“Girl, are you crazy? You know we can’t have lunch in your restaurant together. Things don’t work that way,” Magnolia argues.

“Stop it. You’re one of my oldest friends—”

“And I’m infamous, which I earned all by myself, thank you very much.”

I think about the note that told me not to leave, and weigh it against the fact that I need more information if I’m going to win my battle to keep my soul intact during this bargain with Mount. I’ve already come to terms with the fact that I’ve lost control of my body.

“But I would really love to catch up,” I say, and Magnolia picks up on my meaning.

“Yeah, I know. I miss being as close as we used to be. Remember how much fun we had that time we celebrated my GED? We need to do that again real soon. After . . . all this. Then we can catch up like old times. Still miss those days. When three o’clock meant getting out of school instead of waking up to start working.”

Her change of subject throws me for a moment, but then I realize she’s speaking in code, like she’s also worried someone’s listening in to our phone calls.

I swear, I wouldn’t put it past him to have my phone tapped.

“Yeah, I know what you mean. I miss those times too. We’re due to catch up.”

“We’ll get to one of these days.”

“See you around, Mags.”

“Same goes, Ke-ke.”

---

I sneak out the back door of my own building to meet the Uber driver I asked to pick me up at an address a half block away. It’s 2:45, which means I’ll make it to the location Magnolia alluded to by three. I’m new to this cloak-and-dagger stuff, so I hope like hell I got it right.

When we pull up to the run-down restaurant where you have to order at the counter, I hop out of the car. Magnolia’s sporty red Lexus is nowhere in sight. Maybe I’m early?

I push open the restaurant door and look around, but she’s not here. I take a booth in the back, slightly out of sight, but if I lean far enough to the right, I can see who walks in the door.

Magnolia’s not known for her punctuality, but this time, I was sure she’d be prompt. Unless I misread this whole cloak-and-dagger code-word crap.

Luckily, two minutes later, she rushes in the door. “So sorry, honey. Got stuck in traffic.”

“Really? Because that’s the excuse every time, and there was hardly any on my way here.”

Magnolia rolls her eyes. “Glad you could be so lucky—and that you know me well enough to figure out my code.”

I lean forward on the table. “Do you really think he’s tapping my phone?” There’s no question as to which he I’m referring to.

Magnolia mirrors my movement. “Ke-ke, he’s tapping your ass, ain’t he?”

My butt cheeks clench, thinking of what I removed earlier, when a text from an unknown number came through that only included three words: Take it out.

I shift against the torn forest-green vinyl of the booth, not wanting to admit it. Then again, Magnolia doesn’t need me to confirm. She just shakes her head like I’m a student not catching on to the most basic of concepts.

“If you think we have more than ten or fifteen minutes before he knows exactly where you are, then you’re smoking crack.”

“He can’t be the big, bad boogeyman you make him out to be,” I whisper, only half-certain I’m speaking the truth, because I saw how quickly his entire demeanor changed when we left the room this morning. “No one has that kind of power. Plus, I haven’t seen any blood spatters or heard any screaming.” Silently I add, except for my own.

Magnolia narrows her eyes on me with a shake of her head. “I told you he wouldn’t just fuck you, he’d mind-fuck you, and he has.”

“But—”

She holds up a hand. “If you need to tell yourself he’s not a scary-as-hell, ruthless motherfucker to make you feel okay about the fact that you like the way he fucks you, that’s fine. But don’t for one second think it’s the truth. Because that’ll be the biggest lie you ever let yourself believe.”

I break her stare, focusing on the chipped red tabletop. My words are nearly inaudible. “Then how can I possibly live with myself knowing what I’ve let him do to me?” My gaze snaps back up to hers. “I begged him for it.” My stomach turns as shame drips from my confession.

Her eyes go hard. “Don’t you fucking dare feel ashamed of anything that’s happened between you two. I told you, he’s not someone you’re equipped to deal with. Men like him don’t exist in your world. You can’t fight the game he’s running on you. If he wants a woman, he gets her. Rumor is he fucks them crazy. Literally. The women I told you that he had who disappeared? I heard it’s because they lose their goddamned minds over him, and he has to sever the connection permanently because those bitches won’t let go. Don’t you dare think for a second that this is something you could possibly have fought against and won.”

A thought flashes through my mind. “Permanently, like he kills them?”

“Don’t know. Maybe they’re living in houses on the beach somewhere. Or maybe not. But that’s not the point. The point is that all you can do is lock down your head and keep a tight grip on your heart and soul while you let your body enjoy the ride.”

“He’s already in my head. You said he would be, and he is. When I’m around him, hell, even when I’m not, he’s turning me into someone I don’t even recognize.” In that moment, I’m not sure what scares me more—Mount, or the power he has over me.

“You have to fight it. Keep fighting back against him.”

I let loose a harsh laugh. “It’s not that easy.”

“I’m sure it’s not.” Again, the Formica becomes fascinating, and Magnolia snaps a finger in front of my face. “We don’t have long, so you better spill whatever you’ve got to say.”

I press my lips together until I’m sure they’re white and bloodless. “He’ll punish me if I fight back.”

Her dark eyes go wide, and rage burns within them. “You saying he hurts you? Because I might not survive killing him, but I will go down swinging if he hurts you.”

“Not like that,” I say quickly, shaking my head. “You know . . . like . . . sexually.”

Magnolia reels in her mama-bear instincts a hair and runs her lip over her top teeth. “And he makes you like it.”

It’s not a question, but I answer anyway. “I can’t help it. It’s—” I cover my face with both hands. “It’s too intense. He has this way of making me so crazy, I want to kill him, and then I lose my goddamned mind.” I jerk my head up to stare at the ceiling for the final admission. “I begged him to fuck me last night.”

Magnolia’s only response is silence until I meet her gaze again. “There are no rules, no right or wrong, and no shame when it comes to what happens between a man and a woman if they’re both enjoying it. So, cut yourself some slack. Just because he’s into control doesn’t make him a monster. Plenty of guys like that shit.” She pauses. “But you still have to be smart, girl, and we both know you’ve got that in the bag.”

I’m about to disagree with her, because I feel like an idiot when it comes to all things Mount, but I don’t have a chance. The restaurant’s door opens and my stomach, already in a precarious position, twists into more intricate knots than even my dad, the former Eagle Scout, could manage.

Scar’s footsteps thud against the floor as he comes directly toward our booth, not stopping until he stands a foot from the table.

“I think that’s your cue to exit, Ke-ke,” Magnolia says.

Scar shoots her a dark look that makes me fear for her safety, and I rise, snapping my fingers in his face like Magnolia did to me a few moments before. When his eyes cut back to me, this time they’re widened with surprise. It doesn’t take much to assume no one snaps at him.

“Don’t you dare take this out on her. And you tell Mount if he does, I will find a way to make sure he regrets ever laying eyes on me.”

The surprise in Scar’s expression morphs into something else. I’m not sure if it’s him thinking I’m a complete idiot to be threatening Mount, or something entirely different. It almost appears to be an expression resembling respect.

He jerks his head toward the door, and I force myself to maintain the boldness that protecting my friend dredged from deep inside me.

I roll my eyes before looking at Magnolia. “He’s never said a single word to me. At this point, I’m pretty sure he never will.”

I slide out from the booth and she does the same, nudging Scar aside with her generous hip to wrap me in a hug. I expect her to say she loves me and to stay smart, but instead she whispers in my ear.

“They say Mount cut out his tongue for questioning his orders once. Be safe. But even more important, be smart, Ke-ke.” Her words hit me like a sucker punch to the gut as she squeezes and then releases me. “Love you, girl.”

“Love you too.”

Scar turns toward the door, and I’m pretty sure if he could talk, he would say, “Follow me, and no more bullshit.”

My trepidation grows with every step I take away from Magnolia and toward the car that will deliver me back to Mount. I disobeyed his direct orders, and I have no doubt I’m going to pay for it.

Scar opens the back door of the sedan and I slide inside. It’s pointless to fight, like Magnolia said. All I can do is be smart and reinforce my defense with steel and attitude.

The hood is on the backseat. I want to toss it in Scar’s face, but what will that earn me? Another punishment? Probably.

He starts the car but doesn’t put it into drive. It takes me several seconds before I meet his gaze in the rearview mirror and get the message loud and clear. He’s not moving until I put it on.

“You’re an asshole too, in case you were wondering.”

I’m not saying it directly to Mount, so I consider it a loophole.

I shove the hood aside. “I’m not going back to him yet either. He said six o’clock, and I still have work to do. Take me to the distillery.”

Scar’s expression changes into one of shock at my demands. When he shifts the car into drive and pulls out of the parking lot, I’m not sure which way he’ll go.

Much to my surprise, he takes me back to work. I tell myself it’s a victory, but inside, I know I’m just delaying the punishment that’s sure to come later.