Page 40 of Ruin

Maybe they were dead.

My heart broke a little more at the thought, and I revved the engine and shot past the clubhouse where my entire life had changed.

The place where I’d met Knight and fallen in love with him. Not that I’d ever told him that. Our relationship hadn’t lasted long enough.

Next I flew past a row of shops and markets, and then the driveway of the hospital. I looked up at the windows, searching for something, though I had no idea what I thought I’d see. Gemini looking down at me, waving and smiling? Fat chance. Last I’d heard, he was handcuffed to the bed and under arrest, even when he could hardly walk on his own.

My fault. All of it was my fault.

And that was what made this trip necessary. Soon, Knight would be waking up to find me gone, and my brain hitched a little bit, realizing that I could have left him a note explaining what was going on. Telling him my reasoning for having left. Instead, he’d just think I had deserted him.

Until he heard that I’d gone back to Devil, at which point he’d think I had betrayed him.

My heart, already half broken, cracked anew at the thought, but I comforted myself with one more: Once he heard that I’d killed Devil and most likely lost my own life doing it, he’d forgive me.

Or he’d at least know why I’d left him without saying goodbye and gone on with my own version of the plan. He’d know, or at least I hoped he would, that I had done the right thing—the only possible thing—to stop Devil.

And I hoped he’d remember me with fondness and maybe even love. Hell, maybe he’d even think about how brave I’d been to do what I did.

Though that last one seemed like a stretch, if I was being honest.

I GOT TO THE BANK WHILE it was still dark out, which meant I had plenty of time to wheel the bike into an alley... and then wait. I didn’t know whether Devil always came to the bank at the same time or not, as he’d never brought me with him. Even if I’d known that sort of thing, it wouldn’t have changed my plans. I’d had to leave the house early to avoid detection, and now I had to hide both from Devil and his men and from Knight, who might come flying through at any moment, scouring the city for signs of me or the bike I’d stolen.

I ducked back into the shadows, making sure they covered both of us, and then pulled out my phone. A second later, though, I remembered how easy it was to track phones—particularly if you’d had access to them and turned on the tracking feature—and turned it off.

Damn, I was stupid. I’d done that same thing the first night I was with Knight, and I was still positive that Devil had happened to track me the moment I had it on. His guys had come tearing through shortly after, guns blazing and engines roaring, and though no one had been hurt in that shooting, it was just another example of how I’d been putting the Banshees in danger ever since I arrived.

I tucked my phone into my pocket, wondering if I’d ever have a chance to turn it back on, and then reached into another pocket and pulled out the book I’d brought with me. It was a small, tatty paperback that I’d found on one of Brock’s shelves, and wasn’t even really my style. A ‘70s-era science fiction piece, from the look of the cover, and one that had been read many, many times. I felt a twinge of guilt for having taken it, wondering if this was perhaps one of Brock’s favorites, but then decided that I’d leave it with the bike before I went to meet Devil so they could recover it.

I took a moment to appreciate how calm I was being about all of this—how in control and rational—and then congratulated myself. For the first time, I was taking matters into my own hands. Making my own move and my own decisions rather than sitting around waiting for someone to come save me from whatever situation I’d managed to get into.

Not that I minded being saved if the knight in question came with a gorgeous smile and body that could stop traffic.

But there was something about working for myself, finally, that was both terrifying and refreshing.

“I think I could get used to this,” I murmured, allowing myself a quick grin.

Then I looked toward the bank, trying to figure out exactly how I was going to get in there while Devil was inside...

And how I was going to get the gun in his mouth and pull the trigger before anyone got there to stop me.

CHAPTER 22

KNIGHT

I REACHED FOR HER THE moment I woke up, my mind full of the memory of her on top of me last night, completely abandoning herself to the pleasure of being with me. The girl had a way of letting go of all her cares, and I wanted her to teach me how she did it.

Hell, I wanted her to teach me a lot of things. I planned to use the rest of my life to ask her every question that came to my mind.

My hand searched and searched, though, and found... nothing.

When I opened my eyes, confused, I found her side of the bed empty. And though I immediately turned my eyes to the bathroom, thinking that she must have gone for a shower, further feeling around told me that the sheets were also cold on her side of the bed.

Wherever she was, she’d been there for some time. She hadn’t been in bed for at least an hour, if I was guessing right. And I didn’t hear the shower running. She must have gotten up early—for unknown reasons—and made her way out to the main part of the house. Probably didn’t want to wake me up, I realized with a smirk. The girl was far too intent on me sleeping in, telling me again and again that I needed the rest.

Of course, today was going to be a long day, and the sleep was definitely necessary. But she had no way of knowing that.

I grimaced at the memory of our mission today, remembering again the struggle I’d gone through last night when I tried to decide whether to tell Saraya about it or not. Remy, Brock, and I had been planning the mission for days, now, and though I’d thought time and again that we could use her ability to plan things seamlessly and see holes in any ideas, I hadn’t brought her into the planning phase.