Midnight Toxicity

39.

The match flame flickered weakly in my hand before following the trail of gas to the door of the cabin.

I locked eyes with Chace as the brown and gray tones of the fuel slithered over the cabin's weathered wood, enveloping the front facade. Although my world was colorless, I understood that this lack of vibrant hues was my protection. My deuteranopia had always been a burden, but today, it felt like a shield—a barrier between me and the memories I desperately sought to forget. The bloodstained room and the man I had to kill—it all faded into the shadows of my mind as the fuel helped the fire creep over the scene.

I kissed Chace deeply, savoring the taste of such a madcap soul. We explored each other as kissers, rolling our tongues. When I gazed up at him, those electric blues danced in the flames like twinkling stars. "You set the fire to draw out Colton. You saved my life."

Confusion flashed across his face for a second before he pushed away from me. His mouth twisted downward, as if bothered by his thoughts, before he murmured, "Mr. Golding will punish us both. Lying won't help you much. I'll take the blame for the fire, but how did Colton die? What the hell is going on with you?"

"Two men attacked me." I shrugged, resigned to the fact that I had killed horrible people. His mystification over my lack of distress was a typical reaction. It would take a long time to process what happened. It wasn't something I made a habit of, especially with my violent stepfather. "There is a lot of stuff for me to unpack about tonight. Please, I need five minutes."

He bent close to my ear with eager breathlessness. "Don't think we're finished, hellcat. I need to hear your delicious screams one last time before we suffer for our failure."

I loved that he was ready to go again. My pussy was a drug, and I loved how he worked his dick. I blinked against the seductive pull of his heated stare. We could do it. Fuck each other in the firelight while old boards burned to ashes. My newfound determination to survive the terrible mission Golding sent me on wouldn't allow it, though.

"Having sex with me will become your obsession, sugar. We have important issues right now. Can Mr. Golding bribe the local fire department?"

"You're crazy. He wanted this quick and quiet. Did you find the hard drives before setting this fire?" He was disheveled and worried about our position in the crew. "He would have alerted his local contacts about tonight."

"Take your shirt off," I impatiently ordered, ready to return to the estate. "I'm tired of being naked, although it helped when I needed a distraction."

Chace hesitated, lip curling as he looked me over. Then, with a quick, practiced move, he wrapped me inside his short-sleeve dress shirt and fastened the buttons to my collar, his touch tense with urgency. "We need to have a serious talk before I make calls," he muttered, voice low and clipped. "A lot is riding on this."

I laughed, tossing my arms around his shoulders. "Anything you want. To answer your question, yes, I found a hidden pocket in the wall and hid a small package in the weeds."

Chace lit up immediately at the news, the gears in his brain turning. "Take me to them. We don't have much time."

"Ok," I agreed, winding our fingers together. "It's not far."

Barefoot, I led him across the weeds on the west side of the burning building. Our bodies moved like shadows, ghosts with a single mission. This isn't over yet—nothing is. Anxiety tugged at my insides, but I'd already learned to numb myself. Months of chaos had hardened me; the fear was always lurking, but part of me had become used to it, like armor. I could see the trap closing in, but it was the only way. The only way to stay ahead.