Page 9 of Ever Dark

“Yes, Mr. Blackwell.”

I shoot Bones a text on the way there.Time to go trick or treating.

He responds with a thumbs-up emoji.

There’s only one thing that will make me feel better right now. Power. Because whenever I think of that sinful brunette from the bar, I feel like I’m losing control.

Crack.

Bones’s fist flies into Clive’s jaw, snapping it out of place. He’s bare-knuckling this one. It gives him more of a rush. He’s the only man I know whose cock hardens when he’s beating the shit out of someone.

“I just need a few more days, Mr. Blackwell,” Clive slurs.It’s kind of hard to talk with a broken jaw.

I snicker. “That’s what you said three days ago, Clive. We’ve been more than agreeable. Now it’s time to pay up. Poison doesn’t come for free.”

He leans forward in his chair and spits a glob of blood out on the ground. “You have plenty of money. Business has been slow this week. Would it kill you to give me just a few more days?”

Wrong answer. I don’t even have to nod at Bones.

He flashes Clive a sadistic smile before delivering another blow.

Crack.

Clive cries out in agony as his nose bursts open.

“Would it kill me? Is that what you seriously just asked me?” I snarl. “No. But it might be the fucking death ofyou. You think I got rich by letting every motherfucker who owes me money take their sweet fucking time paying me back?”

A stream of urine trickles down his pant leg. “N-no. Fuck. All I have is in the register. Take it. I can get you the rest by tomorrow night. Please… I’m begging you.”

Bones yanks on the register drawer and shakes his head as he counts the bills. “It’s only half of what he owes.”

I let out an exasperated sigh. “Twenty-four hours, Clive. Not a second more. Or else I’m going to lethimbreak every bone in your body. Right before he cums all over your mangled flesh.”

Clive’s eyes widen. He looks to Bones, who waves back at him like a psycho. “I swear. Thank you, Mr. Blackwell.”

Fuck. It’s not enough. I’m not satisfied.

I suck in a deep breath. “One more for good measure.” A sliver of darkness sparks inside me as I raise my foot and bring it down hard on his ankle.

Crack.

“Fuck!” Tears stream down Clive’s bloody face, but he doesn’t dare look at me. He doesn’t dare say another fucking word.

Bones arches an eyebrow, and I shrug. “What?” I straighten my tie. “See you tomorrow, Clive.”

I cringe at the bell that jingles when I push the shop door open. I need quiet and stillness. I need release. But I can never find it. Only for that split second I was inside… No. I will not allow a piece of ass to bring me my salvation. No fucking way. I will not feed that monster.

“You all right?” Bones puffs on a joint, his knuckles bloody.

“I have a lot on my mind. I’m fine.”

“It’s just… you never get your shoes dirty. Not since we were kids. And that’s all good. But you wanted to hurt him. I saw it in your eyes.”

Bones is tough, psychotic, unhinged, and physically addicted to pain. But he’s also incredibly smart, intuitive, and sensitive to other people’s emotions. He’s like a sadistic fucking empath who feels everything all the time.

I can placate him for a while, but eventually, he’s going to call bullshit and force me to open up.

But it won’t be today.

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