Chapter 7 #3
Draco’s attention was fixated on Holland, oblivious to me creeping up behind him.
In a swift and calculated move, I snatched her purse strap and expertly wrapped it around his neck.
With a merciless yank, I pulled him off her and tightened my grip, relishing the sight of his hands clawing at the fabric cutting off his air supply.
I applied more pressure, tipping his head back.
It rested against my upper thigh as his mouth opened wide with terror and he gasped, helpless against my vengeful wrath.
“Are you okay?” As I gazed at Holland, I couldn’t help but wonder if she would remember me from our childhood. But as her expression remained blank, it dawned on me that she might not have recognized me at all. Our encounter had been brief … but intense.
I was losing my fucking mind. No way could it really be Samantha. Not after I had … This woman was probably a relative, and I owed her for what I’d done. Clearing my thoughts, I pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the present moment with Holland.
I held out my hand, not expecting her to take it.
People like me didn’t offer help, and people like her shouldn’t trust it.
But she did. Tentatively. That small, scraped hand slipped into mine, and something twisted in my gut.
I told myself it was nothing. Just control. Just leverage. But it lingered.
Her focus flitted in my direction before it locked on Draco, panic shadowing her features. “He’s evil,” she warned, her tone a mixture of fear and urgency. “Whatever you do, don't cross him.”
I chuckled softly, unable to resist the irony. Little did she know she was giving information to the devil himself. If she understood, she might have reconsidered her choice of words.
“I’ve got this. Get to your car and lock the doors. I’ll bring your purse to you when I’m finished here.”
She nodded, apparently unwilling to argue with me. As she scurried away, I gave the leather strap another tug, then loosened it enough to allow him to breathe.
Once Holland was out of earshot, I said, “I heard what you said about her using a different name. What’s her real name?” I might as well make good use of my time while I had the son of a bitch at a disadvantage.
“Fuck you,” he snarled.
I leaned down closer to his ear. “Let me make this perfectly clear. If I catch you near my bar or associating with that woman again, I’ll flay you to the bone, then toss you to the ravenous coyotes, all while laughing hysterically at your bad luck.
I’m a sick motherfucker, and if you don’t believe me, then I look forward to showing you exactly who I am. ”
A gentle breeze coasted through the leaves, and I waited for him to acknowledge what I’d said.
“Are you going to leave, or do I need to start the fun?” With my free hand, I reached for the cross around my neck. I slid it over my head, then tugged on the edge of the blade with my teeth.
An evil sneer tugged at the corners of my mouth as I gave in to the fierce desire to inflict pain on him. The tip of the blade grazed his cheek and down the side of his neck. “I always show up prepared for a good time.”
I furrowed my brows, pretending to ponder as the grating sound of Draco's incessant whining drilled into my skull. The urge to scream and slam my fist against his head reared up inside me, but I maintained a cool facade.
I chuckled. “I’ll give you one last chance to leave, but you’re not going toward the parking lot. You’re going to run deeper into the woods. If you even glance back at me, you can say goodbye to your eyeballs.”
I removed the purse strap from around his neck and shoved him. Draco lurched forward, face-planting into the ground.
“Get up and run, you piece of shit. You’ve got to the count of ten.
” I bared my teeth and began to count, my grin curled like a serpent as I watched him scramble to his feet, panic etched on his features.
With a desperate gasp, he bolted into the dark woods, the shadows swallowing him whole as the branches clawed at his fleeing form.
I had no doubt that he would foolishly try to sneak up on me, but I knew every inch of these woods.
The moon vanished behind a thick curtain of clouds, consuming every inch of the trees in darkness. All the muscles in my body tensed as my predatory instincts surged, eagerly anticipating his next move. First, I had to return to Holland and ensure he didn’t show up for her again.
As soon as he was out of sight, I sprinted back to the parking lot and Holland’s car.
“Open up,” I demanded.
The lock clicked, and I opened the driver’s side and gave Holland her purse. “Scoot over. I’m driving.”
Holland scrambled over the console and into the passenger seat while I slid in behind the wheel.
“He’s coming. We have to go.” I pointed at him running from the tree line toward us. The stupid prick didn’t behave well, but I hadn’t expected him to.
Holland shook as she desperately searched for the car key in her purse.
She finally managed to retrieve it, her fingers struggling to hold onto the small metal object.
Without hesitation, I jammed the key into the ignition and revved the engine, tires screeching as I drove us out of the parking lot with a surge of adrenaline-fueled speed.
“He’ll get the license plate.” Holland’s voice was thin and laced with fear. She pressed herself against the door, her shoulders rigid. She had no reason to trust me, and she was smart to be afraid.
A protective growl rumbled from my throat. No one else was allowed to fuck with her. She didn’t know it yet, but she was mine. “Let him. I’ll be waiting.”
“Who are you?”
“I’ll tell you but let me make sure he’s not following us first.”
She fell silent as I navigated around the club building and into the back alleyways. We didn’t need to go far to find safety, and from this location I would see him coming a mile away.
Once I parked, I turned to her, searching. I hesitated, looking for any flicker of recognition, but there was nothing.
I studied her, a whirlwind of questions and thoughts consuming me like a relentless storm. If it was truly Samantha, then the way she was sitting calmly in front of me was beyond belief, and I was desperate for answers. No, I didn’t simply want them—I needed them.
A simmering, deadly rage churned in my gut like sour milk on a hot day.
My mother whispered inside my head as I stared at Holland, adding salt to the open wounds. That bitch would have to wait. I shoved the thoughts back into the dark recesses of my soul and focused on finding out exactly who the woman in front of me really was.
This was the first time we’d been face-to-face, and she was even more stunning than when I’d watched her from her closet.
Images of her perky tits and the curves of her toned ass while she walked to the shower flickered through my mind.
She could never know that I was in her house … or that I planned to return.
Holland’s fiery red strands cascaded over her cheeks, partially hiding her features.
But even through the veil of hair, her beauty was striking—porcelain skin dusted with freckles, a delicate nose, and piercing blue eyes that seemed to see right through me.
As I sat there, I tried to decide if this was the same girl from my childhood.
If it was, then that meant somehow, she’d survived, and I struggled to wrap my head around how. There had been so much … blood.
I clenched my jaw, trying to suppress the urge to speak. Every fiber of my being wanted to demand answers, but I knew patience was key. Torn between pressing her for information and waiting for her to open up on her own, I fought against the onslaught of voices in my mind.
Suddenly, protectiveness for her consumed me, overshadowing any other concerns I may have had at the moment.
I’d violated her space, her privacy—marked her without her knowing.
But the second someone else touched her with the idea of harming her, every shred of possession in me snapped into action.
She might not be mine yet, but I’d made my decision.
No one else got to break her. Yet, amid this sense of duty, there lingered another issue that demanded attention.
The question of who Holland really was and why she was here.
Before I could even consider dealing with that shitshow, I needed to unravel another mystery.
“Who is he and what the fuck does he want with you?”