“How do you know any of this?”
“Worked a lot of jobs together. You pick up shit about people in close quarters, and I’ve always liked Star. We have an unusual friendship.”
I leaned an arm against the door, curious despite myself because in all our conversations, she’d never really spoken about Cin. She’d mentioned how she believed Savannah and Katina would always leave her at some point because she was toxic but…
“Why is your friendship unusual?”
“Because we accept the worst parts about each other with no judgment and always forgive one another.”
“Why?”
Her smile was wicked. “Because we don’t know who’ll shoot first if we don’t get along.”
“Literally?”
“Exactly. It’s the great leveler, isn’t it? We may not always be in each other’s pockets, and I might not have even known she’d been inducted into the Sparrows’ trafficking business, just as she doesn’t know where I spend most of my time, but we have each other’s backs. Always.”
“She needs friends like you.”
She punched me in the arm. “I know.”
Rubbing my bicep, I clipped, “Was that necessary? I was saying something nice!”
“Just associating that sentence with pain.”
“What?!”
“Negative reinforcement. Don’t ever try to tear our friendship apart or I’ll hurt you.” This time, her smile was sweet. “Wake her up with a smile, Conor. Do us both a favor.”
Gaping at her now-retreating back, I rubbed a hand over my face before I returned to the bed and clambered onto the mattress.
Belly flopping beside her, I mumbled, “Star, two hours until landing.”
She grumbled her own dissent but slowly started to wake up—soft stretches of her toes, little wriggles of her arms as if she had an ache in them.
The gentle movements intrigued me enough that I pried my eyes open and tipped my head to the side to watch her awaken.
That was when I remembered how she’d sang to me…
This woman—capable of violence and so much cruelty—had serenaded me.
And she had no idea how beautiful her voice was. No idea whatsoever. But I did now.
Yet another of this woman’s secrets that I was starting to unravel.
I wouldn’t stop until I knew them all.
Until she was an open book.
“What time is it?”
“Too late and too early.”
“At the same time?”
I grunted.
She peeped at me with one eye. “How long until we land again?”