Throwing his phone on the bed, Aiden went back to burning trails into the carpet of his hotel room. He knew he had to answer the call eventually; Rafael had a right to get a progress update, but what was he supposed to say? Rafael wouldn’t understand. Aiden didn’t even understand it himself. He had tortured people without a second thought but when it came to Charlie, instead of snapping her neck, he had asked for a date.

“I’m going to have to call it off,” he told the empty room.

He had no choice. Each time he had tried to complete his task, it felt like something had come...