Page 10 of Reaper Flame

“What makes you think Giles believes you after what happened last time?” I raised my eyebrows. “Don’t you think he’ll see it coming if you plan to double-cross him?”

“The Briarlys and I have the same goals,” Hiram said. “Giles and your new uncle-in-law see the benefits of working together. What happened with the Sevens? It’s water under the bridge. They see the value I can bring and what I canreallydo for them… for now, at least.”

Hiram’s promises wouldn’t last. When the Briarlys least expected it, Hiram would tear them down.

I rolled my eyes. “And here I was thinking I’d be the Briarly heir!”

“Oh, but you will,” Hiram said, his eyes lighting up. “If something happened to Bryce and Giles, a wife would be a natural successor. We use them to build an empire, then take it for ourselves.”

Well, shit…

There were many things I could criticize about Hiram, but his twisted logic wasn’t one of them. If Giles and Bryce weren’t such assholes, I might even feel sorry for them.

“As I said, today changes nothing,” Hiram said. “You will always be mine. Wherever you go. Whoever you marry. You belong to me.”

A piece of paper in the eyes of the law was meaningless, but Hiram’s word was as real as a chain tied around your ankle. He was ready to drag you underwater until you hit the bottom of the fucking ocean and drowned.

* * *

Our wedding party was taking place in a private club that had hosted many of Hiram’s intimate gatherings in the past. The place was a cross between a whore house and a circus, where drugs were passed around like candy. By the time we showed up, extra guests had arrived. Those who weren’t hellbent on letting loose like it was 3am instead of 3pm were sitting in dark corners scheming far worse plans.

“What do you think, Kitty?” Hiram asked as we got out of the car and headed into the flashing lights. “Does it remind you of your early days?”

Yeah, days where I’d spend my evenings lurking around in bars to seduce a target, then rob or kill him… or both. After so long locked in the confines of Blackthorne Towers, I relished the outings and embraced the responsibility. I knew about the terrible things my marks had done, and it gave me great pleasure to obliterate them from existence.

As we entered the club, an older man in a perfectly tailored navy suit swanned over to greet us. He shook Hiram’s hand and exchanged greetings, but I didn’t look in his direction.

“Kitty, what a long time it’s been!” Bryce Briarly said, finally turning to me. From the smug smirk on his face, I sensed he was proud of his nephew for finally earning them an invitation to a criminal A-list event. “Forgive me for missing the ceremony. I couldn’t make it in time.”

I narrowed my eyes. “You weren’t missed.”

Bryce may have got screwed over by his son in his attempt to make a deal with Hiram, but I hadn’t forgotten how he’d been the one to lure me to that warehouse and planned to use me to make a profit. Being a monster runs in the family.

“How about we let bygones be bygones?” Bryce suggested. “After all, you’re part of the family now.”

“I will never be part of your family,” I spat.

The Briarly bloodline was nothing but pure poison.

“Having a reunion, are we?” Giles swaggered over to join us, puffing his chest out like a peacock. Judging by his saucer-like pupils, it was no mystery as to why he’d gotten over his bout of stage fright at the church. He may be embracing the attention, but he was too stupid to realize he was the butt of everyone’s jokes.

I raised an eyebrow. “You couldn’t wait to start on the coke, huh?”

Giles pulled a large bag of white powder out of his pocket and waved it around like a toy airplane. “It was a wedding gift!”

“Rule number one.” Hiram snatched the drugs out of his hand. On the streets, shit that pure could be cut to make more than the cost of the wedding. “Don’t snort the merchandise.”

Giles’s cheeks reddened in anger, but Bryce’s stern look and quick head shake stopped him from objecting. He knew better than his nephew.

“See?” I said pointedly to Hiram. “Thisis what happens when you bring in amateurs.”

Before anyone could say more, the girlfriend of the State’s biggest hallucinogenic dealer staggered across to congratulate us. She wore heels that looked like tiny gnomes and stroked my meringue skirt like it was a fluffy cat.

“Your dress is amazing,” she admired. “It’s so soft! Look at all the pretty patterns! It looks like a rainbow!”

I tugged my dress out of her grasp. She didn’t notice and continued to stroke the air. Wouldn’t it be nice to see the world through her technicolor lens?

“I’m gonna step outside,” I muttered, needing to get away from the bustle.

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