Chapter 36
36
Raze
M y father was a despicable man, capable of many atrocities that would have inevitably landed him in prison had he not found an early grave. But there was one place that even he drew the line, and that was disrespecting a woman.
If he detected so much as a sliver of attitude from me or Bane toward our mother, he was quick to correct it. Even when he was spat on and cursed by the women in town for the things he was forced to do for the Syndicate, he bit his tongue and took the lashing without argument.
I’d like to think I’m nothing like him—however delusional that may be—but that’s one mindset I can’t disagree with.
So, when I heard my useless, trust fund asshat assistant attempted to drug the Ellery girl, I couldn’t help but see red. Though she’s a being born from my worst nightmare, she still deserves the basic level of respect to decide what happens to her body. It’s bad enough the piece of shit disrespected her with that sorry display—one that has already gotten him fired. But to think he attempted to do it without her consent?
That can’t go unpunished, regardless of his pedigree.
Luckily, I’m perfectly capable of ensuring it doesn’t.
I wait outside, utilizing the shadows cast by the setting sun from the tree line beside Devlin so no one notices me. I’ve got a black mask secured around my head, obscuring the bottom half of my face. Right on schedule, Hayes shoves open the heavy wooden door to head toward his evening lecture.
Without an ounce of hesitation, I rush toward him and wrap one gloved hand around the back of his neck and the other around his mouth, then drag him back to my hiding spot.
“What the fuck?” he grumbles, fighting to stand upright. With a hard shove, I release my grip and throw him to the ground, where he lands directly on his hip with a painful hiss.
“We’re going to get straight to the point,” I tell him, lowering my voice enough to make it unrecognizable to him. “You tried to rape a woman on campus. I’m here to ensure that this never happens again.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” He shoves his heels into the dirt to scoot away from me.
I dig my boot into his shin in response, and he cries out in pain. I refuse to use anything other than my bare hands for this. I need to feel every ounce of agony he experiences. “Shut the fuck up, or I’ll break it.”
He obeys, clamping his mouth shut.
“I’d say that if you resort to using drugs just to get a woman to fuck you, you don’t deserve the use your dick.”
His eyes widen in recognition as he clenches his legs together.
“But since I don’t want to touch that thing with a ten-foot pole,” I continue, then lean forward to close the distance between us. “I’ll settle for breaking your arm, so even you can’t get yourself off.”
With one swift move, I jerk my hands until I hear a loud, satisfying snap. Hayes cries out even louder this time, and I don’t bother shutting him up. There’s too much satisfaction in the sound of his torment.
He rolls on his back, his face contorted in pure agony as he cradles his arm.
“Stay the fuck away from Poppy Ellery, or next time you won’t be walking away at all,” I threaten, then turn my back and walk away.