Page 24 of Queen Of WildCards

Myquarters looked pretty mild, with neutral colors, a small full-size bed, and a desk, which was like my home away from home when we were planning a heist.

Joker—now his room was wild.Coloreverywhere, a whole mess strewn from one side of the room to another.Hewas chaos personified, and it wouldn't surprise me if there were old thongs from previous trophy fucks interspersed with empty alcohol bottles stuffed under his bed.

Sometimes,Iwas truly thankful for my little space.Myquiet place whereIcould escape these warring fronts.

Andother times, like now,Iwondered why the damn tiny space still managed to feel so empty.Sovast, likeIwas swimming in anOlympic-size pool with no end in sight.

Iyanked a towel out of the hallway closet and padded down to the huge communal shower we'd installed when we moved into this place.Aceinsisted it was for beating the tension out of sore muscles, but until todayIhadn't had a reason to test his theory.

Butright now,Iwould encourage any reprieve from this sinking feeling in my gut that this would all go sideways very soon, and eliminate the crawling under my skin that wouldn't leave me be.

Somethingwicked this way comes.

CHAPTERELEVEN

MALLORY

Ihad done some wild things in my youth, but never hadIended a night out on the floor of an animal cage in the belly of what could only be these criminals' hideout, in a very revealing outfit, surrounded by four men who obviously were at war over what to do with me.

Threethings were very clear.

One—they were worriedIknew too much.

Okay, that one's fair.Idid know a fair sight more than was safe for me to know.

Two—the oneI'dinjured with the blade was a little unstable.

Understatement, butIwasn't about to split hairs over it.

Three—it was still a toss-up on whetherIlived or died.

Ihad to come up with a plan to survive.IfIdidn't, if they caught me unawares, it would be over in a second, and that's all she wrote.Iwasn't sure why they'd called a side meeting, butIwas wasting time.

Think,Mal, think!

Allmy training, all those years of preventative therapy, of training others to handle a captive situation, was gone in an instant, the knowledge somehow evaporated like a fucking puddle on a hot summer day.Isifted through the shifting sands of my faulty, fragmented mind, fighting the remnants of the booze and the fallout of an adrenaline rush, but there was nothing valuable or helpful on the other side.Justpile after pile of basic knowledge that did me no good in an escape.

Whenthey brought me in,Ihad been bound and hooded, soIdidn't remember much, but the way the exhaust had rattled off the walls made me think we were in some sort of metal building.Maybeone of those corrugated steel barns or a small warehouse.Andsince they'd carried me in,Ihadn't felt the flooring beneath my feet.Ihadn't felt what direction we walked, so finding my way back to the car would be damn near impossible.

I'dbeen alone long enough to contemplate my uncomfortable bladder and need for some fluids when the sound of footsteps re-entered the room.Icast my eyes over to the door, and there stood the weird oneI'dstabbed in the alley.Hewaggled a few fingers at me and smiled, creeping me out even further.Hecould have taken a seat on the couch or kept moving to god knows where they all slept, but he didn't.

Becauseof course he didn't.

Hestopped right in front of the door to my cage and slipped a key inside, and the stupid fucking door swung open with a sadistically loud screech.Iwinced, he winced, and then he was clambering inside with me.Imean, sure, it was big enough, butIdidn't want anyone in this damn cage with me.

Especiallynot the manI'dalmost maimed.

Murdered.

Whatever.

"Hey, now," he soothed, reaching a scarred hand out to brush against my cheek. "Comeon;Iwon't hurt you."

Ireally tried hard not to roll my eyes, but it slipped out, much to his amusement and my complete terror.

Greatgoing,Mallory, you're insulting the crazy one; smart.

Hisdeep chuckle did things to my insides, and a lock of his red hair slipped out of the low ponytail he had it slung up in. "Okay, considering the events of tonight,Icould see where you might have that misconception.ButIdon'twantto hurt you."

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