Page 61 of Poisoned Roses

Cockroaches scuttle away from us, the last sign of life in a desolate landscape and as we enter the room, I gaze with satisfaction on the hooded figure tied to the chair. She is sobbing, her fear almost palpable as we step inside and Tia gasps, “Oh my God. Nadia.”

She pulls me back and hisses, “Release her. What are you doing?”

“You’ll see.”

I nod to Simeon who moves beside Tia as a security measure to keep her in place and I move across to Nadia and whip the hood away, tears streaking her dirty face; her eyes alight with defeat.

“You bastard.” She hisses and spits in my face, an action that is distasteful but not uncommon, so I grab a tissue from my pocket and wipe it away with a shrug.

“I accept your judgment of my character, but I don’t give a damn what you think of me.”

I point to Tia and Nadia’s eyes widen and she cries, “Tia, oh my God, this is the monster who caused Leo to lose his legs!”

“Titus, no!”

The agony in Tia’s voice rolls off me like a gentle wave and I shake my head. “It is true.”

I turn to Tia and note the tears pouring down her face and I add, “But when I left, we deposited him in the gutter outside. His legs were not unsalvageable. I broke his knees, his ankle and tore some ligaments, but I didn’t pulverize them.”

“Titus please, I’m begging you.” She sobs pitifully.

“To do what, Tia? Release the real reason Leo lost his legs. The real reason you were in danger and the brains behind thetrafficking organization that sell dancers to a psychopath for millions. Is that what you really want?”

“Tell me it’s not true.” Tia wipes away her tears with her sleeve and gazes at Nadia with a hopeful expression.

Nadia shakes her head. “He’s deranged, Tia. You must not marry him. He will ruin your life.”

I shrug and nod to one of my men who sets a chair before Nadia, that I sit astride, retrieving my revolver from inside my jacket and cocking the barrel.

“What’s happening?”

The blood drains from Nadia’s face and Tia screams. “No Titus, please God, no!”

Their cries mean shit to me and I say darkly, “Let’s play a game, Nadia. Truth and dare.”

I load one bullet inside the chamber and say casually, “A particular favorite of mine. Russian Roulette.”

I spin the barrel and whisper, “I’ll go first. A question for a bullet from the gun.”

Nadia is shaking and I say roughly, “I will ask you a question and if I’m satisfied with the answer, I will take the first bullet. If I die, you will be released and free to go.”

“Titus!” Tia is openly sobbing. “Please don’t do this. I can’t watch you kill yourself or Nadia.”

I ignore her and concentrate on Nadia’s frozen expression, noting the dark gleam of resignation mixing with the fear.

“Go on, ask your question.” She spits and I say casually, “Tell me what happened the night Leo died.”

She shakes her head and laughs, a chilling sound that causes silence in the room.

“I followed him. I saw your men drag him into a car when I was outside waiting for Tia. He was supposed to bring her to me so I could make the delivery.”

She glances past and sneers at Tia. “You’re a fool. They are all fools. They deserve what they get and so do I.”

She is not wrong about that and she sneers. “I followed your car to this place and when I saw Leo cast out into the gutter, I waited until your men left. I ran to help him and he told me he was done. He wouldn’t play his part anymore, so he left me with no other choice.”

“You did it.”Tia gasps and Nadia laughs like a madwoman.

“Yes. I went back to the car, and I drove it straight at his legs that were lying broken in the road. I thought it would do the trick. Poetic justice for daring to believe he could escape our agreement. I didn’t stick around and left him there. When I heard he had survived, I went to the hospital and while he slept, I pulled out his life support. I did what I had to do to protect my business.”

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