Drink Me

78. OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS

At that, both Riley and Alice froze on the spot as the last of Riley's hopes vanished within those five simple letters, so unfamiliar and disturbing on Aidan's lips.

But Alice quickly recovered from her imperceptible shock and smiled back. "Why would you?"

"Because that's your real name, Miss Thompson," Aidan replied matter-of-factly. "And you can quit the accent too. Although, amazing interpretation," he added with a small hand clap.

At those words, the shine in Alice's eyes changed and any traces of kindness on her face disappeared, revealing her true self behind the mask.

Her dark orbs were now daunting in a captivating way, and Riley could see Aidan react to their magnetism as his lips parted and his face twisted in a surprised and confused frown.

Alice's naked feet moved silently on the wooden floor as she took slow steps back to stand behind the desk, not breaking eye contact with Aidan. "Was I really good or were you simply too dumb?" she asked, in her thick Yorkshire accent that added to Aidan's surprise.

After a blink, the man's mouth twitched to the side in a nervous sneer. The two observed each other for a split second then Aidan started to move towards her but before Riley could do anything to stop him, Alice reached inside the drawer next to her and pulled out a small pistol; she aimed it straight at Aidan who halted in his tracks and held his hands up.

"Step back," Alice said calmly, and Aidan complied. "And I guess this answers my question," she continued, moving her gun as evidence. "A clever person would never leave a loaded gun so easily accessible to a spy. You should have gotten rid of me as soon as you found out."

Then her head tilted as her eyes became more curious on Aidan. "But you couldn't, right, baby? The best you could do was to have Caroline babysit me all night, to make sure I couldn't do any damage." She chuckled lightly.

Riley observed Alice's grin grow meaner with every word, but Aidan's eyes were firmly on her, his jaw tense as a mix of sorrow and disgust curved his lips.

But Alice wasn't done. "It must burn to know she was right from the start about me. At least, one with some brains." She rolled her eyes. "Well, until Riley fucked them thoroughly."

And with that, her evil laugh resonated in the room.

But Aidan didn't react. Other than his jaw twitching, there were no signs of infuriation. He lowered his hands, and a smile grew on his lips as he took a slow step closer to Alice.

And in that moment, as Aidan walked towards the loaded gun with a fascinated look on his face, Riley realised just how perfect his cousin and Emily were for each other.

Two wicked creatures that stopped at nothing.

Two vicious animals fighting for control.

But Alice didn't seem to think the same. She squeezed her hand tighter around the gun that was now pointing straight to Aidan's forehead and the man stopped walking.

"Get something to tie his hands," she ordered without taking her eyes off Aidan and Riley gladly obeyed.

With Aidan taken care of and the loaded gun safely away from a displeased Alice's hands, he would have had time to explain to her what had happened and to contact Smith.

Not all iss lost, after all.

But as Riley headed out of the office, Aidan scoffed. "Aw, that's sweet," he said. "But I think you should know your boyfriend is the one who sold you out."