Chapter Forty-Five
Present - Ryder
I OPEN MY eyes to find a woman I’ve only seen in a picture once, icing her hand next to Stefan. Soraya Catalina Mesias. His wife. There’s no trace of the amusement and delicate fire that was captured in Agent Blackhall’s photo of her. The only thing I see in front of me now is a cold-blooded killer, waiting to get her next hit of pain.
What else could I expect from a woman who was raised to be evil?
Beside them stands another man, dressed in a suit, tailored well, but not finely enough to stand out. With how many men have ended up dead recently, Stefan’s ranks must be running low, forcing him to bring someone new into the fold. It strikes me as odd that he, too, wears a suit.
All speculation comes to a halt when I notice Evie next to me, tied down and completely defenseless. The broken skin above her right eye, where blood trails down the side of her face, matches the ice pack that’s wrapped around the Queen of Hell’s left hand.
Ropes wrap around Evie’s entire body, keeping her restricted and immobile. Even though we’re probably going to die, even though it’s all going to be my fault when we do, I find comfort in the fact that Evie fought until the very end. They saw her as a worthy opponent, one that needed to be tied down, and they never broke her spirit.
“He’s finally awake.” Stefan approaches, playing with the snake that’s wrapped between his fingers. His face is bruised and bandaged, from where my fists had flown. I let a smug smile spread across my face, and a second later, feel the jeweled eyes of the snake split my skin apart, as Stefan lands his first punch.
Spitting the blood out of my mouth, I tip my face back to him. “Is that all you got?”
My face cracks to the side, back and forth. Stefan pulls out the dagger, sticking the tip into my chest and dragging it down the center of me, slicing skin as it goes. Clenching my teeth, I breathe through the pain –– or try to. Blood tickles my stomach as it flows.
“Let me ask my questions while he’s still alert.” The man kneels down in front of me, not flinching as his pant leg lands in the small pool of blood collecting in front of my chair. “How much does Lincoln know?”
Lincoln . Not Agent Blackhall or even just Blackhall. There’s familiarity in the way he says his name. “Nothing.”
“Well, I just don’t believe that.”
“Who’s Blackhall to you?”
“I’m the one asking questions.” The man shakes his head, like he’s disappointed. Standing slowly, he steps over to Evie, gently tipping her head back. “And I expect answers.”
“Hey! HEY!” I scream, needing to get his attention off of her and back onto me. His thumb drags over her chin, and using all my might, I pull against the ropes that hold me down, bucking in my chair, but they don’t give. “DON’T FUCKING TOUCH HER!”
“I’m going to do a lot worse than touch her, unless you tell me exactly what Lincoln knows about Stefan’s operation.”
“You want to hurt someone?” I spit, blood and saliva landing on his cheek. “Come on over, big guy.”
Slowly, he wipes the spit off of his face, tsking. “I really wish you hadn’t done that.”
Faster than lightning he backhands Evie, her face slamming toward me, and she stirs with a whimper. I’d like nothing more than to go out a man of honor, but as I see the welt lifting on the side of her face, that wasn’t already bleeding, I know it won’t be true.
There is no way out of this, and I’m going to give them everything they want if it means saving her an ounce of pain. My head hangs forward. “Blackhall’s figured out where most of your fronts are, how you’ve been cleaning your money, but he’s smart. Planning to gather everything together and take you down in one fell swoop.”
“What else?”
“He didn’t share anything else with me.”
“Who are his witnesses?”
I shake my head. “He’s not stupid enough to give me names.”
“Where is he operating out of?”
My conscience screams. “A shitty apartment off West Gandy Boulevard.” This isn’t right, giving him up.
“It’s time he’s dealt with permanently, Wolf.” Stefan snarls. “I thought you had his movements covered?”
Wolf? The name clangs through me as I rear back, looking at the man in a new light. Blackhall’s partner. His only family. And the mole. The twisted agent who’s been playing the other side, helping Stefan get away, again and again. Lincoln never saw it coming, blinded by his own loyalty. The knowledge of the betrayal, and his own oversight, will kill him, if they don’t put a bullet in his head first.
“I thought I did,” Wolf snaps. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Blackhall considers you his only family.” My chest hurts for the man I’ve only recently begun to know, a good man.
“I’ll make it a clean death.” Not a trace of regret in his eyes.
“I’m getting bored over here. The tattoo boy obviously doesn’t know anything valuable,” Soraya hums as she comes to Stefan’s side. “Soon they’ll all be dead, anyway. Don’t let their futile knowledge ruin my mood.”
“Is someone hungry?” Stefan grabs her by the neck, dragging his tongue up the column of her throat and face. Her eyes roll back inside her head and I almost vomit, grateful that Evie is still unconscious and not being forced to witness this exhibitionism.
“Surely the guard dogs can go for a walk and we can have some privacy.” Soraya leans closer to Stefan’s ear, before stroking him over his pants. “You know I find pleasure in the kill.”
“Yes.” Stefan groans, the tension in his shoulders relaxing slightly as he waves his men out of the room. “It’s why you were gifted to me.”
“Don’t come in if you hear screams,” Soraya calls after the retreating men, before noticing my face and laughing. She smiles at Wolf, looking him up and down. “You can stay.”
This woman really means to fuck in the pools of our blood.
I take advantage of the moment to memorize Evie’s face, the soft skin that’s usually ripe with color rather than bruises. That slightly upturned nose she’d lift in the air when she crossed her arms. That head of dirty blonde hair that has owned me since I saw it emerge from the car. I commit it all to memory, even her vanilla scent that isn’t as strong as usual, but I inhale it anyway, sorting through the blood, dirt, and sweat it’s mixed into.
I’ll let them take their sickness out on me first, shield Evie from as much as I can in the only way available. Stefan approaches, flipping his dagger as his eyes leave a trail from my head down to my feet, likely deciding where to start with his fun. My chest still stings from where he sliced me, but I survived it. This time, I’ll keep his attention long enough that he kills me.
“Is this what you have to resort to in order to get your dick up?”
Stefan’s jaw tics. “I’m going to start with your fingers first.”
Wolf and Soraya watch on, as Stefan reaches for my hand, struggling to get me to unfurl my fists, until I realize there’s no point in fighting it. Letting go of my fingers, I lean into it, ready to breathe through the agony. It’ll be like any other pain, just…worse.
Stefan smiles at my acceptance. I meet his gaze, banishing the fear and ensuring that determination and challenge are all he sees. Stefan will not break me. He can take my fingers and my limbs and my tongue and my eyes, but he can never take the strength that was injected into my heart by the beautiful soul next to me.
The dagger glints underneath the fluorescent light as Stefan cocks it back before launching it toward my hand–
“Wait!” Soraya yells, halting his movement, the dagger less than an inch above my fingers. “She should be awake to see this.”