Page 40 of Shattered Empire (Shattered World)

“I heard that,” Sully muttered as he walked past.

“Good.” Vas winked. “I wouldn’t want to have to say it louder for your old-ass ears.”

Giggling, I shook my head in amusement and strode up to the office door.

“You know the drill,” Vas reminded me. “Stay in the center of us and—”

“Don’t take any unnecessary risk or try to be a hero,” I drawled.

“Exactly.”

“Fun ruiner,” I muttered behind his back as the men surrounded me. Jesus, it was like being the president of the United States, but worse. I could defend myself. Not many presidents could say that. The current one would probably have a heart attack if he had to.

Quietly, on soft footsteps, we made our way through the darkened building toward the good doctor’s office. Papers were being shuffled around, the sound echoing into the hallway. He cursed, a hard, heavy object falling to the floor with a distinct thud.

“Where is it?” the man muttered to himself in a panic.

“Looking for something, Doctor?” The two men in front of me parted to let me through. I strode into the posh office, head tilted up as I studied the man who falsified my mother’s death report and who knew how many others.

“You…” He trailed off, the blood draining from his face as he stared at me, eyes wide.

The corner of my mouth tilted dangerously. “Cat got your tongue?” I sneered. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“How can…you’re…”

“Dead?” I raised an eyebrow, eyes flashing darkly at the word. He thought I was my mother. The ghost of his past coming back to haunt him. That was something I could work with. “Funny thing about death. Never really sticks when you want it to. Does it?”

“What do you want?”

I let out a harsh puff of air tinged with a dark chuckle. “I want my life back, doctor,” I told him. “The one you stole from me. Tell me, how much was your soul worth? A couple of million?”

“I…it wasn’t…”

“Personal?” I sneered. “Sure as hell felt like it. But don’t worry,” I bit my bottom lip, eyeing him like a lion does her prey, “when I kill you, it will be very personal to me.”

“You don’t have to kill me,” he pleaded, dropping the file in his hand to the desk. “I’ll give you whatever you want. I promise. Name it.”

“Who gave you the hush money?”

The man visibly swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing dramatically as fear welled in his eyes. His chest heaved, once. Twice. I could see the war going on in his mind through the minute facial tics he was unable to hide.

“I can’t…”

“Wrong answer.” The doctor screamed, his left leg collapsing beneath him as my bullet tore through his patella. The silencer kept the gases that propelled the bullet through the chamber quiet, muffling the sound of the bang.

Vas grimaced. “What is it with you and kneecaps?” I shrugged. It was just an easy target to hit that I knew wouldn’t cause him to bleed out or pass out.

“Let’s try that again, Abram.” I crouched down in front of him, gun dangling loosely between my legs. “Who gave you the hush money?”

“They’ll kill me,” he sobbed. “Please.”

“You’re going to die either way,” I told him. “How painful your death will be is up to you.”

“Please…” His cries and pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears. Just like my mother’s had.

“How about this?” I lifted the barrel of my gun, pointing it at his stomach. “I can shoot you in just the right spot, you know, the sweet spot. The one that will have you lying here on the floor for hours in agony before your body finally shuts down. You’ll be begging me to kill you, but I won’t. I’ll sit here and listen to your pitiful cries, and then I’ll go find that sweet lil family of yours and do the exact same thing.” I wouldn’t go after them, but he didn’t need to know that.

“No!”

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