Page 67 of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang Us, Daddy

“Well, if you don’t want him dead and you don’t want him to suffer, I could always use a new assistant. I’m starting to think the Bens are never coming back, so it’ll be nice to have someone to talk to.”

“The man is a menace, Agent Meadows. The son of Satan himself. He’s abused every boyfriend he’s ever had. He causes heartbreak for sport. You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into.”

He snorts. “Oh, Mr. St. James. We clearly haven’t been properly introduced. Your little friend might be the devil’s spawn, but I’m Lucifer his goddamn self. Trust me, I can handle a twink with a God complex.”

I look at Bennet, then Benji. “Well, if you’re sure. But I swear on all I hold dear; if he escapes and hurts my boys, I’m coming for you. I’m coming for you, and I’m coming hard.”

Meadows chuckles. “Promises, promises, Daddy. Listen, I’ll head that way in a few. I’ll need to pick up his new uniform on the way.”Uniform?“Can you give me an hour?”

“Yeah. An hour. We’ll see you then.”

CHAPTER 15

BENNET

The longer I look at Nito, the madder I get. He’s crumpled in a heap like a beaten dog, as if he’s not the world’s worst person ever. He’s acting like he’s somehow the victim in all this. I mean, maybe he is, but he hurt us worse than anyone’s ever hurt us before, so he doesn’t deserve to cry and sob and beg for mercy.

When Meadows arrived, he knelt in front of Nito with his hand on the weeping man’s shoulder. He’s been coaxing Benito to roll over for five minutes, displaying nothing but kindness and compassion, but I can tell he’s reaching his limit.

“Benito,” he says sternly. “I’m trying to do this nicely. Please don’t mistake my kindness for weakness.”

Benito sniffles before slowly rolling over. His cheeks are drenched with tears, his eyes sunken in and hollow. Those sunken eyes widen when he sees who’s in front of him, then he shoves his hands against the couch cushion as if he’s trying to back away, but there’s nowhere for him to go. Nowhere to hide. Good. We didn’t have a hiding place either, and he never let that stop him.

Meadows smirks. “We meet again. I’m going to be honest; you looked a lot better last time I saw you.”

“Please,” Nito whispers. “Please don’t take me back there.”

Shit. I forgot this isn’t Nito’s first time at the metaphorical rodeo. After he shot Abi a few months ago, Tatum shot Nito in the kneecaps, rendering him immobile. We were in the waiting room, waiting to see if Kincaid was going to make it, when Meadows toted Nito in like he was carrying a pillow. I don’t know what they did with him after they took him into one of the restricted areas of the underground labyrinth, but whatever it was, it must have been awful, because Benito looks like he’s going to pass out.

“There you are,” Meadows murmurs, brushing a hair away from Nito’s eyes. “We’re going to have a lot of fun together, Benito.” He pinches Nito’s cheek, making him squeal, but I think it’s more out of fear than pain. “Don’t worry, it won’t be all bad. I even brought you a present.” He motions for Daddy to hand over the hatbox without taking his eyes off Nito. Once it’s in his hand, he opens the box and pulls out . . . is that a dog collar?

“What on Earth is that thing, son?” Daddy asks, but Meadows doesn’t answer him. He just keeps staring into Nito’s ever-widening eyes.

“I got this just for you. Do you like it?” He brushes his thumb against the pink-and-white polka-dot fabric. “A pretty trinket for my pretty new pet.”

Benito swallows. “W-what are those things on the side?”

Meadows lifts the collar and stares at two small metal rings inside the collar. “A security measure of sorts.” He taps the hole on the left. “If you’re a naughty boy who needs to be reminded of where his place in our hierarchy stands, this little piggy will poke out and dose you with a sedative. Just as a reminder.”

“Y-you’re going to drug me?”

Meadows snorts. “I’m going to do a lot more than drug you, kid.” He cups Nito’s cheek. “I’m going to burn you down to dust,then rebuild you the way I see fit. Wouldn’t you like that, Benito? Do you want me to fix you? I’m confident I can.”

Nito’s eyes frantically dart to Benji, and I have to resist the urge to hide my boyfriend behind me so he doesn’t have to look at him for another second. “Benji! Please don’t let him do this. I’ll do anything, I’ll?—”

“Benito!” Meadows barks. It’s a sound that makes everyone in the room jolt. Once Benito’s eyes are on him again, the look of rage that was just covering his face fades entirely. I think he might be a sociopath. Too bad, so sad for Benito. He lifts the collar and hands it over. “Put it on.”

Benito shakes his head and tries to back away, but, like before, there’s nowhere for him to retreat to. No refuge from this oncoming storm.

“Put it on,” he repeats, firmer this time.

“Why don’t you just put it on for him,” Tatum groans. “For the love of the Goddess, everything doesn’t have to be this damned dramatic. Put the collar on and drag the motherfucker out of here kicking and screaming.”

Meadows glares at Tatum. “I am doing this because he needs to know who has control.” When he looks back at Nito, the anger is gone. I don’t know how he changes demeanor so suddenly, but it leaves me a little dizzier each time. “I own you now. You understand that, right?”

“I’m a person,” Benito whimpers. “You can’t own a person.”

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I already do.” His smile widens, giving off super-creepy vibes. “Now, I want you to take this collar, and I want you to put it on. Please don’t make me ask again. I can promise you, you won’t like my stern side.”

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