She tsks. “Go ahead. Continue to scoff. If I’d succeeded, your girlfriend would still be alive. But who knows? Maybe we’ll save the next one.”
I take a step closer, and she takes a step back.
She lifts her chin. “Look. These past few months, I could have killed you and your friends a thousand times over. Did I? No.”
“Maybe because you’ve been too busy cloning zombies.”
“Would you rather I make new ones?” She pushes her sunglasses up her nose. “I’ve been content doing my work and allowing you to do yours. I’ve kept my distance, only sent one agent into your midst and only so I could keep track of your activities and ensure you weren’t coming after me.”
“Tiffany claims you paid her to poison us. Oh, and did I forget to mention she slit the throat of one of my friends?” My best friend.
Smith blinks in surprise. Or what she wants me to believe is surprise. “Well, that certainly explains why the girl ran from me when she ran from you. I didn’t tell her to harm anyone, and I’ll punish her for acting out of turn.”
“Taking you at your word isn’t something I’m willing to do.”
“As for the poison,” she continues as if I haven’t spoken, “that was payback, plain and simple. Ali took my abilities, so I took hers.”
“And the red flames?”
She shrugs. “Tiffany acted out of panic. The serum was meant for zombies, to make them hunger for each other rather than humans, but Miss Marks gave chase and Tiffany hoped the serum would slow her down.” One of her perfectly plucked brows arches. “See? I can be one of the good guys, too. If zombies only feed on each other, your precious humans are no longer in danger.”
There’s a catch. With her, there’s always a catch. “You—”
“No more questions. Either you give Tiffany to me, or you go to war with me. Your choice.”
“We’re already at war.”
Her lips pull back in a snarl. “You don’t want to take me on, Frosty.” She hands me a business card. “I’ll give you twenty-four hours to release her. You do, and I’ll share the antidote to rid Miss Marks of red flames. You don’t, and I will kill you all.”
I get all up in her face.
“What are you going to do?” she taunts.
She’s lucky I hear sirens in the distance. I walk backward, unwilling to give her an open shot at my back. I slide behind the wheel of my truck and peel out, spitting fumes in her face.
So much for taking a little time to think about the future. I rage the entire drive home. A home Rebecca Smith just threatened.
I may not trust her, but I do trust that she’s evil and she’ll stay true to her roots. She’ll attack us, whether we relinquish Tiffany or not. She may or may not give us an antidote for thánatos. She may or may not even have one, might even give Milla something to make her worse.
No matter what Smith says, our group stands in the way of her ultimate goal. Eternal life. She’ll do anything to stop us from stopping her. Lie. Distract. Destroy.
Turn around. Put a bullet in her brain now, before it’s too late.
Temptation again.
You might spend the rest of your life in prison, but at least your friends will be safe.
Maybe. But for the first time, I get why Ali let the bitch go last time. Two evils do not make a right. If I kill Smith, someone else will simply rise from the ranks and take her place.
There has to be a better way.
Black and white, Milla once said. And she’s right. In this, there are no shades of gray.
I reach the tall, wrought-iron gate at the front of the driveway and press my thumb into the brand-new scanner for a fingerprint ID. As the gate swings open, an alert is sent to the cell phone of every slayer in residence, including Milla. No one comes or goes without everyone finding out. Where is she? What’s she doing? Hating me for abandoning her?
I park in the massive underground garage and storm upstairs to the kitchen, where Cole and Ali are waiting for me.
“I’m glad you came back.” She wrings her hands. “We need to talk.”
“We needed to talk weeks ago. Now it’ll have to wait.” My tone is sharp, cutting. “We’ve got bigger problems.”
Word of Frosty’s encounter with Rebecca Smith spreads through group text.
Gavin: Anyone else listen in on Frosty’s convo w/our Mom & Dad?? Yeah. Me neither.
Mom and Dad. Ali and Cole?
Love: Deets! Gimme!
Gavin: I don’t like 2 gossip, so make sure U get what I’m saying the 1st time. Frost ran in2 Smith—there was epic battle w/words, promise of blood & gore. Looks like we’re back @ war, folks.
Justin: We’ve been @ war. Dibs on Smith!
River: Fine but after U do her, I get 2 kill her.
Justin: My “do” is gonna involve knives. Tag team?
River: R U asking me 2 have a 3-way w/U? Always knew U had a crush on me. Alas, I must decline. I’m a lone assassin.
Justin: Screw U
River: So that’s a yes to the 3-way???
Gavin: Can U make it a 4-way? The ice queen is giving me the freeze out & I could use a little warming up
Jaclyn: Say goodbye to UR penis, Gav.
Gavin: If U can’t have it, no 1 can??