Page 52 of Scorpion

She nods slowly.

“I’ve told you about the secret society I’m part of. What I left out is how fucked up they are. The Reckoning is coming. Every ten years, the Exodus hosts a celebration that allows members to do whatever they wish without fear of the law. The tenth year is tomorrow.” The muscle in my jaw feathers at the thought.

The first time I went continues to live in my mind like a constant reminder of all the ways this world consists of black and gray.

She frowns skeptically. “That must be why Sergei has been even more of a dick lately. Why have I never heard of any of this before? It isn’t on the news. Never whispered about. Nothing.”

“We control everything,” I explain, as if that’s sufficient enough of an answer to cover the level of corruption this country runs on.

“Why are you telling me this? Are you planning on… partaking?”

“No, no. Me? Please. I can do that any day of the week. I don’t need a party for it.” I chuckle. “There’s a house within the mountains where a party will be hosted. As an Elder, my attendance is mandatory. I am required to bring a guest to the event—not to be confused with date, because a date would imply that you would come out unscathed. That’s why we need to talk.”

I told her I’d have her however she’d come. I’ve told her I’d wait a lifetime for her. I’d be patient, giving her everything she might need. But I want her more than anything else in this tedious world.

It kills me to just be friends with her. I want her in my bed every single night so the nights are less cold, then I want to wake up beside her so I know she’s still with me. One day, I’ll get to kiss her whenever I see her. Touch her every chance I get. I want it all, but I need her to want it too.

I wouldn’t bring her to the Reckoning if I weren’t so desperate for the permanence of her presence. The things that will happen there aren’t for the weak. As strong as Zalak is, she might not be able to stomach the abominable things that will occur in those mountains. I barely can.

Men turn humans into toys for their deplorable entertainment. There’s no elegance or decorum to how they handle themselves. It’s pure debauchery without reason. Gore without the finesse. For a single night, apex predators know what it feels like to be a god. And I want to bring my girl into the fold.

“Before you answer, there are things you need to know.” Christ, I should have drunk more wine. “If you say no, I will pluck one of Goldchild’s men off the street and make him my party favor. If you say yes, you will be forever connected to the Exodus. You will never escape it. You will be presenting yourself as my willing guest. Forever. Do you understand what I am telling you?”

Zalak’s brown eyes search mine. I wish I could tell what she’s thinking. I’m prepared for her to say no because she isn’t ready or because it’s too soon. I doubt the cause for her hesitation has anything to do with the potential for depravity.

The skin of her knuckles goes white as she grips the stem of the wineglass. “If it’s tomorrow, why are you only asking me this now?”

“Because I think you’re ready for the question to be asked. You aren’t the person you were when you first started working. You’ve become a force to be reckoned with, and I have no reservations that you’ll surpass anything put before you.”

Zalak has come so far in the past six months. She’s still as bitter as she was when we were kids, but she smiles now, and I hear her laugh almost every day. The haunted look is finally gone from her eyes, and she doesn’t always have one foot in Senegal anymore.

I would have given her months to mentally prepare for tomorrow if I thought I could proposition her without worrying she’ll hightail it the first chance she gets. “You will be pledging yourself to me in every sense of the word. In turn, you will be under my protection for the rest of your life. An act against you, is a direct act against everything Halenbeek. Once we take off for Vail, you won’t have the opportunity to back out. So, I ask, would you like to be my plus-one and lose faith in humanity in the process?”

She hesitates. “I have no intention of leaving. I…” The you in her declaration is unspoken, but I hear it all the same.

At least the humanity part isn’t her concern.

“Don’t think for a second that you owe me anything,” I say. “You have saved my life countless times already. That alone is priceless.”

“You’ve saved mine just as many times. But that’s not what I was going to say,” Zalak says hesitantly.

Slowly, ever so slowly, she places her hand next to mine, touching me without my prompting it. My breath catches in my throat when she finally interlocks our fingers. Willingly. Voluntarily. Then it’s knocked right out of my lungs when she looks at me with the same reverent need that I feel for her.

She squeezes my hand. “I don’t want to live in the past anymore, Mathijs.”

This woman couldn’t get any more perfect even if she tried. A smile explodes across my face, and I raise my wineglass. “To the future.”

And to the fuckery that will ensue tomorrow.

Chapter 14

ZALAK

What am I about to get myself into?

Secret societies? A day of complete lawlessness? This all sounds well over my pay grade. It isn’t too late for me to back out. Hell, I even helped catch the guy who’d be my substitute in case I decide to tap out.

Still, I stare at my reflection in the mirror. I’ve outdone myself this time. The déjà vu is unsettling.

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