Chapter Ten
Dragon
T he bitchier he gets, the more alive I feel. Like his attitude problem is an injection in my vein—hot, electric, intoxicating. I want to get drunk off his anger and taste the rudeness on his tongue.
“We need information,” Katana says, his voice cutting through my addicted haze.
I step closer to Cove until I’m towering over him and he has to tilt his head back to see me. Grabbing hold of his jaw in my grip, I forcefully turn his head to the side so I have access to his ear. He sucks in a sharp gasp when my lips brush over the shell of his ear.
“I’m coming for you tonight.” I nip at his earlobe. “Be ready.”
He squirms out of my hold and I let him go. My dick is hard as fuck in my jeans. It’s such a confusing sensation—to be turned on and not feel ashamed by it. Instead, it’s invigorating. I crave more of his touch and scent and taste.
His face is bright red and he won’t meet my gaze. I rake my stare over his body, noting the state of his cock as well. Hard. Aching. Desperate for release.
The feeling is mutual, Baby Prospect.
Satisfied by his response, I saunter over to where Katana waits, eyes narrowed on me. I’m behaving erratically—well, erratic for me—so I know he’s worried. But, for the first time in a long time, I feel somewhat normal. Human.
“Cut him loose,” I tell Katana.
Max Corsetti stiffens. I’m sure he’s planning his escape. The fucker isn’t going anywhere. It’s just more fun when they try to run away.
As soon as his bindings and gag are removed, Max darts a quick look to the door. Cove stands in front of it, arms crossed over his chest, looking impressively formidable. I’m fascinated by the fact that Cove is smaller than me but doesn’t cower like most people do. It’s like…he wants to fight with the dragon.
“Time to talk,” I say, pulling out my Chris Reeve Green Beret combat knife from its sheath on my belt. I squat beside the filthy mattress. “That is, while you still have a tongue.”
Max’s eyes widen in comical horror. He has no idea all the clever ways I can prolong his torture. I once peeled all the skin off a man’s feet when we needed information. He howled the worst when I carved around his ankle bones. Fucker passed out by the time I made it up past his knees. Max must sense the violence thrumming through me because he scrambles backward as though his escape is something attainable.
He’s never leaving this property. His bones will turn to ash in the slaughterhouse firepit long after I’ve stolen every last scream he has in him.
“Reno.” I grin viciously at him. “You heard of Loki and his crew?”
He pales and shakes his head. “N-No, man. You got the wrong guy.”
Katana lets out an amused snort. “Right.”
“No, Corsetti, we have the right man. If you can even call yourself that. Soon, you’ll be pissing your panties like a little bitch with nightmares.” I swipe the smile off my face, replacing it with something far more sinister. “Spoiler alert: I’m the nightmare.”
Max rises to his feet, still backing away from me. He won’t get far. Three against one. His odds are impossible.
“W-What do y-you want from me? Is this about Truly?”
I don’t know who the fuck Truly is, so I shrug. “This is about you fucking over Loki and his brothers. We both know you know exactly what you did.”
“You want money? I have it. Lots of it.” Max’s gaze drifts to the door again. “Whatever you want.”
“K, do I give a fuck about money?”
“Nope,” Katana says. “You do like your boat, though.”
“It’s a bitchin’ boat.”
“Please,” Max begs. “Whatever you want. It’s yours.”
“Answers, Corsetti. I want answers. Where were you headed to?”
He nods up and down in such vehemence, it reminds me of a cartoon character. “East. Tennessee.”
That fucking state is a trigger word for me. Fury bubbles inside me, deep in my gut, and spreads like a contagion. I prowl toward Max, who’s trying desperately to put distance between us.
He won’t get away.
They never do.
“Do tell. What’s in Tennessee for you?”
He swallows, taking another step back. “Just a place to lie low.”
“ Who was your contact there?” I stalk his every movement, matching each step with one of my own. “I want names or I will start cutting off body parts until you squeal.”
“Fuck, dude, you don’t have to use your knife. I said I’d tell you what you want to know.” He holds up both palms in defense. “Jesus. Chill.”
“Name.”
“It’s this guy my dad knows.”
“I want a name,” I growl.
“I don’t know his real name, just the alias he gave m—”
I throw the knife hard and it embeds itself in his palm. He lets out a pained shriek. Blood gushes from the wound, running down his forearm and dripping from his elbow.
“You have two choices,” I bite out, sliding another knife from my belt. “You can pull it out and try to defend yourself, but that’s going to hurt like a bitch the second you remove it. What’s the second choice, K?”
“Give you the name and shut the fuck up.”
“Okay, okay, okay,” Max hisses, his entire body trembling. “I’ll tell you, man. Just keep your knife over there.”
“Baby Prospect,” I call out over my shoulder. “Bring me my knife.”
Cove lets out an annoyed sigh, but he stomps over to us, passing by me to get to Corsetti. Max shakes his head at Cove, trying to keep him back, but Cove is quick. He yanks the knife out of Max’s hand with no warning.
“Fuuuuck,” Max bellows, clutching his palm to his chest. The blood quickly soaks the front of his shirt.
“Three. Two. One—”
“I already told you what I know, man. The name he gave me is Victor. Victor, uh, Knight. There. A last name. Are you fucking happy? That’s who I was going to see.”
Cove glances my way, an eyebrow arched in question. My eyes drop to his soft lips. He’s a damn distraction.
“What’s this Victor prick in the business of? If he’s willing to take you in, he must be a piece of shit.” I take a threatening step toward them. “Tick-tock, Corsetti.”
Cove’s body tenses as I prowl closer. When I made my promise to find him later, I didn’t think it through much. All I know is I need him beneath me. I want to inhale him and taste him and feel him.
“Nothing anymore,” Max hisses. “He’s restructuring or some bullshit.”
A niggling feeling tugs at my mind, trying to make me piece together this puzzle rather than losing myself to the violence of torturing the sonofabitch.
I have to get information.
The whole point of fetching his loser ass was to get answers.
“What did he use to do?” Cove asks, his tone turning dark.
Max attempts to back away from my approaching frame, but Katana has slipped behind him like a shadow. His back bumps against Katana’s chest as Cove seizes his bicep. The fucker isn’t going anywhere.
“Answer BP’s question,” I growl, spittle landing on Max’s face as I tower over him. “Now.”
“He videoed sex shit.”
My blood runs cold and the muscle in my neck tightens as I grit my teeth. “What does this guy look like?”
“Knight?”
A shudder ripples down my spine. “Tall?”
“He’s a giant.” Max nods rapidly. “They call him—”
“Night Giant,” I snarl, finishing for him.
“Yeah, that’s him. Can you let me go now? I told you his name and I can even tell you where he’s at.”
Yeah, Arkansas, not Tennessee, dumbass.
“We know exactly where that motherfucker is hiding out,” I growl in a deep, threatening tone, “which makes you one hundred percent useless to us.”
Katana senses my pending explosion seconds before Cove does, because he tries to stop me with a sharp shake of his head.
You can’t stop a volcano once it’s erupted.
Fiery hot lava and ash are going to consume everything.
Total obliteration.
With no warning, I drive my blade into Max’s gut. He lets out a shocked gargling sound. Before he has a chance to recover, I yank my knife out and hit him again, this time higher.
I want to pierce his organs.
All of them.
One by one.
I’m vaguely aware of the murmured words of both Katana and Cove, but I’m too fixated on my target to listen.
This fucker is running to the filthiest human on this planet.
Night Giant.
Grabbing hold of Max’s bloody shirt, I jerk him forward and toss him to the dirty floor. He cries out and starts to crawl away, but I’m the predator.
He’s weak, dying prey.
Mine to destroy.
Flipping him onto his back, I straddle his waist and rain my knife down over and over and over. Tearing and scraping and splattering. So many sounds coming from a human who can no longer breathe because I’ve turned his lungs to hamburger meat.
Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab.
I punch my blade through every piece of flesh I can, shredding his skin and making a violent, bloody mess of this worthless dickhead.
Over and over and over.
There’s a ringing in my ears that deafens me to anything but that sound. I stab Corsetti until he’s unrecognizable. I’m not sure how much time has passed, but he hasn’t been breathing for a while.
Still, I could go all night.
When I go to carve his eyeballs out, a hand grips my shoulder that’s soaked with blood.
“That’s enough, Dragon,” Cove murmurs, his sweet voice cutting through the ringing in my ears. “Katana is going to take care of the body.”
I blink a few times to chase away the daze. Max’s skin is cool to the touch, which means I’ve been at this a while. Suddenly, I’m overwhelmed by exhaustion.
“Come on,” Cove grunts, tugging on my arm. “Shower at the clubhouse. Prez’s ol’ lady will shit bricks if you go into the big house dripping Max meat all over the place.”
Hadley would murder me.
Well, she’d try.
And then I’d tell her to back the fuck off.
Prez would step in and all hell would break loose.
“Yeah,” I mutter. “Not looking to get my ass kicked tonight.”
Cove lets out a bark of a laugh. “Seriously? You actually think anyone would try to whip your psycho ass?”
I don’t register his words, just admire the way he says them. How his lips pout when he speaks but then curl into a smirk that makes me desperate to devour. My body thrums with the urge to strip him and fuck him and own him.
“Whatever you’re thinking,” Cove says, shaking his head, “don’t. I’m not interested in whatever your crazy head is cooking up right now.”
My grin is wide and vicious.
“It’s not like I’ll give you a choice, Baby Prospect.” I swipe my palm over my face, trying to smear off some of the blood. “We both know I’ll get what I want.”
Something flashes in his blue eyes, but it’s not fear. It’s something else entirely. Interest. Intrigue. Lust. I see it and I’m starved for it.
Before I can latch onto it, he storms out of the slaughterhouse ahead of me. I stalk after him, scenting his tantalizing masculinity somehow through the metallic blood smell.
He barely makes it across the yard before I grab his arm, twisting him around to face me. His blue eyes widen fractionally when he sees my ravenous expression. A tiny mewl escapes him as I seize his jaw in my bloody grip. Succulent pink lips part, just aching to be tasted.
“I don’t understand it, but I need it,” I whisper over his lips. “You need it too.”
“Awfully sure of yourself.”
“I see the way you look at me.”
He scoffs. “You’re covered in blood and giving me the ‘fuck-me’ eyes that are frankly kind of terrifying. That’s how I look at you—”
His words die as my lips attack his. I eat them right out of his mouth, instead replacing them with my tongue and teeth and needy growls. He lets me own him with a hungry, claiming kiss.
“S-Shower,” he croaks out, “and then…”
He doesn’t have to say any more.
And then he’s mine.
All fucking mine.