Page 71 of Psycho Sinners

Reluctantly, I dragged myself from the warm cocoon of blankets and shuffled to the door, cracking it open a sliver. The hallway was empty, no sign of any of my captors. Good, maybe I could sneak down and grab some food without any encounters. I wasn't feeling all too social after the two less crazy brothers had shut me down and both threatened me in some way.

I padded quietly down the stairs, heading for the kitchen.

I froze on the stairs as I spotted Julian over by the window overlooking the city skyline, holding Kenny up high. I frowned, taking in the scene before my lip curled slightly.

"C'mon, it's right there, you got this," Julian said as he lifted Kenny higher, and Kenny batted at the window, his tail flicking around wildly.

My brow furrowed as I watched the strange moment, Julian hyping Kenny up. Then I saw it - a moth fluttering erratically against the windowpane, its fragile wings beating furiously as it sought escape.

Kenny's tail swished again as he smacked his paw on the moth, lurching forward to grab it in his mouth.

"Good job," Julian praised him, scratching his head as Kenny crunched on the insect happily.

I couldn't help the small snort of laughter that escaped me at the utterly bizarre sight. Julian immediately whipped around, his features hardening as he caught me observing them.

"Don't judge," he said gruffly, holding Kenny a little tighter against his chest in a protective gesture. "We were just having a little fun."

I arched a brow at his defensiveness. "I'm not judging, I just...never expected to see a hardened criminal...doing that."

Julian's glare intensified for a beat before his shoulders relaxed slightly. "Kenny likes to hunt. I was just indulging him." He shrugged as he set Kenny down, and the tabby scurried off with his kill.

"So, why did you name him Kenny?" I couldn't resist asking, genuinely curious despite myself.

Julian smirked as he gazed after Kenny, who'd disappeared around the island counter to finish off his kill. "I used to love South Park when I was a kid. Kenny was always dying but coming back to life. Seemed fitting for a cat with nine lives."

The explanation was so...normal. So at odds with the dangerous, wicked man I knew Julian to be. In that moment, I caught a glimpse of the little boy he must have been, before life shaped him into the person he was now.

I shook my head trying to suppress my amusement. "I'm just grabbing some food," I told him, heading for the fridge.

"There's tuna bake in the oven, it'll be ready soon," Julian stated.

I paused, raising my brows. "Seriously? You guys run this big family business, yet you seem to be around a lot...not working."

Julian smirked as he joined me in the kitchen area and leaned on the counter. "We're not all needed to work constantly. A lot gets handled via phone calls, we only go in person when it's really needed. Things run pretty smoothly for the most part without our constant physical presence."

"Lucky you, I guess," I muttered, grabbing a soda from the fridge.

Julian just shrugged as he pulled the tuna bake from the oven, the cheesy aroma making my mouth water despite myself.

We ended up eating in the living room, me perched on one end of the couch with my plate while Julian sprawled out on the other end. Kenny hopped up to join me, purring as he settled on the cushion beside me.

"He's taken quite a liking to you," Julian commented with an amused look.

I glanced down at the tabby, giving him a reluctant scratch behind the ears. "I find it kind of odd that you have a cat," I admitted.

Julian arched a brow at me. "Why's that?"

"I don't know...a mafia man with a pet cat? It's a bit strange," I said with a small shrug.

He let out a bark of laughter. "What's wrong with that?"

I didn't argue, just shrugged and focused on eating my food as some nature documentary played on the huge flatscreen. It was strangely...domestic, sitting here with Julian eating dinner and watching TV, his cat snuggled up beside me.

When I finished my meal, I stuck my plate on the coffee table, lounging back as Kenny moved into my lap and curled up. Guess I was stuck here then.

As the show droned on, I found my eyelids growing heavy, the events of the last few days weighing on me. I hadn't realized how tense I'd been around Julian and Tyrone until this oddly relaxed moment. Maybe I was letting my guard down too much, but some part of me knew they wouldn't hurt me the way Cristian did. They seemed to want to use me for sex, but nothing more depraved.

My eyes slid shut without me even realizing it, Kenny's rumbling purrs lulling me into an unexpected slumber right there on the couch.