CHAPTER FIFTEEN
– XANE –
“You’re sure about this?” I question one last time as I’m blocking the door to the basement.
She crosses her arms in front of her chest and raises one of her eyebrows. I release a sigh. I’ve seen that look on her face when she was younger and it means there’s no fucking way I’m going to change her mind.
“Fine,” I sigh.
There’s a flicker of doubt gnawing at my brain.
It might not be a big deal for her to be present when the fucker dies, but it fucking is.
I know everyone has their own process to deal with stuff, but for my woman to watch me kill her tormentor?
Fuck. That sounds crazy inside my head, and it might cause even more nightmares down the road.
I take the stairs and hear Z right behind me, hoping this won’t cause a setback.
The basement holds a backroom which is soundproof. My father used it to persuade people into telling the truth. Well, some might consider it torture, but whatever. Right now, it’s being used to persuade Ramiro not to die as quickly as I need him to.
I smile at my own mental joke as I step inside the room.
Ramiro tries to back away, which is weird and impossible since he’s tied to the chair.
The fucker instantly stops when he notices Z behind me.
I want nothing more than to poke his eyes out when the snake ogles her with keen interest. At this moment I’m glad I broke the fucker’s jaw.
“Zora,” the fucker slurs, and the wince on his face shows it’s painful for him to talk.
Z surprises me when she snarls, “No. You don’t get to say my name. You don’t get to do anything anymore.”
She rushes forward and I’m blinking twice to make sure I didn’t imagine it.
Nope. The fucker whimpers in pain and tries to shy away from her because she just poked him simultaneously in both eyes.
Then she grips his eyelashes and rips them clean off.
My old lady is stepping up instead of shying away, and she shows this fucker he didn’t fucking break her.
Shit. Lynn will be pissed I didn’t take a video. Yet she will be proud as fuck to hear what Z did.
“You’re a sick bastard,” Z snarls. “We only had one damn date, and I didn’t even agree to a second one.
Why in the hell would that give you the right to kidnap me weeks later?
To do the things you did? To kill my cat, and to take things from me that were never yours to take while trying to break me into submission? ”
Ramiro wants to say something and moans in pain when Z grabs his jaw in a harsh grip.
“No. You don’t get to say anything. All you are allowed is the knowledge that this man.
” She glances over her shoulder and steps to the side, forcing Ramiro’s eyes to land on me.
“He was my first, and with that said, you never had the pieces you took from me. I never gave myself or any part of me to you willingly, and never fucking will. Grayer will be my last for-fucking-ever and you will never see any of it. Why? Because you’re going to die.
Any. Damn. Minute. Oh, and Grayer is going to make sure it’s painful, and no more prolonging your death to keep you for leverage.
You see, we’ve already ID’d your uncle so there’s no need to keep you alive anymore, bigger picture and all...
one where you don’t fit in anywhere. Insignificant.
Not the man at the top who needs a bitch at his feet who knows how to heel, but instead you’re the bug about to be squashed. ”
Bile rises in the back of my throat from hearing her say that shit. Just from the few words she threw at the fucker who made her endure hours, fucking days of torment. Any death this asshole will face will be too damn easy. He should be suffering every damn second for a lifetime of pain.
My hands are itching to start, but when Z turns and stalks right up to me to grab my leather cut? Everything around us falls away and all I see is her beauty. She lifts herself on her tiptoes and kisses the fuck out of me. I groan into her mouth and let my hands find her lush ass.
I know she’s making a statement, and I don’t care either way. Not when she’s kissing me like she’s been deprived of life itself and needs me to recharge. The slurring of incoherent words and the scraping of wood against concrete makes me break the kiss.
Shoving down my annoyance, I plaster a lazy smile on my face and rumble, “What? Complaining over your own pettiness? I’d say grow a pair, but you’re already living on borrowed time.”
Z steps away from me and grabs the duct tape from the table.
Ripping off a piece she says, “Remember the time where your hand covered my mouth and nose while you had me hogtied at your feet? What was the lesson again? Ah, right...be thankful for the air I’m allowing you to breathe. Only good girls get rewarded. Those who submit to your ruling.”
She takes a step closer and places the piece of tape over his mouth.
“Well, I’m going to keep my lesson plain and simple.
” She grins and rips off another piece of tape.
“Life lessons don’t fall in the torture category.
Which also means I am already aware of who affects the way my body reacts to the air I breathe.
” She leans in to sarcastically whisper, “Spoiler alert...it’s not you,” and plasters the piece of tape over his nose, making sure everything is covered.
Z wanders over to me and slides her arms around my waist. “It’s this man right here.
Childhood friends growing up to become teenagers who fooled around.
Enhancing the boundaries of young love, discovering feelings, and eventually becoming lovers.
Young at heart and unable to realize the unique connection that comes along only once in a lifetime.
You wouldn’t understand because a bond can never be forced, demanded, or shoved down to submit to.
It takes two people to spark the kind of chemistry which lasts decades, even when you’re not together. ”
Ramiro starts to cough behind the tape. All I can do is stare down at the woman who just caressed my heart with her words.
Where I knew deep down our connection was unique, even if I was young and stupid when I set her free so she could follow her dreams instead of me holding her back.
It’s exactly the way she says...we have the kind of connection that lasts a lifetime.
No matter where we are on this fucked-up planet, but I’m going to damn well be by her side from here on out.
“Oh, shit. You can’t reply...how sad. Are you having difficulties breathing?
Getting lightheaded? That’s due to the interruption of the brain’s blood supply.
No worries, it will only take a few minutes to cause irreversible damage.
Loss of consciousness, brain injury, and eventually death.
All while our lives are starting a new chapter. ”
She turns to face me and then her lips are back on mine. Everything else falls away and I’m sure she feels the same bubble surrounding us as we get lost in the kiss together. We’ve come so damn far, and I’m sure there are still things left unspoken, but at least we’re on the same page.
Fucked-up to find one another while there’s another person dying in the room, but who cares. Life is messy and a torturous balance of life and death, the same vibe this space is filled with.
I pull back and brush my lips against her forehead before I lace my fingers with hers and pull her in the direction of the stairs.
Once we’re in the hallway, I notice Neo walking toward us. “Get Roux to call Remmer. The trash in the basement is ready to be picked up.”
“Remmer?” Z questions.
I guide her into our room. “Our contact with the government. He will arrange for the body to be picked up and handle the paperwork.”
Z frowns. “I thought you were responsible for the paperwork?”
The reminder makes me wince. “Yeah, definitely, but they have to fill out some on their side too. I’m used to filling out paperwork for the cases I work on, but being the president of my own chapter is a whole different caseload. Fuck. I have no clue how Spence handles everything.”
Z pats my chest. “Probably with the help of the whole brotherhood. Everyone carries their own weight, the whole working as a unity part. Like you just did when you asked Neo to get Roux to handle stuff.”
“Smart woman,” I muse and brush my lips against hers.
A knock on the door demands my attention when Roux’s voice penetrates. “Prez? Can I have a few seconds of your time?”
I sigh, wanting the moment between Z and I to last longer. The bubble we were wrapped in while we were in the basement felt like coming home.
Now Z is the one brushing her lips against mine. “Go. I’m going to take a quick shower.”
Z naked while water drips down her skin. Yeah, that’s the image I need on my brain right now. I give her a tight nod and rush out of the damn room to handle whatever Roux needs me for.