Slow Agony (Assassins, #2)(9)

Oh God. I was going to cry again. I clutched the railing outside my apartment, willing myself to hold it together. “He killed her, Knox.”

“Yeah,” said Knox.

“Goddammit,” I said. I pounded down the steps. “And he says he’s following me. Do you think he is?”

“Oh, probably,” said Knox. He sighed. “Hey, Leigh, I’m really sorry about this.”

“It’s not your fault,” I said. I pulled open the door to my car and threw my duffel bag inside. “It’s Griffin’s.”

Knox was quiet again. “I heard that you two, um... That things didn’t work out.”

Right. I hadn’t actually talked to Knox since the breakup. Knox was an ex-assassin like Griffin. He’d helped us go into Operation Wraith and stop everyone who’d been trying to kill us. He was a friend, but only because of the past we shared, not because we actually had anything in common. He was trying his best to live out a quiet life with his baby daughter Dixie. But I hadn’t told Knox about Griffin and me. So that could only mean that Griffin had. “You’ve talked to him, then.”

“Yeah,” said Knox.

“Did he tell you—”

“We don’t have to worry about that,” he said, but I could tell from his tone of voice that he knew.

“Did he tell you that he ran off and left me, and that’s the only reason why I did it?”

“Leigh, I don’t blame you. None of my business. Seriously.”

Did I believe him? Did it matter? Oh God, oh God, my best friend was lying under a sheet on my couch with a bullet in her head. How could I even think about my issues with Griffin? I got inside the car and gripped the steering wheel. Fuck. I was going to cry again, wasn’t I?

“Let’s just get you out of there,” he said.

“That’s what I’m doing,” I said. I put the key in the ignition and turned it. The engine came to life along with the radio. Adele. “Rolling in the Deep.”

I jumped. How did I handle listening to that so loud?

I turned it down. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he said. “You get your ass on the road and come here. To me. As soon as you can.”

I pulled the car door closed and fastened my seatbelt. “No, Knox, that’s not why I called. I can’t do that to you. This guy is following me, and I don’t want to put you and Dixie in danger. You got out, and you have a baby. I want you to stay out.”

“That’s the thing, Leigh. I don’t know of anyone named Marcel. I don’t think that guy is Op Wraith. So, it kind of doesn’t matter whether I’m out or not, because I’m not sure it has anything to do with me.”

“He healed.”

“Are you sure you really killed him?”

I thought I was. But... “I think so.”

“Anyway, you know you’re always welcome here.”

“I’m not coming to you.”

“But I also care about my daughter. And maybe you’re right that it’s better for us to stay out of it unless we have to,” he said. “So, here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to drive to the biggest town you can drive to. Get as lost in traffic as you possibly can. And then go someplace and buy yourself another phone. Ditch this one somewhere. Can you do that?”

“Yeah,” I said. I pulled the car out of my parking lot. “Sounds good.”

“All right,” he said. “Once you got a new phone, call me again. I’ll tell you where to go from there.”

“How are you going to figure that out?”

“I’m going to call Griffin.”

My stomach turned over. “Don’t do that.”

“I have to, Leigh.”

“No,” I said. “I don’t want to see him. He doesn’t want to see me.” That wasn’t exactly true. I did want to see him. I’d wanted to see him every day since he’d walked out of my life. I missed him so much. His absence was a dark ache in my gut. Always there. Always hurting.

In the background, Adele accused her old lover, telling him how they could have had it all.

I snapped the radio off. The lyrics hit too close to home.

“Look, this Marcel guy knows who he is, but neither of us know a thing about Marcel. And if he’s threatening you, I’m pretty sure Griffin wants to know about that.”

I laughed bitterly. “I don’t think he cares. He hates me.”

“He...” Knox floundered. “I’m sure he doesn’t hate you. He wouldn’t want you hurt on his account.”

“Yeah, I’m not so sure about that.” I bit my lip, easing my car out onto the main road. “Anyway, this Marcel guy isn’t looking him up for a friendly chat. Griffin’s in danger. Don’t tell him anything. He could get hurt.” I still cared about him. I didn’t want anything to happen to him.

“You could get hurt.”

“Please, Knox. Just find another way?”

He sighed. “Call me once you have another phone.”

*

I debated on going to Morgantown or Cumberland. Cumberland was a little bit closer. Morgantown was a little bit bigger. In the end, I found myself on the way to Cumberland and so I went that way. I wasn’t sure if it mattered.