Page 115 of Relapse

“What the fuck did you just say?”

Dante coughs out another wet laugh, blood slicking his teeth. “You really think one of your little junkies was worth my time?”

Cold moves through me.

Sharp.

Wrong.

For half a second, Mikey’s face flashes through my head.

Terrified and confused.

Swearing he didn’t know anything.

Swearing his phone was stolen.

I shove the thought down hard.

No.

Fuck that.

Dante’s dying on his knees and still trying to crawl inside my head. That’s all this is. One last little mind game from a man who’s spent years turning people into weapons and calling it power.

“You’re lying.”

“Maybe.” His bloody mouth curves. “Maybe not.”

My grip tightens so hard my injured arm screams.

“Shut the fuck up.”

Dante tilts his head slightly, eyes bright with ruined amusement. “Funny thing about rats, Dagger. By the time you see one, there are already more in the walls.”

Something ugly twists in my chest, but rage burns hotter.

Louder.

Easier.

“Yeah?” I press the barrel harder to his skull. “Then you should fit right in.”

Dante laughs again, weaker this time, but still smug enough to make my blood boil.

“You always were predictable.”

“Good,” I mutter. “Then you should’ve seen this coming.”

His smile lingers.

Like he still thinks he wins if I hesitate.

I don’t.

I pull the fucking trigger.

Chapter seventeen