Page 41 of Eden's Joker

Joker

She’s sleeping in the middle of the bed, silver dress and porcelain white skin glowing against the dark sheets. I’ve been watching her on the surveillance camera for hours. Every room in this compound has one of those, since the rooms were used to let customers sample the goods before purchasing. And for a little blackmail on the side, seeing how rich and powerful most of the buyers of the women that used to be sold here were. We made a pretty penny off those videos that we found when we took over this place.

But that’s neither here nor there now…

We’re ready to roll, leave this place behind forever. Start Phase Two of Mission Eden. The one that really counts.

I should be directing my men, packing Eden awayand sending Ruin and his whore on their merry way to tell the Devils what I’ve done. I was so pissed when Scorpio showed up back here with both Eden and Ariel in tow last night.

But I made it work.

I’ll leave Ariel and Ruin alive for now, just like the Devils left me alive all those years ago so I could tell everyone how my parents died. Not that it did me much good.

No one really cared all that much.

Or maybe they just didn’t believe me.

Either way. The Devils were free to keep on killing and I have been free to remember and relive that day ever since. Funny thing is, I haven’t been reliving it nearly as much since I met Eden. But that’s just because revenge is finally mine.

I hope Scorpio didn’t give her too much chloroform to subdue her. She should be waking up by now.

“We rolling or what?” Scorpio asks, popping his head into the surveillance room where I’m camped out. “That Ruin guy is bouncing off walls in there and everyone else is getting pretty antsy too.”

I already know all that. The surveillance TV screens that take up most of the wall in front of me are showing me Ariel and Ruin too. And everyone else.

I rise and turn off the screen showing Eden’s room.

“Time to have a little chat with Ruin,” I say. “And then we roll.”

Scorpio actually rolls his eyes. “You’re just slowingus down with all these theatrics. We gotta head out. Put distance between us and the Devils. They know we have Eden by now.”

I give him the coldest look I can muster, one icy enough to make even him shut up. “We have enough time for this.”

“You know best, Tyler, as always.” He throws his hands up in surrender and gets out of my way, shaking his head. Used to be he wanted this revenge as much as I do. Now I can’t tell if he even wants it at all anymore. But that’s something I’m not gonna worry about right now.

All that aside, he does make a good point. Maybe I am just slowing this down because I’m enjoying crafting and layering my message to the Devils. Everything that Ruin will hear today, he’ll have to repeat to Ice and the Devils several times, and I want to make sure he has a lot to tell. Complete with a few nice, visceral memories to regale them with.

But even so, I make short work of talking to Ruin in his cell and then in my office, where I reunite him with his truck-stop whore girlfriend. He was running his mouth the whole time, all arrogant and full of himself like all the Devils tend to be. But I’m sure that’ll stop once I give him my full message.

I have him and Ariel handcuffed together, which should be enough to prevent Ruin from doing something stupid. Like trying to kill me when he sees Eden at the end of my chain.

“I’ll go wake Sleeping Beauty now,” I say to Scorpio once the others lead Ruin and Ariel out of the compound. “I hope I can though. You went seriously overboard on chloroforming her.”

Scorpio shrugs. “She was screeching and screaming so loud once she realized what was happening. I was afraid the Devils would hear her all the way in their fancy hilltop mansion.”

“Is everything else ready? The van out front? Everyone already on their way?” I ask. “Are the three traitor Devils dead?”

Scorpio is just nodding along, his eyes glazed.

“Are you listening to me?”

“Yeah, damn it,” he snaps. “It’s all done. Get her and let’s go.”

I just shake my head and walk past him. The room I’m keeping Eden in is in the basement and she’s the only captive on that floor. Razor and Manic are guarding the only door that leads to that hallway. Them and the cameras I’ve been watching. Most of the time, I trust my men will do as I say. But this is Ice’s daughter and a few of them hate the guy even more than I do.

“You can go help Scorpio now,” I tell the two guards. “I got this from here.”

The look Razor gives me is puzzled more thananything else, but neither of them say anything before climbing the stairs.

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