Page 7 of Her Wicked Men

And now I was here, in a room with his killers.

“We’ll wait for you, Vee,” Kieran said, his tone odd, like he was frustrated with this whole situation. His expression was slightly more distressed, but it shifted when I looked at him. He offered me a charming, lopsided smile, like he hadn’t just murdered my fiancé.

I didn’t say another word as they filed out, and Zane cast me one last look, nodding at me before he shut the door.

The heaviness lifted slightly around me, but the shadows dancing in the corners of the room beckoned me in a way that made my skin crawl.

Why had it thrilled me?

It must’ve made me insane if I was somewhat grateful they’d kill for me. They’d put Callum down for me, executed him without a second thought. They’d tortured him and made him bleed for the things he’d done to me, and some foul, dark part of me found that touching.

I was a monster, a horrible person for wanting such a thing. Who would want that?

It was red flag 101. Eventually, things would shift, and I’d be the one under their knife, or with a gun pointed to my head. That was how it always went, it was how those crime shows started.

No, they weren’t like that.

They were made men, taught to act the part from a young age, to blend in, charm their way through anything. But I’d seen more of them,feltmore from them. And for once in my life, I wanted to trust my gut despite the blaring sirens in my mind. They’d saved me, made me feel safe, shown me sweetness and affection without a price attached.

No, it did come with a price. A dark price, one where I’d have to accept this side of their lives. They’d not ask me to pay them back, expect sex or hold anything over me, but they’d wish for me to embrace this darkness of theirs, to stand idly by while I knew what they did in the shadows.

Callum was dead. My fiancé was dead. I’d called for that. I was in just as deep as they were now.

I sucked in a breath, threading my fingers together as my body shuddered.

Sickness settled in my gut, and my head was a hazy mess, my mind spent from all the stress of it.

I glanced around the room, the bedside lamp casting eerie shadows in the corners that made me wonder if Callum’s spirit was lurking there, wishing me an untimely death like his own.

I needed to get out, to get some fresh air. To get away from this house of beautiful monsters, killers with their charming smiles. These walls held secrets I may never want to know, and I just needed to get away for a while.

Figure out what the hell I was feeling and what I wanted to do.

Would they even let me leave if I wanted to? They’d originally said I could, that they’d help me, but that was before they’d killed for me.

I knew too much now, but I had no proof. Surely that would protect me if I left.

“What do I do?” I asked the empty room, as if I half expected an answer from the shadows.

I needed to get outside, go for a walk and breathe, clear my head. That was my best bet.

Although, I doubted they’d let me leave for a walk. They’d be too uneasy.

I hung my head in my hands, a small part of me wishing I’d not even tried to leave Callum. To think that that was not even two weeks ago blew my mind. It felt like so much had happened and changed. Life was simpler then, I was fighting for my survival, numb and struggling, but at least I knew how to handle it.

No, that wasn’t true. I’d thought I was going to wind up dead at his hands, and I’d tried to leave him in the most extreme way.

I’d been willing to die to set myself free, so why wouldn’t I have been willing to kill?

“Fuck.” I dragged my hand down my face, staring out the darkened window before forcing myself to walk over to it.

I stared at the starry night sky, at the waning moon overhead, beckoning me to join them outside in the darkness. A darkness that didn’t threaten to consume me, only embrace me in the silence and freedom.

I swallowed down my unease as I stood there, contemplating the severity of everything.

Just what had I gotten myself into here?

And what was I supposed to do now?

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