Kill of the Night [BXB]

Chapter 17

 "Why are we here again?"

"For Yara's birthday. It's on Wednesday," Dominic says from beside me. I haven't actually gone out with any of my friends yet, which makes our trip to the mall the first time. Dominic lifts his arm and points to a shop across the way, and I take a glance at the sign. It's a bookstore.

"That works, right?" Dominic asks.

"No way," Tao says from my other side. "Does anyone even know what genre she likes?"

"I think she likes all of them."

Tao sighs. "Let's go, then."

I follow them into the shop, keeping one thumb under the strap of my backpack. The inside is warm, and there's a slight dust in the air that tickles my nose. I will a sneeze away and stop behind the others.

Tao turns to face us. "Okay, guys, here's the plan. Dominic, you're going alone to the adventure section. Dare is staying with me in the romance section. Are we good?"

I nod. Dominic shrugs. Tao pats his shoulder and heads off, and I follow close behind.

The romance section is on the far wall of the store. I'm careful not to get distracted by any books, knowing I have plenty available on my phone if need be. As much as I like them, physical books add up to a lot, and I can only bring so much stuff for the next move.

Tao scans the books and starts pulling out a few. He hands a couple to me. "Pick the most interesting one."

"Um, does she like shirtless men on the covers?"

"Oddly enough, she does. Just make sure it's nothing too extreme, okay? Maybe skim through it a bit?"

I do so with the first one, cringing at the glimpses of graphic sex I catch. It seems to be okay, though, so I move on to the next one. To my relief, it's much more tame, and the cover describes an interesting murder mystery turned romance. I put the other one back. "This one looks fine."

"Woah, just fine?" Tao puts his book back. "We need these to be worldshakingly good."

I hum, not having a single clue where to start.

"Whatever, she's not ultra picky. That'll do. Uh, I'm gonna go look for Dominic. Is it okay if you stay around here and keep looking?" he asks.

"Yeah, I'll survive," I reply. Tao slips out of the aisle, leaving me to myself. I pick up a book and flip it over, reading the cover.

A wordless whisper makes me shudder. My grip on the book tightens, and a terrible feeling in my gut wakes me up from the sleep I've been in for the past two days. I feel a presence on my neck.

My phone pings. I jump and fumble the book, barely catching it before it falls. I steady myself, feeling my heart hurdle over invisible jumps in my chest, and set the book down on the shelf. I take my phone out and feel the air freeze.

Unknown Number: I'm outside.

You know who this is.

I breathe out and pocket my phone. I glance around, making sure Tao isn't around. Luckily, I'm in the clear. I make a mental note to come up with a viable excuse for tomorrow and head out of the store, walking quickly through the mall. I walk through the large food court and push the door open, exiting onto the pavement. I immediately spot a ridiculous yellow Ferrari parked up beside the curb on the opposite side of the street. The window is rolled down, revealing a man with a buzzcut and thousands of dollars worth of tattoos winding down his neck and his arms.

Marcel.

He glances in my direction and briefly meets my eyes. His eyes wander forward, and he smirks ever so softly, raising a cigar to his lips.