Page 64 of The Kings
“No,” Eliza says. “If we kill him, it ends there. This has to go way higher than some fucking idiot too stupid to know he got into bed with the wrong asshole.”
“Time to dig into the dirt and find the bastard behind this,” Raphael mutters.
“And when we do, he will wish he’d never set foot anywhere near us,” I add.
30
ELIZA
“Who the fuckdoes this bastard think he is?” My voice breaks the silence, a sharp crack in the stillness of our townhouse’s lavish living room. The latest message, another spine-chilling threat, lies on the coffee table—a gruesome reminder that our position as the dominating force on campus is under siege.
Glaring at the doll that looks like me again, only this time with my head attached but soaked in blood with a knife sticking out of my heart, I grunt. “This fucker is playing with us, and we’re letting him.”
Raphael leans forward, his dark eyes scanning the room like an eagle hunting prey. “Lettingis a strong word, but I agree. It’s time to get ahead of this prick. We need eyes everywhere.” He slams his fist on the arm of the leather sofa, the sound echoing off the high ceilings. “More cams, more surveillance. We’ll catch this fucker in the act.”
I nod, the cogs in my mind already turning. Raphael’s right. I’m not about to let some faceless stalker think they can intimidate Eliza Hughes. No one threatens me and gets away with it.
“Cameras aren’t enough.” Tarquin’s voice cuts through the tense air. He’s pacing now, a wolf needing to roam. “We’ve got snitches and eyes in places cameras can’t go. Time we tap into that goldmine.”
“They aren’t talking,” Oliver says. “They either know fuck all or they’re too shit scared of stitches. This is next level.”
“It’s pro. No doubt. I thought this from the beginning. But why target a bunch of university students, next gen mafia or not? I mean, is he a coward going after smaller prey, or what?”
“Or maybe it’s practice,” Raph murmurs, stopping us all cold.
“Yeah, maybe, but I’m unconvinced. There’s more to it.”
Almost as I dared it to throw something else at us, my phone buzzes. I glance at the screen; an unknown number flashes ominously. The message is just four words: “I’m always watching you.” Attached is a photo that freezes my blood—a snapshot of me sleeping in my bedroom at home, oblivious and vulnerable.
“Fuck,” I hiss, showing the image to Raphael, whose eyes darken with the promise of violence.
“Where was this taken?” he asks.
“Back home, in the city,” I reply, my voice steady despite the chill clawing up my spine. “My dad’s house.”
“Fuck,” he mutters. “Shit just went up a notch.”
“You think?” I practically screech, suddenly feeling as vulnerable as a worm on a hook. “If someone got to me under my dad’s fucking nose, that means only one thing…”
Raphael’s jaw clenches. “Inside job.”
Tarquin snatches the phone from me, studying the photo with a scrutinising eye. “This is bad. We need to tighten security around you. You’re never to be alone.”
I snatch back my phone, anger and fear warring within me. “No one should’ve been able to get this close without my dad knowing.”
The thought makes my stomach twist. Dad’s men are loyal—or so I believed. But loyalty can be lost on a dime, so maybe that was naïve of me. The fact remains that if one of them has turned against me or my dad, then we’re dealing with a betrayal that cuts deeper than any knife could.
“Shit.” Tarquin’s brow furrows as he paces the length of the room. “It’s looking bad.”
“No outsider could pull this off. Not in my dad’s house.”
“Nothing’s changed. We find the fucker,” Raphael states, the menace in his voice matching the storm brewing in his eyes. “But now we have somewhere to start.”
“Dad’s house.”
“It’s time to go hunting,” James says, the corners of his lips tilting into a sinister smile. “Let’s see who’s brave enough to stalk the wolf.”
“Stupid, you mean,” I murmur, grabbing my leather jacket off the back of the sofa and feeling for Felicity in my belt. The Kings mirror my movements, each with their own preference for deadly steel. Raph’s knuckles are white as he grips a gun, checking the clip before tossing it to Tarquin, who shoves it in the back of his pants and picks up another for himself.
