Page 46 of Reaper
“Who?” Oya asks.
She’s standing beside me now, gripping onto my arm.
“My piece of shit brother. He sold me to the Russians.”
She calls my name, but her voice fades to the background when my eyes land on him. The pounding of my heart drowns out all other sounds as months of anger, hurt, and rage consumes me.
Although he’s got addiction issues, he’s been with his company for more than eight years as a financial analyst. But his issues keep him from having the life he wants. The more money he tries to get the worse it gets for him.
Both Oya and Alana are calling my name, but no one’s going to stop me as I storm towards him. He’s all smiles as he chats it up with three other men in business suits like he has no care in the world. Like he didn’t sell me to the damn Bratva. There’s no way in hell he’s going to get away with this.
When I reach the table, his laughter dies down as all conversation ceases, leaving an expectant silence heavy in the air. His eyes widen briefly before he wipes away all traces ofemotion. He takes a sip of whiskey from the rocks glass, then sits it back on the table.
“Can I help you?” one of the men he’s with asks. “We’re in the middle of a meeting.”
He’s nice to look at, with his chiseled jawline, tanned skin, and model perfect hair. But not like Logan. He doesn’t have good looks or the rough around the edges appeal.
“You bastard! Look at me!”
My brother avoids my gaze, his eyes darting away, and his silent rejection fuels my anger. He looks so much like our father. Both had the same dark hair, similar builds, and smooth brown skin; however, his eyes are strikingly different. His eyes are the same hauntingly green as his mother’s.
“Look, I don’t know who you are, but this is a private meeting,” the man sitting to Kurt’s left states. “If you don’t leave us alone, I’ll have the staff call the police and have you escorted off the property.”
Someone snickers from beside me and that’s when I realize I’m not alone. Both Oya and Alana are to my right and left, and some of the Sinners who escorted us here are also standing around me and behind Kurt.
“Maybe your business partners would like to know about your addictions and what you’ve done to me since you don’t have the decency to look me in my face,” I say with deadly calm.
My brother jumps to his feet and lunges for me, but he doesn’t get close because some of the Sinners grab him as he struggles against their holds.
“It was fucking three years, Paris!” he screams as they continue to hold him. “All you had to do was play nice. Now they want to kill me!”
The once lively patio is now eerily quiet; only the distant rumble of cars as they pass and a faint, muffled hum of music from the bar breaks the silence. Some people have theirphones out recording of course, while others look on like they’re watching a prize fight.
But I can care less. This is my brother, and he threw me to the fucking wolves because he can’t be a damn adult. My body rattles with so much rage as I take a few steps until I’m standing right in front of him. Before I know it, my palm lands against his face, the pain traveling up my arm.
“Play nice! You son of a bitch! They took everything from me! Everything!”
He glares at me but doesn’t say anything. What can he say? I already know he hates me. He has to, if he can just give me over to a predator like Nikita, but I didn’t believe he hated me this much.
“You’re dead to me,” I say as I try to get to him, but someone holds me back. “I hope you get everything you deserve.”
“They’re going to kill me!” he shouts. “All because of you!”
I shake my head as realization sets in. Nothing will make him take responsibility for what he’s done to me. He believes everything wrong in his life is because of someone else and I’m not exempt from that. He used me, like he used everyone in his life to get what he wants. Blood doesn’t matter.
“I hope they do.”
“You fucking bitch!” he screams.
Without saying another word to him, I leave the patio despite Oya and Alana calling my name. I just want to curl up in Logan’s arms and forget the one person who should have protected me, just gave me to some of the most awful people without a second thought.
Reaper
Itdoesn’ttakelongto find the cop’s witness. Common sense says it can only be one person. And once our inside man in the police gave King the address to where the police are stashing this mysterious witness and their name, I can’t stop the rage from rising in me.
When I first got arrested for Aleksi’s murder, I didn’t believe it could be her. She wouldn’t fucking dare, had been my first thought. Obviously, I didn’t account for cameras or other patrons coming in and out of the club. I just wanted Aleksi dead. But imagine my surprise when I found out it came from someone with firsthand knowledge. My biggest mistake had been relying on anyone other than myself to get shit done. Now I have to rectify my mistake.
Nobody.
