that liked to smack her gum was giving her a hard time. There was an online Intro to Psychology course that got overbooked, and Sunshine was struggling to get them to be accommodating. “Don’t you worry, Sweets. Nix has got you covered,” I whispered to myself while checking the roster. Within minutes I found a suitable person to drop the course and opened up a slot. The dude was already on academic probation. I was doing him a favor.
I watched the campus security footage while hacking into the woman’s computer microphone so I could hear what she had to say.
“There’s no more slots, Mrs. Moretti. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to take it next semester,” she said in a bored tone. I rolled my eyes. I knew for a fact she was on Facebook and not actually checking if there were any spots open. This bitch was stalking her ex-husband’s hot new girlfriend. This was not healthy for her self-esteem. Move on, Barbara. Go to Barbados or something.
“Can you please check one more time? It’s really important to me that I get in this class,” Sunshine pleaded. I kind of hated that she insisted on doing this alone. I didn’t really care much for Gavriel, but I knew if he were here, she’d have every damn class she wanted—and this woman’s undivided attention, too. I understood why she wanted to feel independent, but it didn’t mean I wouldn’t be helping her from afar.
I casually took over the registrar’s computer and watched in amusement as the woman's eyes widened in shock. I unfriended her ex on Facebook and closed it down before opening the roster for the Intro to Psych class Sunshine wanted. “What the fuck?” she murmured to herself before straightening her expression to resemble something that looked like a cross between constipation and professionalism.
It took me thirty seconds, then voila. Done. Sunshine had the class she wanted.
“It appears an opening just became available. Congratulations, you’re enrolled.” My girl squealed and bounced, thanking the woman profusely for a job I’d done. I wished I could hug my best friend in person. I wished I could tell her that she was kicking ass and how fucking proud I was of her for taking control of her life. I knew she’d do great in school. I just wished I was there to witness it in person. I was one of the best hackers in the world, but watching her on traffic cameras and through her laptop was getting old.
My phone pinged, alerting me to a message.
Ringleader Ghost2704: You do what I asked you yet?
I frowned, hating my life with a vengeance. When I left the vigilante group all those years ago, I never imagined I’d end up sucked into something larger than life. I never imagined I’d end up hiding away in some apartment in Mexico City, working for self-proclaimed gods while doing the devil’s work.
I had to work with the big boys to save my best friend, and that meant slipping back into their clutches.
Nix: Working on it now.
It was a lie, but they didn’t need to know that. They fucking needed me,
