Chapter 17
The Hunter
Atlas
The laptop screen glowed in the dim hotel room.
It's sickening images playing like a highlight of hell.
My Kitten was on the other side of that lens, suffering and dealing with unimaginable horror.
She and Becca are caring for a woman who was beaten to a fucking pulp by Juan.
Hector's voice roaring through the outside camera a little earlier really put me in a fucking bad mood.
Ordering my girl to sleep in his bed tonight.
How dare he even think he can touch her!
I feel so helpless holed up here at this shitty hotel when I can see what's happening in that house of horrors.
As bad as things were over there, she was still safest in his apartment. Tonight we would kill and in two days, we would be at the party. Two days seemed like three months to me. It couldn't get here quick enough. I kept my eyes glued to the computer, watching and waiting for Hector to enter.
"Maybe you should turn that off." Jacob's voice came from behind me, stern but gentle.
My jaw was tight from watching the feed incessantly after our plans were made. The more I witnessed, the worse I felt.
"Atlas," Jacob warned, stepping closer.
"If you keep watching this shit, you're gonna lose your fucking mind. You know that."
"I can't help myself. I need to know what is happening to her." My voice was low and cold, but not meant for argument because he was right.
"You need to keep yourself sharp, Atlas. We've got two days before the party. If you go in blind with this kind of anger eating at you, you'll not only get yourself killed, but Kitlyn and the rest of us too."
"I closed the laptop with more force than necessary.
The table actually shook. My chest heaved as I pressed my fingers to my temples, trying to calm the storm boiling within me.
Jacob leaned on the wall, his arms crossed, watching me with those calculating eyes of his.
He'd been my partner long enough to know when I was about to snap.
"You're an assassin, not a fool. I know the last couple of hours have been hard watching that shit, but we are leaving here shortly. I need you to keep it together so we can carry out this mission and get the girls and our team back home safely."
I nodded, looking at him. "You're right.
Zach has his eyes on them, and he is synced with our cell phone speakers if something goes wrong before Wednesday night.
It's better that I didn't keep watching this shit.
" I breathed in deeply, clenching my jaw.
"He's going to rape her tonight, and there isn't a fucking thing I can do about it without getting us all killed, Jacob.
" I cracked my knuckles, feeling sick to my stomach.
"I feel so goddamn helpless right now. Not only have she and Becca been physically abused, but mentally as well. I just hope she's strong enough to handle whatever he has planned for her when he returns."
Jacob didn't flinch. He just let me vent, his silence grounding me more than any lecture ever could. He patted me on the back. "She is a strong woman, Atlas. She will be alright."
He smirked. "She survived you, didn't she?"
The corner of my mouth lifted in a slight smile. I said nothing, just held my breath for a minute. Finally, I exhaled.
"Let's get this show on the road. My girl is waiting."
Mexico City dressed itself in neon and noise, but underneath the surface, rot festered. Men like Hector's guests thrived here. They were parasites feeding on the broken, buying women as if they were cattle. Tonight, two of them would meet the devil and burn in hell.
House 1- Arturo Salazar
Arturo's villa sat in the old-money district.
Iron gates, tall hedges and stone walls screamed power.
We slipped inside effortlessly. Jacob cut the backyard cameras; I picked the locks on the kitchen door.
Within minutes, we were standing in his den.
He looked trashed, spread out on the leather couch, a cigar smoldering in one hand, a shot of whiskey in the other.
The surrounding walls were lined with photos—not of family, but of trophies.
Girls. Barely clothed. Bound. Bruised. Sad.
My stomach turned. We knew this was going to be a bloody mess, so we put the aprons over our shirts.
Before the asshole could lift his head, I jammed the barrel of my pistol into his mouth. His whiskey glass shattered on the floor. We removed him from the couch, and Jacob tied him to a chair with brutal efficiency. I pulled his hair, yanking his head back.
"Arturo Salazar," I said evenly, my voice colder than the steel in my hand. "You like buying women. Torturing them. Making their lives a living hell."
He tried to speak, gagging on the metal pressed against his teeth.
"Does Hector bring in more guards when he throws his fucking parties?"
Arturo's lips trembled.
"I-I know nothing about his security."
"You're full of shit. Does anyone else live in this house with you?"
His body trembled with fear as he shook his head.
"I live alone, and I told you, I know nothing."
Fucking liar!
I didn't like this maggot anyway. I pulled the weapon from between his lips. Driving my fist into his mouth, I listened to his teeth snap from the blow. His scream was muffled by the blood he choked on.
I moved in close, whispering in his ear. "Regardless, you're going to die tonight. How long it takes depends on how useful you make yourself."
His resolve broke fast. They always did when pain replaced their silence.
In less than ten minutes, we had everything.
He told us about the entire guest list, which we already knew about.
The floor plans, which we are privy to. The guy told us he didn't know the cartel that well; he only knows the routine because he's been to three of his parties in the past. He knew nothing about Hector's routine—that we have yet to see.
He hasn't been in the compound all day, but it really doesn't matter at this point.
We will be at the party, and that's when all hell's going to break loose.
Arturo spilled everything he knew, whimpering like a beaten dog the whole time. He was of no use to me any longer. All I saw before me was another coward who liked to hurt and abuse women. I pulled his hair back; the words hissed through my teeth.
"Tell me what you have done to the women you have used at Hector's over the years, and you better not fucking lie."
His eyes shifted between Jacob and me. He ran his tongue over the dried blood on his lips.
"Nothing terrible. I just, you know, fucked them like…regular." I threw my head back and laughed while scanning the pictures along the walls.
"Now we both know that's a fucking crock of shit, and because you lied, it's time to give you a taste of your own medicine."
I looked at Jacob. He was grinning from ear to ear.
"A little torture, boss?"
I nodded. Jacob pulled the packet of condoms from his pocket. I figure he hasn't had any pussy in a month because he's been with me the whole time. This man's asshole would do just fine. I released him from his confines. He sat in the chair with a dazed look on his face.
"Stand up and remove your fucking pants, underwear too." I ordered. He looked at me, terrified.
"Why do you want me to take my jeans off?"
I punched him on the side of the head.
"Just do what the fuck I told you to do, now!"
He stood up with tears in his eyes, almost falling on his ass because his legs were shaking so badly. He obeyed, standing in front of us naked from the waist down. I grabbed him roughly by his face and turned his head toward the wall where he proudly displayed his past victims in pictures.
God only knows where these women are now.
I wasn't sure if they were even alive.
"This is for all those women you hurt."
I pointed to my partner, who had already removed his pants, stroking himself. I almost laughed because the apron hung like a short skirt on him.
"This man here is going to make you squeal like a pig when he tears your insides apart with his fat cock. Bend over the chair and hold on to the sides tightly. He will not go easy once he's buried in your ass."
He begged us not to rape him. I didn't want to fucking hear it. An eye for an eye, motherfucker. "Please….please. I am sorry for what I've done. It's a sickness. I can't help myself. Please don't hurt me!"
I laughed in his face as I pushed him forward. He grabbed onto the sides of the chair, still sobbing and pleading. I tuned the maggot out. If anyone deserved this type of punishment, it was people like this fuckstick. Jacob stood behind him, pulling his hips even with his groin.
""Hold on tight, you pussy. I'm coming in hard."
Before the guy could protest, Jacob slipped on the lubricated condom and pushed into the guy's backside. His screams were feral, and Jacob hadn't even started yet. He wrapped his hand around the man's lips and continued to thrust into Arturo's body until he was completely buried.
"Shut the fuck up," Jacob hissed as he brutalized his ass.
I took this time to look around the living room, staying close by in case Arturo tried anything stupid.
The eyes of the women in the portraits looked haunted, empty…
terrified. As I listened to the monster screaming bloody murder while his ass was being shredded, my thoughts went out to the many women who passed through these walls.
I'm sure they went through hell.
He deserved the cruelty being inflicted on him. There would be no mercy before he died. I'm sure he didn't give a shit what his victims endured. When Jacob finally finished with him, I walked back over to the man's trembling body. He collapsed over the chair, his breath coming in quick gasps.
While my partner removed the condom and cleaned up, I sat the loser back onto the chair. He winced as his ass hit the cushion. His eyes were red and swollen.
He looked like hell, and I couldn't give two shits.
All good times have to come to an end, and this man's life would be over in about two minutes.
I ordered him to look at the photos on his wall while I broke all of his fingers on his left hand.
The sound of bones crunching was like listening to a soothing lullaby.
His screams filled the room, making my ears ring. He begged me to spare his life.
"Please, please…I will pay you anything you want if you let me live. I won't tell anyone, I promise."
I've had enough of this scumbag. I pressed the silencer against his forehead. "You'll never touch another girl again."
With one squeeze, blood gushed across the leather chair. What was left of his head slumped forward. Silence followed.
We left him there. Karma paid a visit, and this hollow piece of shit met the end he deserved. Before we left, all the pictures were removed from the wall and thrown into the burning fireplace, along with our aprons. I didn't torch the house because I wanted nothing to get back to Hector.
We left the same way we came in and headed to our second target—Diego Vargas.
Vargas lived in glass and chrome, a modern palace just on the outskirts of the city.
He's a banker by day, a predator by night.
We entered through the terrace, climbing the wall like two Marvel comic superheroes.
Inside, he wasn't alone. A Mexican girl around the age of nineteen lay drugged across his bed, limp and half-conscious.
His belt was still undone when I pressed my knife against his throat.
He froze, eyes wide, pissing sweat through his Tee shirt. Jacob lifted the girl from the bed, gently laying her on the floor out of sight. Then he zip-tied Vargas and shoved him into a chair. The man was shaking and crying.
My voice was low and controlled.
"You don't know who I am, but I know who you are; so begging won't save you."
Another one who stammered about money, his connections, how he was protected…blah, blah, blah.
Jacob backhanded him, making his head jolt to the side.
"You like attending Hector's parties and buying women you can use and abuse whenever you feel like it. Well, that ends tonight." I hissed through clenched teeth.
He started wheezing. "Please. I'll give you whatever you want. I have plenty of money. Just name your price."
I crouched in front of him, holding the knife in my hand. I traced the line of his jaw with the blade, down to his throat…just enough to leave a superficial incision. He whimpered.
"You're a predator," I murmured.
"But now you're my prey."
I slid the blade across his cheek, carving a jagged smile that would never heal. He shrieked, thrashing against the ties. Jacob stuffed a rag in his mouth to stifle his screams.
We didn't want the young lady on the floor to wake and witness his murder, so we silenced him.
This one was going to be quick and dirty.
It was getting late, and we needed to get Yara to the hotel, so she could take the girl back to my place, and I needed some shut-eye.
I watched him squirm for a long moment, then I drove the blade straight into his chest; twisting it until his body slumped over lifeless in the chair.
Jacob wrapped the unconscious girl in a blanket and effortlessly lifted her into his arms. We headed back to the SUV, laying our cargo on the back seat. Once Yara arrived at the hotel, she would be home in no time.
Jacob looked at me grinning.
"Both dead," he said. "Now we show up as them."
I looked out the windshield, happy this part of the mission was over. My pulse was steady; my rage sharpened like a blade's edge. Wednesday night couldn't come fast enough.
Hector's party would be his last.