11. Xander
CHAPTER 11
Xander
“ W here are you going?” a deep voice asks in the darkness.
I turn, spotting Cyrus leaning against the wall. “I gotta take care of something.”
“You sound like you’re about to get into trouble.” He pushes off the wall and steps closer, his burned face illuminated by the moonlight. “I like trouble.”
Opening the closet hall, I pull out my coat. “I don’t think your wife wants you risking your life. I don’t have a plan, Cy. Just the blood pumping in my veins and a thirst for vengeance.”
Cyrus pulls out a silver zippo and flicks it open and closed. “I live for vengeance. I’m assuming we’re going after those sanctimonious preacher types from that backwoods cult?”
I nod, but no way am I letting this man take a risk that has nothing to do with him. “I don’t know if I’ll make it back, Cy. I can’t risk Azadeh losing you. Lord knows that girl has lost enough.”
“My woman has taken risks her whole life to protect others. She’ll understand.” Cyrus smiles. “She’ll probably gobble my dick like it’s the fuckin’ elixir of life when I tell her I helped to kill some religious zealots. There’s nothing my girl hates more than clergy. I can either ride with you or follow you in my car.”
We drive in silence until we reach the clearing. “We gotta park here. Any closer, and they’ll hear the truck. These fuckers have snipers, and the place is wired. You gotta be quiet, Cy. Like a fuckin’ church mouse.”
Cyrus presses his hand to his heart as if he’s wounded. “I’m fuckin’ quiet.”
Cyrus Porter is many things, but quiet isn’t one of them.
We get out of the truck, both of us dressed in dark clothes.
I rummage through my duffle in the cab and toss him a balaclava. “Put this on.”
Cyrus twirls the fabric on his finger. “This shit cramps my style.” He points to his face, covered in scar tissue. “Look at this mug. Why would I want to cover this handsome ass face?”
“I don’t want them fucking tracing anything back to us, you idiot.” I toss him a pair of gloves. “Put these on too. Azadeh said you’re good at this shit, but here you are, wanting to go in guns blazing.”
Cyrus lights the zippo. “More like flames blazing.”
I pull on my holster before securing my hunting knife to my hip. Come Hell or high water, Gabriel is going to meet his maker. Tonight.
The lights are off in the house. How the fuck do these animals sleep so soundly when they commit every fucking atrocity known to humankind? I’m not sure who’s worse, Sonya or Gabriel. The fuckers should be out searching for their missing children, but they only care about themselves.
I grip the window and relief washes over me to discover it’s unlocked. You’d think the fuckers would secure Maggie’s window. Cyrus and I climb, tiptoeing through Margarete’s room and down the hall. My hand shakes as I grip the frigid handle and slowly open the main bedroom door.
The fucking pigs are sound asleep. No worry in the world about their two kids, who are missing from their home. I gesture to Cyrus to muffle Gabriel. I have something special planned for that fucker. But first, I need to take care of this vapid bitch who has the nerve to call herself a mother.
I slowly peel the blanket off her and pull out my knife. In one practiced move, I lift her nightgown and stab her in her worthless cunt. She’s shocked awake, but before she can scream, I pull my gun and place the barrel in her mouth.
I smile as her body shakes and blood seeps from her pussy. “Decades ago, you helped those fuckers who raped my mother get away with it. You ruined her life because all you thought about was yourself. I might have forgiven you and chalked it up to the stupidity of youth and the indoctrination of a poisonous religion, but then you held down your own daughter and let that piece of shit sharing your bed brand her. Did you know he wanted to fuck your daughter? Is that why you had no issue with the branding? Did you know that he slipped into her room late at night after he drugged her and touched her? The fucker wasn’t stupid enough to penetrate her. Too risky. But that piece of shit has a thing for underage children. Doesn’t have to be girls. As long as they’re young, that fucker wants a taste.”
I lean forward, pull the knife from her pussy, and stab her repeatedly in the heart until crimson flows like a river. “Rest in piss, you pathetic bitch.”
Leaving Sonya in a bloody heap, I walk around the bed to stand over Gabriel. This fucker won’t go down as easily. Sonya was as guilty as sin, but Gabriel was the cause. Men like Gabriel are viruses that rage through everyone they touch, infecting them with the vilest illness.
My mother lost everything she held dear because of men like him.
I lost my mother at sixteen because of men like him.
Maggie has never lived a full life because of men like him.
“Turn around, fucker,” I demand.
Cyrus holds the gun against his temple, ensuring he remains quiet.
I kick Gabriel until he’s on his back and pull the zip tie from my back pocket. Grabbing his wrists, I tie them together. “Keep quiet, motherfucker, or my friend over there will paint these white walls with your brains.”
The thing about these religious zealots is that, in their final moments, all they care about is clinging to their pathetic existence a little longer. That’s how you know they’re not true believers. Someone who genuinely believed in the bullshit they preach about God would be at peace with meeting their maker.
Then again, a man like Gabriel, who has broken every fuckin’ commandment, knows he’s secured a one-way ticket to Hell. Men like Gabriel deserve to burn in the scorching flames of the Underworld.
But I don’t believe in Hell, so I’m gonna make sure he gets my version of damnation.
I raise my hand toward Cyrus. “Give me your zippo.”
Cyrus doesn’t question me; he simply hands it over.
“Pull the fucker’s pants down.”
Cyrus laughs as he follows my instructions. “Are you gonna do what I think you’re gonna do? Man, you might be sicker than me.”
I smile at Gabriel as I flick the zippo and present him with a flame. “I’m pretty sure the first lick of fire will be on your dick.” I turn to Cyrus. “Gag the motherfucker.”
Cyrus follows instructions without question. I guess it was a good thing he came with me because Gabriel would’ve been able to get away while I dealt with that bitch, Sonya. I didn’t think all this through. As soon as I saw that brand on Margarete, I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I didn’t kill those who hurt her instead of protecting her.
Disgust churns in my gut as I lift Gabriel’s flaccid cock and hold the flame to the tip. Gabriel lurches and struggles to escape, but Cyrus holds him to the bed by sitting on his chest.
I look at Cyrus, seeing the illumination in his eyes. The psycho is hard. He shrugs and smiles sheepishly, pointing to the burn marks on his face. “I’ve got issues.”
I hold the flame to Gabriel’s flesh and burn his dick. It’s fucked up watching someone burn. His cock turns red, but then the flames eat at his skin until blisters rise like bubbling cheese. Finally, the flesh turns black and white, imitating human leather. As his dick burns, I grab his right hand and kneel on his forearm to hold him down.
“What are you doing?” Cyrus asks. “We should probably get the fuck out of here.”
“One more thing.”
Gabriel’s arm twitches as I place the tip of my hunting knife on his wrists. He convulses as I push and pull the knife into his flesh, severing his hand, which tumbles to the floor. Bending, I pick up the amputated hand and shove it into my jacket pocket. “You can get up now, Cy.”
I turn to Gabriel, adjusting the silencer on my gun. “I would’ve enjoyed torturing you further, but time isn’t on my side. It’s unfortunate. Goodbye, Gabriel. Burn in Hell.” I aim the gun at his head and fire, leaving brain and blood splattered around him like a fucked up halo.
“We gonna burn the house?” Cyrus asks.
I shake my head. “Nah, that will cause them to get up. We’re gonna leave these fuckers here.”
“Won’t they report this?”
I shake my head again. “Nope. They’ll just increase security. What I did was callous. I didn’t think it through. I just fucked a whole community of women for vengeance on behalf of two people who didn’t ask for it.”
Cyrus slaps me on the back. “That’s how you know someone matters. When you’ll burn it all down for them. You don’t need to fuckin’ save everyone. You never will, no matter how hard you try. There’s a lot of fuckin’ evil in the world. Azadeh already contacted The Sinners about The Covenant. Max, Alexis, and Mikhail know about this piece of shit cult and what they do to women and children. Don’t worry, bro, those fuckers will make sure it’s all burned down.”
I nod. If anyone can take down these pieces of shit, it’s those three men. They were also born into a heaping pile of shit, forged by the Russian Mafia and forced to endure endless purgatory. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”