Page 56 of Revenge

“Meet me at Viper’s Den. Her safety depends on you, partner.” The call goes dead before I can ask to hear her voice, and the line of sanity I’ve been straddling fades away.

They’ve taken enough from me. I’m bringing hell to their front door. And not a single one of them will survive this massacre when I’m through.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Charlee

Cool fingers run along my face, and when I open my eyes, a pair of familiar blue ones are staring back at me. “Kelsey?”

“Oh, thank god.” Kelsey sighs and rubs away her streaked mascara. Her red hair is a knotted mess as it hangs down her back. “I thought they killed you.” She leans back and helps me to a sitting position.

A sudden jolt of pain explodes along the back of my head the second I do. It feels like it’s being split in half. My hands cradle around it only to find a huge lump that’s tender to the touch.

I breathe through the pain and focus on Kelsey. Other than a split lip and a huge bruise on her cheek, she appears to be fine, but I know better than anyone some scars can’t be seen. “Are you okay?”

“I’m so stupid.” She sniffles and shakes her head. “I was pissed at Shawn—well, I guess the bastard’s name is really Axel—for being another dick, so I went out to Orphic to get over him. I’m so stupid.” I make a mental note to cut off Axel’s balls for hurting my friend if I get out of here alive, but let her continue. “I didn’t even make it through the door before they grabbed me and shoved me in a van, and I woke up here. Not before I could take a bite out of one of them, though.”

“Where are we?” A sinking feeling hits me at her words.

“Viper’s Den.”

“The strip club?”

She nods. “They own it.”

Shit. “Look at me, Kelsey. We’ll get out of here. We will.” I glance around the room to form a plan, but other than the door, there’s no other way out of this room. We’re basically sitting ducks unless I can figure out an escape. All thoughts of getting out of here die when the door opens.

Marco stands in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest. The grease on his dark hair shines underneath the fluorescent lighting, but it’s his dark eyes that make everything inside of me still. They’re lifeless and cold.

I hold my head high and look him in the eye. He will not intimidate me. “You murdered my dad. You’re a sick bastard.”

His lips spread into a smile, one that doesn’t reach the rest of his face, and the unease I feel inside grows. “You should be more worried about yourself,Chiquita.”

“You don’t scare me.” Despite all my bravado, my spine stiffens at his words.

“I should. I’m in charge now andtu papácan’t protect you from me anymore.” He uncrosses his arms and closes the distance between us until he’s kneeling down in front of me. The scent of his cologne lingers in the air like a plague, sucking all the oxygen out if the room. I’m drowning in the stench of it.

Another set of footsteps enters the room. It isn’t until he speaks again that I know things are about to get worse. Much worse.

“Take her out front and close the door,” he calls over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off of mine.

A bald guy with a bite mark on his face grabs Kelsey from behind and shoves her in the direction of the open doorway.

“Leave her alone, you son of a bitch.” Kelsey jerks against his grip and shouts the whole way out of the room.

The sound of the door latching closed seals my fate and I’m left alone, at the mercy of the devil.

“You’re all mine now, Charlee.” Marco leans in so close I can smell the tequila on his breath. It’s bitter and deadly, nothing like the sweet scent of whiskey I’ve come to love. His finger grazes my cheek and I flinch at the contact. This only angers him further. He grabs me by the nape of the neck and forces me to look him in the eye. “Mine.”

“I will never be yours.”

“I warned you about that mouth of yours,Chiquita.” His words are a huge contrast to his soothing tone. The tip of his nose trails along the side of my face and down to my neck where he sniffs me like I’m a fucking dog. “You smell likehim.” He leans back and grabs the sides of my face. “Did you let him fuck you?” His fingers dig deeper into my cheeks the longer I’m silent. “Answer me, Charlee!”

I jump at the sharpness of his tone but don’t cower. It’s not in my nature. My voice comes out smooth and controlled as I keep eye contact. “Yes! Several times.”

The attack happens so fast that I don’t realize I’ve been hit until I feel the pain. One second he’s talking and the next his hand connects with the side of my face. It’s a slow burn as the sting spreads across the rest of my cheek.

He fists my hair in a tight grip and yanks me up to my feet and against his chest. He pulls my head back to an uncomfortable angle and glares at me. “Tell me,Chiquita, did you enjoy spreading your legs for him? Being his whore? Because you won’t enjoy anything I do to you, ever. And that’s a fucking promise.”

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