Chapter 6
Chapter
Six
Sage
Ialmost fucking had him. Garotte around his neck. Pulling with every bit of strength that I have. It's the best I've ever been at getting the jump on him. He was surprised. Underprepared. So close to losing his last breath to me.
Seeing Alexei stop in his tracks and hearing the click of a gun isn't enough to distract me.
So close. I don't want to run back to my estate. I want to finish this now.
I growl and take a step towards him.
"Sage," he warns. I finally stop and take stock.
Alexei is down on one knee, knife held loosely in his hand and watching me with a different kind of intensity. There's a gun pointed to his head and two more trained on him from further away.
Three men with circular tattoos on their temples.
Flashes of my childhood trauma come screaming back to me and I'm assaulted with terrible memories. Screams. Flesh being stripped from my skin. Men with similar tattoos there to watch it all.
Chet's men.
How the fuck have we managed to run into Chet's men?
"You're outnumbered," one man says. "Put it down."
Alexei's hand tightens on his knife.
"Hey!" one of them yells, shaking his gun. "I said stop. Put it down now. If you want to live."
Alexei doesn't let go of the knife, but he stands slowly, holding his hands in surrender in what is obviously false compliance.
The men move towards him on tiny unsure steps, their eyes flitting back and forth between Alexei and where he holds his weapon.
I narrow my eyes. They're distracted. I could surely surprise them. Get the jump on one of them at least. Alexei's jaw goes tight as I look back at him. He must see what's written on my face because he gives me an exasperated look and then a tiny shake of his head.
But nothing about this feels like life and death. These are Chet's men, sure. They're not Chet. They're not Alexei. Right now all they are is in my way. They don't view me as a threat and I don't plan on letting Alexei get away.
I raise my brow at Alexei, and a small exhale of breath is the only sign I get that he knows and accepts that I'm going to do something. He's not in charge of me, anyway.
I rush forward, pushing the one closest to me between the shoulders and sending him right to the floor. As he drops, the other two look behind them like distracted idiots, and Alexei takes the opportunity to attack.
While I wrestle the gun from the one I shoved he takes out the other two.
Trying not to watch Alexei is a hefty task. He takes out the one on the left first; shooting him in the head, and then goes to the one on the right; punching him in the throat and then snapping his neck. It only takes a matter of seconds and he's done.
By the time he makes it over to me I've made no progress, still wrestling the gun back and forth. Alexei kicks the man in the nose, allowing me enough time to get the upper hand. I stumble as I stand, pointing the gun at the man on the ground.
He sits up slowly and raises his hands in surrender, looking at me with annoyance rather than fear.
My finger hesitates over the trigger and as much as I want to pull it, I freeze. Something stops me and all I can do is stare. Wasting precious seconds that could allow him to get the upper hand again.
"What are you doing?" Alexei says. "Kill him."
I nod, knowing that's what I have to do. But each time my finger closes over the trigger I fail to act. There's something about holding a gun that feels so destructive. So much more destructive than what we've been doing.
I haven't held a gun in my hand since that day.
"Oh Jesus Christ," Alexei sighs, he lifts his gun and shoots the guy between the eyes without sparing it a second thought. I flinch as it goes off, something I never used to do. But now all I hear when a gun goes off is the sound of him grunting and dropping to the ground.
Alexei looks at me like he thinks I'm very stupid. Which I certainly feel right about now. "And you seriously think you can beat me?" Alexei says, shaking his head as he walks deeper into the forest.
"Well. It's different with you."
"I'm touched."
I race to keep up with him, watching my footing as I jump and slide to step around the obstacles on the forest floor. Alexei's steps aren't hesitant like mine. He navigates the terrain with ease. Not a step or stumble in his place.
"Not like that," I say, rolling my eyes. "Killing you feels natural."
"Sure thing, princess," Alexei says, ignoring me as he drags the bodies to the edge of the cliff.
"You're not going to-"
Before I can finish my sentence, Alexei launches the first body over the cliff. I cringe as it sails down the hill before falling to a heap in the muddy woods below. I hesitate as to whether I should… help?
But that doesn't feel quite right. So I end up standing there like a third wheel fool as he disposes of the other two in the same manner. Once he's done Alexei wipes his hands of the dirt before looking back at me like he forgot I was even here.
"So," I say, lifting my chin and turning to him with my fists raised. "Let's finish this."
Alexei huffs out a laugh. "You cannot be serious."
"Dead," I say.
"You will be. But not today," he says, walking away. I rush towards him and shove him in the back. He goes stumbling a step but finds his footing, turning slowly around to face me with a furious look.
"Are you fucking with me? You want to fight here?"
I fail to see the problem.
"Here seems fine," I shrug.
"Do you have any idea where we are?"
I look around at the woods for the first time since the car dropped me off. It doesn't look familiar but I suppose it is weird that we'd run into Chet's men out here in what is seemingly the middle of nowhere.
He takes one step towards me and instinctively I take one back. I am tentative and unsure as he looks at me. But something in his eyes goes dark and predatory as he takes another step closer.
It's only natural for me to try and get away, but my next step back has me tripping on a tree branch and falling backward. Alexei is there within the instant, cradling my back with his arm and stopping my descent to the ground.
I gasp, shocked as he steadies me. His response was instinct too. Natural.
"Are you scared, princess?" he asks, the pupils in his eyes going wide as we lock onto each other.
"Of you? Never," I say, far more breathless than I intend and I know my eyes must be as wide as saucers.
Alexei runs his tongue over his teeth, like the whole encounter makes him suspicious. His calloused hand is rough as he grabs my jaw, forcing me to open my mouth on a gasp.
"You always get yourself into the most ridiculously submissive positions," Alexei says on a grunt. He lets go of my jaw and my head flops back in agony.
When I look up at him again to frown and call him a host of horrible names, he smirks. "Always at my whim, princess."
"Dic-" I only get a second of confusion before his arms sink away. My eyes widen as I fall down onto the forest floor, landing on my ass with a thud.
"What the fuck!" I yell. He chuckles as he walks away but I get a running start at him and dive onto him, pushing him against a tree and raising my fist.
He's still chuckling as he grabs my wrist to stop me.
"What are you gonna do with these tiny little hands princess?"
He laughs as he grips my hand harder and spreads my finger. Before I can protest, he sucks my finger into his mouth. But it isn't gentle and lustrous. It's rough and painful. Especially when he bites down.
He releases me with a chuckle and I clutch onto my finger, where he's left teeth marks in my flesh. Amusement is all I get from him as he folds his tattooed arms and watches where I try not to squeal at the pain just from a single bite.
He looks at me like I'm nothing but a toy and I always hate when it gets to this part. The part where he'll be done playing and want to finish the job. Where my only choices are run away or accept death.
Alexei frowns, a small dimple appearing between his brows.
"Isla might be right. You are a distraction," he mutters under his breath, but still I hear it. He grabs for me and I squeal until his hand goes over my mouth to muzzle me.
He holds me like that, dragging me through the woods. I almost trip trying to keep up with him but eventually we come to the edge.
"Fuck, stop!" he says, steadying me as I wiggle. "I'm not going to push you."
I open my mouth to scream but he covers it again.
"For fuck's sake," he mutters. "This is why we're not finishing anything out here in these woods. Look!"
I finally stop struggling and look down to where he's directing me.
Oh.
I see it now.
The familiar white suburban house with the wrap-around porch.
There's still a pool in the backyard but now it's been filled in, or rather, filled up with things.
The place is lit up with activity. There's a bonfire in the backyard and more people than I can count rushing around down there.
I can't quite make it out from this distance, but I suspect they will all have that familiar tattoo on their temples as well.
They are everywhere. On the patio. Inside the house. Opening the hatch down to the wine cellar… My skin shivers at the thought and I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly feeling cold.
"That's Chet's house," I say, as the goosebumps run up my arms.
"Yes."
"It's busy," I note, hearing the tremor in my voice as I say it. This is the place that I was destroyed when I was younger. Such a beautiful house meant for a family. But instead he used it to scar both my body and my mind.
My lip quivers, and I bite down to stop it. Not wanting Alexei to see this particular weakness in me. He was never going to be terrified of me, but I wanted him to at least take me seriously.
My eyes shift to Alexei's, where he's more concerned with watching me. His eyes drop as he brushes my hair over my shoulder, revealing the small scar at my collarbone that leads down to the bigger deformities beneath my shirt.
"This is where he did that?" Alexei asks. "Where he kept you?"
"Yes," I confirm. "He had a wine cellar in the b-"
"I remember it," he says, looking away and shaking his head. "I used to play in there as a kid. That's where he did it?"
"Yes," I say. "I lost count of how many times."
The silence feels tense. Neither one of us moving to either kill or comfort. We haven't spent this long together without trying to hurt each other since… Well, since I put my hand in his tattooed one and begged him to run away with me.
"Place has gone downhill," I say on an unsure laugh, but Alexei cracks a smile.
"Why is it so busy?" I ask, looking up into his gray eyes, which for now, seem calm.
"Chet has amassed himself an army."
"He's a threat," I nod. "Well, he always has been to me."
Alexei nods and sighs too, it feels like there is more to say but we run out of time. I am both saddened and grateful for the interruption.
"Alexei!"
The voice comes from somewhere close. We both look towards the sound, but don't make a move towards it or to reply.
"Sage!" Another voice calls out.
I hear the footsteps getting closer, but we are entranced in each other's gaze, neither of us able to move. I'm not sure I want to be the first to do so.
"This is his car." This time it's clear the voice belongs to Isla.
"If he's done anything to her, I swear I will-" And that one belongs to my uncle.
Branches crack underfoot as we are discovered. To my surprise, Isla, Anton and Freddie come stepping out of the thick of the woods.
"Oh." Isla startles when she sees me. "You're actually here too. And you're both alive." She gives an awkward smile. "Sage. Good to see you."
"God dammit, Sage!" Anton shouts. "Disappearing again in the middle of all that's going on!"
"What's going on?" Alexei asks, his voice deathly serious.
"You missed the second wave," Isla explains. "The DeMarcos were hit too, it seems."
Anton's jaw grinds as he spares a scathing look at her.
I find there is part of the conversation that I'm missing.
Information that everyone else is privy to that I am not.
Seeing the place I was hurt lit up like that, as if Chet has the resources to do it all again, deeply unsettles me.
I don't want to believe Chet is still out there, hunting me.
"No guesses who," Alexei says, indicating over his shoulder where Chet's people still celebrate.
"Chet," Anton says, taking a deep sigh and looking more annoyed at me for stumbling upon Chet's territory than for chasing Alexei out here.
"We need to go," Isla says, stepping up to Alexei and nudging him. "There could be hundreds of them watching these woods."
She's not wrong. We were just attacked by a few of them already.
"We need to leave now, bella," Freddie says, in a far more gentle tone than my uncle would have used.
Isla takes Alexei's arm and Freddie takes mine, pulling us in opposite directions. But I can't help the look I chance over my shoulder to see Alexei. Only to find that he is watching me, too. Eyes stormy again as we both disappear away into the night.