Page 107 of Whispers of Fire

I try to stay calm, but my hands are shaking. I fuckin' hate being in this position in front of a man who gave my life meaning when I had nothin’ left.

“Ask me anythin’ to erase my debt and I'll fuckin' do it.” I swallow, knowing the implications of what I'm asking and how Ares' twisted mind can come up with the sickest ideas.

But I don't give a fuck.

Go and burn bodies in the desert? I'll do it.

Skin twenty guys alive? No fuckin' issue.

Torture a poor guy for no reason but his entertainment? With a fuckin' smile on my face.

Anything he wants.

Almost.

“Anything you want, Ares, anythin’ but her. She's off limits.”

He whistles. “Anythin’ but her? C’mon, where's the fun?” he says with a cold laugh.

I clench my jaw so fuckin' hard I stop to not break my back teeth.

“I’ll kill any man that comes near her, even if it's you, Ares.” I stare at him, my head high cause it's not about club business anymore. We're talkin’ about my girl and he fuckin' knows it.

That's what he likes, pushin’ people on the edge, just far enough for you to snap.

“Hmm, hear her father is in the basement.”

I nod slowly, knowin’ already that whatever’s gonna come out of his mind is gonna be twisted as fuck and I won’t like it.

“The girl, she’s alive?” he asks, takin’ his chin between his index and thumb.

“Rose, her name’s Rose,” I grunt, “Doc is with her.”

“Then I got a deal for ya.” A dark smile appears on his face.

I inhale, tryin’ to stay calm with whatever Ares’s gonna throw back at me.

“You end the father,” he says, like it's a fuckin' meal on the menu. I can feel his gaze on me, knowin’ he found the fuckin' crack to exploit. I’ve been wanting to hurt her parents since I’ve known the hell they made her go through, but I intended to talk about it with Rose before.

She would have said no of course, her pure heart never wishing to hurt anyone, but I would have wanted her to know before I took care of them. Just to show her again how much I care ‘bout her and how no one can fuckin’ walk this earth once they laid a finger on her.

“You kill her father in front of her, and your debt will be fixed,” he says with a cold grin.

If I kill her father now, she won’t forgive me. Not that she would have forgiven me before, but doing it now and here won’t be pretty. She will see me kill in front of her and I fuckin’ hate myself right now to inflict this on her.

Knowing it and watchin’ it are two very different things.

Could she still love me after watchin’ me kill her father?

As much as she hates him, will she stand witnessin’ this? Or will I lose her before I even get the chance to have her?

Maybe she'll understand one day that I had to do this.

For her, for us.

Killin’ him doesn’t bother me; it’s killin’ him in front of her that the fuckin’ issue. I will wait as many years as necessary for her forgiveness. But I can’t lose her, so I'll do what I gotta do. If I do this, it will finally be over. But knowin’ that it's going to fuckin' hurt her makes my gut spin.

I don't have a choice: it’s either gettin’ shot by Ares and leavin’ my girl alone in this world or kill her father and get a chance at a life together.

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