words falling from his lips, he gives us all a scathing look and leaves us to stew in our misery.
“Don’t listen to him,” Easton says, knowing that Linc is the only one willing to place his head on the butcher block.
“It’s okay, East. Colt’s angry. He’s been angry for a while now. I understand, and I don’t blame him for it.”
“Are you serious, though? About handing yourself to the cops, I mean?”
“That depends on you, Finn. Is that what you want me to do?” he questions, his expression sincere and without an ounce of hesitation in it.
I read everything in his ocean blue eyes. I could tell him I can’t do this, and he will go to the cops, no questions asked. That’s just the kind of man he is.
But Colt is right. I am being selfish. Why should Linc go down for all of it? Why should I live my life knowing he’ll be rotting in some jail cell while the rest of us go scot-free? We’re just as guilty as he is. We’ve all got blood on our hands. I won’t be able to live with myself, and worse, Stone will see right through my lies eventually. I’d change into something bitter and cruel if I let my best friend take the fall for something I, too, had a hand in doing. That’s not the man I want her to be in love with. It’s not the man I want to become.
And as I stare into Lincoln’s eyes, I know exactly who my role model has always been.
“I’ll do whatever they want, Linc. You won’t go down for this.”
I hear Easton let out long exhale, relief filling the air around us. It’s obvious he was just as pent-up as Colt, even if hid it better.
“I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to,” Lincoln counters sincerely, making sure I’m good with my decision.
“I won’t. Colt is right. We are family, and family protects one another.”
“What about Stone?”
“I’ll protect her the best way I can. Even if it’s dealing with the aftermath of whatever The Society has in store for her.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive,” I deadpan, firm in my decision.
“Okay, then. Where’s this box The Society sent you?” East questions as he goes to the bathroom to flush his cigarette butt.
“I’ll grab it. It’s in my closet,” I explain, getting up from the bed to go fetch the damn thing.
I need to find a way of giving this to Stone tonight without looking conspicuous or fucking desperate. I already gave her a pair of diamond earrings, so perhaps giving her a new phone won’t seem too far-fetched. I’m just not sure how Stone will react to another surprise gift.
“I’ve been thinking, maybe we’ve been looking for dirt on The Society in the wrong places.” I hear Easton say from behind me.
“What do you mean?” Linc asks.
“Well, no offense to you or Colt, but maybe you two aren’t looking in the right places. I can get down in the dirt if I need to. We’ve all seen how The Society likes to play dirty, so they must resort to some unsavory characters from time to time, if you get my drift.”
“I never thought of it that way,” Linc mumbles in deep thought.
“Of course you wouldn’t know the first thing about being sleazy and underhanded. That’s because you’re the good guy in our quartet,” East tries to joke, hoping to lighten the tense atmosphere.
“Oh, I think these past months have taught me a few things,” Linc laments.
I don’t hear any more of their conversation because I’m too busy looking for a box that seems to have gone missing. My head begins to get dizzy, my stomach churning on end with each passing second that I can’t locate it. I’m deep in my freak-out, throwing stuff over my shoulder while trying to find the damn thing, when Easton and Lincoln join me in my meltdown.
“It’s not here! It’s not fucking here!” I shout, losing my goddamn mind.
“Are you sure this is where you stashed it?” Easton interrogates harshly as he joins in throwing things left and right, looking for The Society’s time bomb.
“Yes, I’m sure! It’s gone. It’s fucking gone!”
“Easy, Finn. Just breathe, brother,” Lincoln pulls me back out of the closet and onto my feet.
He grabs my trembling shoulders, trying to calm me down, but his composed voice and steady touch aren’t enough.
“They must have taken it when they left me that fucking message in the bathroom. Fuck! What