Killer Crush - Kiss. Kill. Repeat. #1 - ch. 5 - Cade (Patreon)

Tris grunted, swearing as he did his part to help drag Albertini’s body toward the nearest exit with access to the water. “You know, when you said, ‘get rid of the body,’ I was picturing something cool, like Pulp Fiction or Reservoir Dogs. Not Weekend at Bernie’s.”Cade snorted. He wouldn’t have bothered dumping the body at all if he were the only one at risk of spending a decade behind bars. He wasn’t in the system. And Cade knew the law–intimately. There was nothing the police could do to compel him or Tris to submit to fingerprinting or DNA without a warrant, and they’d have no reason to single them out.It was Tris he worried about. When Cade had asked, Tris couldn’t remember whether he’d ever been fingerprinted for a job before. With a body came evidence, and if Tris popped up in a database somewhere, it wouldn’t matter how good Cade’s cleanup was, Tris would burn for it. He didn’t say that, though.“Weekend at Bernie’s?” Cade asked instead, doing his best to keep Tris preoccupied while his own mind spun through contingency plans.Even without evidence, the cops could invent a reason to hold Tris for twenty-four hours, and Cade had a sinking suspicion that Tris would either charm them all or confess to fifty unrelated crimes by accident. He’d waste their time, sure, but Cade didn’t trust him to survive the anxiety of an interrogation room.Tris stopped abruptly, gulping air. “It’s this hilarious eighties movie where these two guys haul their boss’s dead body around–just like this–and convince people he’s still alive so they can finish out their vacation at his beach house.”That was a comedy? “That’s… dark.”“I know, right?” Tris said, eyeing the distance they still had to travel to the door. “I seriously don’t think this is going to work. I thought murder would feel less like a Tom & Jerry cartoon and more badass.”Cade laughed. “You watch a lot of television, huh?”Tris glowered at him. Cade let him catch his breath, smiling to himself as he noticed the wiggle starting in Tris’s fingers. Tris was Newton’s Law in the flesh, a body in motion stayed in motion. And those motions weren’t graceful. Tris bounced; he picked at his nails; he chewed on his lip or the inside of his cheek. He was chaos wrapped in a hoodie and somehow it was the most mesmerizing thing Cade had ever seen.If Tris’s mouth wasn’t moving, the rest of him had to be. His brain ran in overdrive, spitting out random facts and existential dread like sparks off a live wire. He wasn’t just unpredictable, he was alive in a way Cade didn’t think people could be anymore.“Cade.”The almost-panicked sound of his name dragged Cade’s attention back to him. Tris’s eyes were wide and uncertain, his voice shaking as he asked, “Am I going to jail?”It hit Cade low and sharp, the real fear behind the sarcasm. He’d heard men beg for their lives before, but this was different. Tris wasn’t scared of dying; he was scared of disappearing, of being forgotten.Cade reached out, brushing a thumb over Tris’s wrist to ground him. “Not if I can help it.”His bleak expression was like a baseball bat to the knees, almost taking Cade off his feet. He didn’t ever want to be the reason Tris looked like that. He’d never cared about someone before and didn’t know what to do with the knowledge now. It lodged under his ribs, sharp and unfamiliar, this aching need to protect something he didn’t even understand yet. All he knew was that if Tris decided dating a murderous psychopath wasn’t for him, things might get dicey. Shit.“I promise I won’t let that happen,” Cade said, meaning it more than he’d ever meant anything in his life.“Good. I’m too pretty for prison,” Tris said, trying and failing to sound like he was kidding.“I think you’re just pretty enough,” Cade teased, shifting his weight, his back screaming from the effort. “The faster we dump this guy, the sooner we can stop worrying.”Tris gave a stiff nod, then lurched into motion once more, groaning.Cade wasn’t worried. Well, not about getting caught, anyway. The ship was old, there were no security cameras outside of the main exhibit, and there was no connection between Cade, Tris, and the victim. If they could toss the body before reaching shore, they’d be home free.Literally.After they’d rubbed off on each other like horny teenagers, they’d scoped out Albertini’s associates, finding them glassy-eyed and tipsy as they lazily explored the exhibit. Nobody appeared to miss the man, which came as no surprise to Cade. Men like Rocco were never missed. They were tolerated. And Cade made his living fixing that problem.They finally made it out the door to the narrow deck that led to the larger viewing areas on the stern and the bow. Now, they had another problem.“How are we going to hoist him over the railing?” Tris asked, winded.Cade peered overboard into the dark, churning waters below, then took the man’s arm from around his shoulders to slump his upper body over the railing. “Gravity and lower body strength.”Tris relinquished the man’s other arm, and together, they crouched to grab his calves. Tris’s abrupt giggle pierced the otherwise quiet night.That wasn’t good. Cade shot him a look, equal parts warning and worry. The laugh wasn’t amusement, it was shock cracking through the surface. He supposed he was lucky Tris had kept it together for as long as he had. Sometimes, Cade forgot that killing was an activity most normal people found abhorrent.“Hang on just a little longer, puppy. Help me get him over the railing, and once this guy is fish food, you can have the biggest nervous breakdown ever. I promise.”Tris took a deep breath and let it out. “Yeah. No. I’m good. I’m good. Totally fine. To–tally fine.”After a minute, Tris nodded and took the man’s leg once more.It took a surprising amount of time to wriggle the man to the tipping point where physics did its job and Albertini’s body began its descent. Unfortunately, he didn’t fall in a perfect swan dive as hoped but instead sort of cartwheeled, his head hitting the railing of the deck below and making a sound like a sledgehammer hitting an overripe melon before continuing into the ocean.The noise echoed across the empty deck, and Tris froze. Cade’s first instinct wasn’t panic–, it was to reach for him, to steady him before he shattered. Because as horrifying as the sound was, the look on Tris’s face was worse.This wouldn’t have been an issue if not for the piercing horror movie scream that cut down Cade’s spine and turned Tris’s already sweaty face ghost white. Frantic voices came from the floor below, growing closer to the railing by the moment.Shit.He hadn’t thought to check if people were on the deck below. It was a dumb rookie fucking mistake, but he’d been more than a little preoccupied since the moment he’d laid eyes on Tris.Tris couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away from the turbulent waters. Cade could hear the excited murmurings of the other passengers. What happened? Did someone fall? Was it an accident? Are you sure it was a person? A woman was crying. Probably the one who’d had the misfortune of meeting Albertini on his way down.Heads began appearing from the deck below, peering into the black water, but there was nothing to see. Albertini’s body had been sucked beneath the ship almost instantly. With any luck, he was a surprise feast for a dozen sharks right now.Cade watched in what felt like slow motion as a man below, staring down into the water, began to tilt his head up, as if to look for where the body had come from. Cade slammed his hand into Tris’s chest, shoving them both back against the cold metal siding.Shit.He didn’t think they’d been seen, but they needed to get out of there before—A siren sounded, and then a voice boomed overhead, demanding that all passengers return to the main exhibit hall immediately.Well, before that.“That’s bad, right?” Tris asked, panic leaching into his voice.“Well, it’s not ideal,” Cade said, snagging Tris’s hand. He cracked the door open to retrace their steps, then slammed it shut again when he saw three uniformed men heading straight for them. Instead, he turned left, dragging Tris toward the stern. There had to be stairs somewhere that led to the main deck or the upper level from earlier. Anywhere but here, anywhere but where the body had fallen.They made it around the corner just as the door opened behind them, but they weren’t out of the woods yet. Footsteps and shouting came from above. Tris’s eyes were wide, saucer-round, silently begging Cade for a plan.They were essentially trapped.Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.Tris seemed to break from his trance, jerking Cade toward a shadowy alcove beneath the staircase, giving them the briefest reprieve. It wouldn’t last. There were dozens of ship personnel now sweeping the decks, all holding mag lights with bulbs bright enough to be seen from space.Cade’s pulse hammered in his ears. He was calculating, scanning, mapping escape routes, when Tris suddenly shoved him against the wall hard enough to knock the air from his lungs.Before Cade could even guess his intention, Tris was on his knees, clawing at his belt buckle, lips brushing his abdomen in a way that made his muscles jump and his dick harden fast enough to make him dizzy.The realization hit an instant later, Tris was trying to sell the illusion. If anyone caught them here, it would look like two lovers sneaking off to fuck, not two suspects dumping a body.“Jesus Christ,” Cade hissed, his hand tangling in Tris’s hair, half to stop him, half because he couldn’t fucking help himself.The sound of boots echoed closer, the sweep of light passing right over their hiding spot as Cade bit down a groan. Tris’s mouth brushed the base of his cock again, deliberate this time, and Cade swore he saw stars.Instinctively, his fingers tightened in his hair just as a spotlight hit Cade square in the eye.“Hey!” the man called, the flashlight beam cutting through the dark and sweeping over them from head to toe…twice.Cade did his best to look scandalized, dragging Tris to his feet and holding him close like he was shielding him from view. “Uh. Sorry, man. We were just looking for some privacy.”Tris’s lips were wet, his mouth slightly open, and Cade could still feel the ghost of that metal tongue ring gliding against his skin, an aftershock that made it hard to look convincingly embarrassed.The man seemed momentarily rendered mute before recovering. “Didn’t you hear the captain asking all passengers to return to the exhibit?”Cade gave a sheepish smile. “We thought the boat was returning to port. I figured we’d be done before we got back. Is something wrong?”The man shifted his weight, glancing toward the others still sweeping the decks. When he realized they’d be no help, he said, “We believe a passenger may have been injured.”“May have been?” Tris asked, feigning confusion.Once more, the man’s gaze shifted away from them. “Yes, we’re not… certain. A passenger believes they may have seen someone… fall overboard. Please, return to the main exhibit room. Thank you.”Clearly, they were trying to keep things quiet. That boded well for them. Cade adjusted his clothes, willing his body to calm down, then took Tris’s hand, letting the man point them toward the hallway they’d exited moments ago.The exhibit hall buzzed with nervous energy, a low hum of voices building like white noise. Cade watched as others filtered in from various parts of the ship. Good, plausible deniability. They weren’t the only ones who’d gone exploring.Cade parked them against the wall and pulled Tris into his arms. “Way to think on your feet… or your knees, I suppose.”“So funny,” Tris muttered, his voice muffled against Cade’s jacket. The vibration of it sank right through Cade’s ribs, disarming him in a way bullets never could.Across the room, one of the employees was talking to Albertini’s companions, whose expressions looked far more curious than concerned. Cade wished he could hear what they were saying, but he’d have to play the cards he had.“I’m so hungry,” Tris whined.“Once we’re off this godforsaken hunk of metal, I promise I’ll take you anywhere you want to eat.” Then he added, “Provided you ever want to see me again.”“I want pancakes. So many pancakes. And waffles. Oh, and maybe waffle fries. Is there a place that serves waffles and waffle fries?” Tris asked.Cade’s heart skipped. Tris hadn’t even hesitated. After all that, he was still standing here, still choosing him. It made Cade reckless enough to ask, “Does that mean you’ll let me take you out again?”Tris’s hands bunched in Cade’s shirt, worrying the fabric between his fingers as he rubbed his face against Cade’s chest. “I feel like we’re past dating now. Let’s just get married.”Cade huffed out something that wasn’t quite a laugh—too raw, too real. “You’re out of your mind.”“And yet,” Tris murmured, smiling faintly against him, “you’re still here.”Cade had no idea if he was joking, but the idea of marrying Tris warmed him in a way he couldn’t identify. It slid under his skin, soft and disarming, like heat seeping into cold metal.“I mean, if we did, they couldn’t compel you to testify against me,” he teased, even as his heart raced.Tris leaned back enough to meet Cade’s eyes, studying him. “I was kidding… sort of.”Before Cade could form a response, a small group wandered by, bits of their conversation carrying to them as they passed.“—apparently, he was drunk…” a woman said.Another added, “...just an accident…”That was exactly what Cade was hoping to hear. The narrative was building itself. All they had to do was ride out the trip back to shore. Despite what television would have the world believe, they wouldn’t sequester a couple hundred people on a boat for what was most likely an accident.Cade exhaled quietly, tension bleeding from his shoulders. The hard part was over. Tris was safe. That was the only thing that mattered.The police would use the guest list to question everybody over the next few days, but that guest list would be useless when it came to Cade and Tris. Cade had used an alias, and Tris was his plus one. Once their feet touched solid ground, Tris would be safe.Safe, and still somehow holding Cade’s hand like he wasn’t dangerous, like he was something human. That thought lodged in his chest and refused to let go.When he realized Tris was still watching him, he said, “First waffles, then we’ll talk about our impending nuptials. Deal?”Tris collapsed into his arms once more, tucking his head under Cade’s chin. “Deal.”Cade’s mouth curved, the faintest smile ghosting across it. He’d come here to kill a man, and somehow left wanting pancakes, promises, and the boy who made him believe he could have both.