Page 122 of Riot's Thorn
Ten minutes later, that tornado of emotion has calmed, and I feel okay to get up. I reverently set the headphones and glasses on the kitchen island so I’ll remember to take them back to the clubhouse. Then, I get to work cleaning up, my mind draining of all thought as I work from top to bottom.
Sometimes, my job requires someone to disappear without a trace, so for those situations, I had to learn to clean the right way. The steps are like second nature to me now.
Once the house smells heavily like bleach and I’m certain there isn’t a drop of blood anywhere, I set off to find my woman. Standing in the doorway of her room, I take a second to feel the wave of calm, knowing she’s resting. There are a few more things to wrap up before she’ll be safe, but that’ll be taken care of real soon. Then, we can get down to the business of living our lives.
She relayed everything Roland told her to me, and it wasn’t until then that Bart’s cryptic words made sense. I thought he was just trying to save his hide, and once he realized his death was imminent, he said whatever he had to in order for it to go quick. That was my mistake.
I strip to my boxers and climb into bed next to her, surprised when she sighs and turns into me, curling her body around mine. There was no question in my mind that I was keeping her forever, but against all odds, I managed to convince her to care for me, to feel safe with me, to want me back. I refuse to thank a god I don’t believe in, but I can’t deny there’s something working in my favor. I don’t deserve a second of her affection.
“I love you,” she says sleepily, and fuck, those words kickstart my heart into overdrive. I never thought for even a second that I’d ever have the love of a woman, but here she is.
I want to say it back. Fuck knows I feel it. But it’s so much more than that, and if I say those three little words, she might think that’s all I feel.
What I really want to say is that she’s written herself on my soul. That I live for her alone. That she owns me as much as I own her.
Not even that’s enough, though. So instead, I say, “You’re the thorn in my side.”
I feel the corners of her lips turn up. “I know.”
“What is this?” Roland cries. “Where am I?”
“It’s more or less a coffin, rubber-lined to keep the mess localized,” I say, walking around the single wooden box currently holding two full-grown men and making sure the rubber is secure.
Roland hears moaning next to him, but he can’t see who it is. I have their heads strapped down, along with their limbs so they can’t touch or escape. Not that they’d be able to get out of the basement at the Honey Pot. Plus, it’s more secure than Roland Sr.’s mansion. I should know, since I broke in and took him.
“Who’s there? Who’s next to me?” Roland, who turned out to be a junior, is on the verge of a panic attack, and I can’t say I blame him. This shit is twisted, even for me.
“Roland?” Senior says groggily.
“Dad? You took my dad too?” Roland shrieks.
“All you had to do was leave Parker alone, and we never would’ve crossed paths again. I never would’ve known you were involved.” I hold the blade of my knife up to the light, admiring the straight edge. It’s perfect for precision slicing and minimizes the risk of punctures. That’s important when making a gourmet meal, but it’s also important for what I have in store for Junior and Senior.
“You went after her again?” Senior sounds annoyed. I guess his kid never learned how to obey. Either way, it doesn’t absolve him of his sins just because he wasn’t directly involved in the incident with Parker.
It’s been two weeks since then, and my girl is doing better each day. She’s able to put more weight on her ankle, and hergunshot wound is healing beautifully. Although she’s pissed she won’t have much of a scar. Apparently, she wanted to tell people who asked that she’d been shot. I don’t think I’ll ever understand how her mind works, but I can live with her craziness if she can live with mine.
The bruises on her face are starting to fade, and the headaches she was plagued with after Roland ripped hair from her scalp are lessening, but most importantly, she’s less fearful every day. The first few nights, she woke up screaming at least once. I managed to keep my shit together, but only by driving out here and beating the shit out of Roland each time I had to hold her so she could sleep.
The last two weeks haven’t been good to him to say the least.
“I’m sorry, okay? Just let us go, and I’ll never even look at her again.”
“I understand why you want her. She’s beautiful, smart, and has a sharp tongue, which gets her in trouble all the time. She’s a thorn in my side, but she’s my thorn, and what kind of man would I be if I allowed you to share the planet with her?”
“Listen, son. Roland gets fixated sometimes,” Senior tries to reason. “And clearly, I’ve let his leash extend too far. I swear on everything holy, I’ll rein him in.”
“The problem with that is, Roland is here because of Parker, but you’re here because of all the women and children you’ve harmed,” I say, slicing across his stomach but not deep—just enough to draw blood.
“Shit!” Senior curses, his whole torso heaving. Unfortunately, I had to strip them of their clothing, and now, his saggy balls and gray pubes have me hoping I die young, with tight balls and a working cock.
“Have you ever heard of dermestid beetles?” I ask, slicing across Junior’s thigh before walking around to Senior and giving him a matching slice.
“No. What the fuck does a beetle have to do with anything?” Senior asks. “And why do you keep cutting us? What are you going to do to us?”
I circle the wooden box propped up on a couple of sawhorses. With each pass, I make another cut. One of these days, I’ll be patient enough to find out if death by a thousand cuts is real because Parker asked about it, but that’s not today. There’s no time for that now. I have about an hour before I meet Parker at the clubhouse to show her our new home. I’m nervous and anxious and have already spent some time decompressing today.
But it’s also a good day because these two fuckers are going to die. Well, they won’tdietoday, but I’m at least getting things going.
