Page 88 of Bloodlust

"See you tomorrow," I say, hanging up. I dial a new number, letting out a long, terrified breath. "Hayden?"

"How'd it go?" he asks.

"We have a problem."

"Big?"

"Life-threatening."

Chapter 24

Initiation

Killing someone takes under a second.

Stab. Slice. Shoot.

Doesn't matterhow. Bam! They're gone. Just like that. It can be quick. Sometimes even painless.

But the pain lingers. It always fucking lingers. Not for the deceased, no, they find their peace, but for the murderer.

For the executioner.

It lingers.

It doesn't matter if they were evil, it doesn't matter if the blood coursing through their veins was laced with heinous, demonic darkness.

It lingers.

I close my eyes and it's there.

The pain.

Always lingering.

Always.

"You don't have to do this," Hayden whispers as I load my pistol on his desk. I sigh, gripping a bullet in mypalm as I feel his presence get closer. Hayden's hand encircles mine, his warm breath floating down the curve of my neck as he lowers the gun. He gives my fingers a tender squeeze. "You can say no, Camilla. You can sayno."

"I can't," I swallow, spinning around in his arms. The edge of his desk presses against my ass as I look up at him. In the amber specks scattered around his mossy green eyes, I can see pain. It's not his. It's mine. Why is it there? "Ineedto do this, Hayden. Zoey can't go to jail. She can't."

"We'll find another way," he says in a low voice, his chest grumbling with frustration. "You can't do this, Camilla." He pauses, gaze flicking in contemplation before he adds, "I can't authorize this."

"As far as the FBI is concerned, I'm already in with The Dragons," I say, resisting the urge to press myself up against his toned chest, to feel his warmth, to rest my head. Just for a second. "This will stay off the record. No one will know."

"You will," he says, raising his hand in controlled restraint. He loses control easily as he brushes my hair behind my ear. I close my eyes again, letting his touch soak through my skin, my muscles, hoping it seeps into my bloodstream. "Camilla..."

"Why do you care?" I whisper, tensing my jaw, teeth slamming together as I remember who he is. A liar. A fed. "You're going to get a medal for this, you know? They'll probably promote you."

"I don't care about a fucking medal," he grunts, taking a step forward and crushing me against his desk.He thrusts his hips forward, my eyes springing open at the friction. His unwavering gaze penetrates mine, stormy with heat as he adds, "I care aboutyou, Camilla." He snakes his hand around my waist and presses his fingers deep into my skin like he's worried I'll perish. "How can I make it any clearer?"

"You're slipping, Doc,'" I say in a shaky voice, unable to forgive him for his betrayal. I wish I could. I wish I could forget. I wish we met in a different life. A normal life. But that's a dream. And this? This life? It's always a fucking nightmare. "I'm just an assignment, remember?"

"I'm sorry I lied to you," he says in a hoarse voice, gripping my waist tighter. "I was going to tell you, okay? At dinner, I was going to?—"

"It doesn't matter," I say, placing a hand on his chest. He's magnetic. The perfect charge. Difficult to separate. Damn near impossible really. "What's done is done."

"You can't pretend to hate me forever, Camilla," he says as I detangle myself from his sturdy frame. He watches me with despondent eyes as I strap the gun to my holster. "You may think I'm a liar, but I am no fool. You're trying so hard to hate me, but you don't, do you?" He cocks his head as I scowl at him. "Do you?"