Page 163 of Dagger

The guys had tied Henderson’s hands and hung him from a meat hook. He was exhausted from crying, screaming, and sobbing for hours on end. He couldn’t hold his head up anymore, so it lolled to one side.

Atlas had stripped him naked, and we’d turned the heat off, so he hung there shaking in shock and shivering from the cold.

He must’ve known what was coming because, finally, he lifted his head. His soft, pain-filled groans filled the hole in my chest that appeared the day Elise confessed the truth of what she’d endured. My Leesy, my Duchess, had been violated by this man. He cut my daughter from her womb and kept her from her mother and me for thirty-four years.

My gaze slid toward the knives I’d laid out on the table beside me, watching the steel blades glint in the solitary light of the Cell. Standing from my chair, I carefully picked one up and tested its sharpness with my index finger.

It was ready to slice.

Turning back to Henderson, I pulled my arm back, aimed, and threw.

An animalistic scream filled the air as my dagger sliced into his groin, the blade sticking out at an angle.

“That one was for every time you raped my woman,” I scraped out.

Atlas cackled, drowning out the sound of Bowie sucking air in through his teeth.

Whimpers came from Henderson’s throat.

My eyes lifted to meet his. “Where do you want it next?”

Henderson threw his head back and screamed.

Atlas chuckled, folding his arms across his broad chest. “Do ya ever miss?”

“Nope,” I replied, taking my next dagger from the pouch, pulling my arm back, and lobbing it through the air.

It landed in Henderson’s sternum, missing the heart by inches, and another scream went up.

“That one was for my daughter,” I spat.

“Fuck!” Atlas barked out, leaning down to examine where the knife landed. “You swerved his heart. Thought you didn’t miss?”

One side of my mouth hitched. “I didn’t. The evil fucker’s not gettin’ a quick death.”

My SAA jerked a nod.

Henderson sobbed. “Please,” he begged. “Please kill me.”

Ignoring his plea, I picked up my next knife, aimed it as if I was about to throw a dart, and threw it with every ounce of strength I possessed.

It sliced into his stomach, and Henderson let out a blood-curdling scream.

“That was for every girl you sold,” I bit out. “For every daughter who was ripped from her parents and trafficked to some pervert.”

Henderson’s eyes lifted to mine, full of shock, his face white as snow through pain, terror, and blood loss. “I’m sorry!” he cried. “I’m sorr—”

The next knife cut into the side of his torso, perfectly placed to nick a lung.

I cracked my head from left to right, “You weren’t sorry when you blackmailed and manipulated my girl into marrying your sorry ass.”

“I loved her,” he croaked. ‘I just wanted her to love me.” He gurgled as the next knife hit his throat, trying to catch his breath, much like Bear did minutes before.

“That one’s for being a stupid cunt. How could my beautiful Elise ever love a snake like you?”

His eyes almost popped out of his head.

“That’ll do it,” Abe muttered.

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