Chapter 7 #2
He still has the gun pointed at me as I move toward him. His face contorting trying to figure out who I am, and it relaxes as soon as he does.
“Eli, what the fuck are you doing?”
“We need to talk.” Is all I say.
“What the fuck do we have to talk about?” He laughs before nodding his head as if he figures it out, but mistakenly letting his guard down. “You can’t be upset that I tagged his sister.”
The ground thuds in front of me before I realize I’ve swung the crowbar at him.
I glance around, making sure no one saw me, reaching over and grabbing his gun, tucking it into the back of my waistband.
Rushing to the driver’s door of his car, I pop the trunk. Noticing the zip ties, instantly validating any assumptions I’ve had in the past about this prick. Pushing past the image of the plans he had for Drew, for now, I heave him into it before closing the lid.
I’m in my truck, speeding down the small lane before slamming it into park and running the distance back to the road.
I intentionally stopped near the old, deserted gym.
When I make it back to his car, I’m inside and cranking the engine before he wakes up. The tires crunch on the gravel as I swerve onto the path and close in the distance, passing by where I hid my truck.
Making the right-hand turn into the parking lot, the trunk lid pops open and a thud sounds from behind me.
“Goddamnit.” Mumbling as I slam the car into park, jumping out the door, and walking towards the back where he’s trying to move to his feet.
“Stay down.” I grunt out, connecting my foot to the middle of his back and shoving him back into the ground.
His face ricochets off the gravel with a huff.
“Fuck you.” He snaps back at me, pushing himself back up with his tied hands.
Reaching down, I grab hold of the collar of his shirt, pulling him toward the gym. He lifts his arms over his head to break out of my grip, his shirt slipping up yet coming to stop at his wrists.
“That was incredibly stupid.” I tell him as I lean over, speaking into his ear where his face just planted back into the gravel, again.
He mumbles something in response, but I don’t care. Gripping the zip-ties, I continue to pull him to the door.
The building’s been abandoned for as long as I can remember.
In fact, we used to sneak in during high school and throw parties, and I’m sure that’s the main reason the speak-easy was near here.
In a city this size, it’s hard to find some places under the radar to do so, and this is the perfect spot.
I’m sure kids still party here, but I’ve yet to hear about it.
Tossing him into the middle, where a stream of moonlight shines through the window. I kneel, coming eye to eye with him, but I don’t say a word.
“Fuck you.” He musters again. “Why do you give a shit about what I did? I know the two of you parted ways when you betrayed him and became a pig.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
He just gives me a confused look.
“I know this isn’t the first time you pulled this shit. You just went after the wrong one this time. Didn’t expect her to fight back.”
He laughs this time. “Word has gotten around.”
“What word?”
“How naive she is. She grew up too protected, and always underestimates people. It was a fluke that they didn’t succeed last time.”
Grunting out as I slap him on the head with my gun. It sickens me how easily he mentions it.
“What’s your plan? Bring me out here to scare me? Then what?” He laughs again. “I know you won’t do anything. You can’t.”
I don’t say anything, just continue to look at him, suddenly feeling like I’m in over my head. I hadn’t quite figured out what I was going to do once I got him alone; I was just reacting.
I know what every fiber in me want’s to do, but…
“How do you know I won’t report you?”
This time I laugh. “Go ahead and try; I’m sure it’ll be real easy to tie the drugging back to you. And I’m sure it’s not the first time. This is a warning: if I ever hear about you doing shit like this again…” I pause, letting his imagination take over.
He looks straight at me for a moment before smirking. “You know, it’d make sense for Z to be here, but not you. Why are you here, Eli? How the fuck do you even know?”
“That’s not important.”
“I feel like it is. We’ve already established that you’re not gonna kill me; you’re too much of a pussy for that. And it’s not like you even really know Z anymore.”
I don’t say anything.
“Oh…” he heckles me. “Now I know.”
“Know what?”
Leaning into me, he laughs again. “You nailed her.”
I can feel my eyes widen, making him laugh harder.
“Damn, I can’t say I’m not jealous.” Shaking his head, licking his lips as if he’s trying to imagine it. It makes my skin crawl. “What would the Force think about you fucking the sister of a current MC president? So, let’s chalk this up as we’re even.”
“Even about what?”
“You know my secret, and I know yours.”
I can already see the blackmail he’s going to try to hold over me.
Against my better judgement, reaching into my pocket, I pull the blade out, flipping it open and flick up on the ties around his ankles.
Standing up, he’s still smirking as I bring the blade between his wrists, stopping for a second. “If I ever hear about you doing this shit again, I won’t hesitate.”
As soon as the blade slices through the bindings, he laughs.
“Sure you won’t.” Rubbing his wrists together.
I step back and look at him.
“And if I so much as hear of you coming near Drew —”
He sneers before he charges at me, his fist connecting with my face, shocking and knocking me backward.
The blade and gun tinging against the ground.
A second attack catches me off guard again.
He slams me backwards into the wall, knocking my head against it.
Getting a metallic taste as my teeth clink against one another.
The blood trickling down my face from that cheap shot.
I fight back until I feel the sharp, cool metal against my throat.
“Once I get my mind set on something, I finish it.”
I know he’s talking about her.
“Except this time, I’ll catch her when she’s least expecting it.”
He pins my right arm out so I can’t attack him.
“Wait for her in her apartment.”
“You’d be an idiot to break into her place.”
“Wouldn’t need to.” He hisses. “She was so messed up when she left. Her keys are still in my car.”
“What?” comes out in a gasp.
It amuses him.
“I was going to go meet her there tonight, was on my way just now, but maybe this’ll be better. Let her linger, let her watch her back, not knowing when I’m going to show up.” I can see the evil growing in his eyes.
“You don’t think I’ll have the Force watching you?”
“What are you gonna do? Tell them you jumped me, threatened me? That you’re fucking the sister of the MC’s president? Nah, I don’t think so,” shaking his head. “It seems as if we’re at an impasse.”
“How so?”
“I can’t kill you.” He looks slightly disappointed. “Nah, they’ll notice if you’re missing. And you can’t kill me, and you can’t turn me in.”
“What makes you so sure?”
I watch the humor dance behind his eyes. “Does Z know you’re fucking his baby sister?”
Pressing my mouth shut tight. He nods his head.
“That’s what I thought.” He pauses, his eyes looking down at the knife, pressing it harder against my flesh. “So this is what I think I’ll do. I’ll give her time. Wait until she feels safe and secure, probably waiting for both of you to have your guards down, and then I’ll be waiting for her.”
“You sick fuck.” I hiss at him.
“Maybe I’ll make sure you’re there first. Make sure you can appreciate it.”
“I’ll kill you.”
“I doubt that.” Shaking his head. “You’re too much of a pussy for that. I’ve heard about your reputation. You let everyone else go in first; you let people off easy. You can’t even do your fucking job right because you’re a bitch.”
“No one knows who I am.” I feel the box that I’ve kept closed for so long now, rattling inside, begging to be released.
“Please enlighten me then.” He rolls his eyes.
“I’m not a fucking cop.”
“Really?” he laughs. “Cause the badge and the uniform say otherwise.”
“It’s supposed to.”
He doesn’t acknowledge what I said as he continues. “You should cherish how fucking good her cunt feels now because when I’m done with it…” the sound of the trigger next to us doesn’t even cause me to jump. His eyes widen as he looks at me. In the split second he has left, realizing what I meant.
With the knife falling from my throat and landing on the ground, he stumbles backwards.
Tilting my head, I let the side I’ve forced down bubble to the surface for a moment.
The sides of my lips tilt up as I step in towards him, holding his revolver, I tucked into my waistband, in my hand.
Collapsing to the ground, he holds his stomach as I kneel beside him.
“What am I?” I ask for the first time in a decade, feeling the calm wash over me. Pressing the gun barrel close to his head, “I’m fucking loyal,” and pulling the trigger once more.
His eyes rolling back into his head.
Standing up, spitting out the blood collecting in my mouth, and the realization settling in on me as I look around.
“Shit.”