Page 123 of Bad Seed
“No.”
I rise, bloodied and exhausted, but—instead of rage—a strange peace pumps through my body.
“What was that?” Mr. Ato asks.
“I will not—”
A knock at the door interrupts me.
Mr. Ato’s face twists and he screams at the opening door, “I told you this is a—!”
“Sorry, boss.” Goji walks in first, but the sounds of scuffling rise from just behind the door. “But you’ll want to see this.”
“Gah!” Two men fling a woman in. She falls to her hands and knees and fights to get up, only to be met with the bloodied visage of Red. “We found her sneaking around, and thought you could use her.”
As her mouth opens to scream, her deep brown eyes land on me.
“Sadie…”
?
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
?
SADIE
My knees skid across an old rug speckled with red paint. I try to catch myself, only to come face to face with a man missing his face. My mouth drops to scream when I spin around and catch Aubry’s eye. His body’s wound up like he’s about to run for the window, and blood is splattered across his nose.
“Are you okay?” I blurt out.
“Awe…” The man he warned me about, the big boss himself, grabs me by the arm. I can barely get my feet under me before he hefts me off of the ground. “How sweet. You brought your sidepiece.”
“Sadie…”
What’s that look in his eye? Is it disappointment? Damn it, I tried.
Aubry cups his hand then slaps it against his thigh, right over his empty pocket. I do the same and give a small nod.
“Did anyone hurt you?” he asks.
When they caught me trying to slip out, the one in the white suit yanked my hair back so hard I think he tore pieces out. But judging by the way Aubry’s vein is bulging, I should probably not tell him that. “No,” I tell him, my gaze wandering over to the man who tried to scalp me. “I’m fine.”
“Cute. You’re not hurt,” the big boss, Mr. Ato says. His arm moves and, next thing I know, I’m staring down a six inch blade. “At least not yet.”
Aubry surges forward. At the last second, white-suit grabs him, then the Green guy on the floor goes for his leg. “If you fucking touch one hair on her head—!”
Mr. Ato shrugs it off, but a whole lot of flop sweat rises on the man in white’s forehead. Staring at him, Mr. Ato asks, “Where did you find this bird, Goji?”
“Outside your office.”
“Having a little looksie, were we?”
I laugh. “I was trying to find the bathroom. You know, these places are like a maze and—”
The blade presses tighter to my throat.
Aubry growls and takes a step closer even with two grown men hanging on him.
