Page 68 of Scarlet Mark
The plan was simple—intrigue, assassinate, leave.
All I needed to do was identify our targets, then Killian would take over from there. I’d provided him with a few pointers, little things I picked up on that Malcom did at events when he sold me to interested parties. Killian intended to mimic those actions, as well as the payment scheme his friend Raven had identified.
It’d be an intense evening, but it would end with the lethal items in my purse.
Because I wanted to kill these bastards. It was a realization that struck me this afternoon while discussing our options.
Jefferson Hampton had been there the night Malcom brutally took my virginity. He’d then requested my services several times over the horrible months that followed, his dark inclinations consistently painful.
The man embodied the devil.
As did his buddy Edward Franklin.
Malcom forced me to entertain the three of them on various occasions. At the same time.
I shivered, bile sliding up my throat at the unwelcome memories. They would forever haunt my nightmares. Their salacious grins, sweaty bodies, bulbous—
A light stroke up my spine drew my focus upward to Killian, his black-and-white mask hiding his face while highlighting the browns in his irises. His lips quirked at the side as he bent to kiss me softly. He drew his mouth across my cheekbone, beneath my ebony mask, to my ear. “You all right, kitten?”
I nodded. “Just remembering why I’m here.”To destroy my past and give myself a future.
Clarissa and Geoff shattered my views on morals as an adolescent. They stole my innocence and created a temptress in high-society clothes.
Then Malcom taught me how to hate. How to fight. How to kill.
Now I would use my knowledge and history against them all.
Tonight would be the first step in taking control of my fate and giving me the tools I required to move on.
Killian had understood all of that and agreed to let me be the one to do it. His employer—Arthur—had sanctioned the kills, saying something about the bounties being acceptable. However, he believed Killian to be the executioner. I didn’t care. I didn’t want the money. I wanted vengeance for what was done to me.
I craved a dance with revenge.
“You’re ready,” Killian murmured, approval in his voice. “Let’s wander and show off your dress.”
His palm returned to my lower back, guiding me forward along the dance floor. Everyone stood talking and socializing over drinks, the majority oblivious to the dark undertones lurking inside this mansion.
The Hampton family put on a beautiful charade, benefiting charities and raising money for their favorite politicians. Jefferson was one of Malcom’s oldest friends, having attended school together as boys. They’d formed a sick bond over their preferences in the bedrooms. Edward was the third of their fucked-up trio.
What did they enjoy? Sharing women. Violently.
I’d never met Jefferson’s wife, but Malcom had suggested I would one day in an intimate setting. Something told me she would not miss her husband after I dispatched him.
Edward was single.
That made his assassination easier.
Of course, both were respected members of society. We had to play this right to avoid suspicion, mostly because Killian had borrowed his friend’s identity for tonight’s event.
Clayton Powell, the man who owned the house we’d taken refuge in this week, had received an invite to the Hamptons’ Masquerade Gala. As Killian explained it, Clayton ran in similar circles but typically avoided functions such as this, preferring the ones with alcohol and younger attendees.
Killian described his friend as a playboy with a trust fund who preferred a good time over a dull one. When I asked how they knew each other, Killian merely smiled and said, “Work.” I doubt Clayton was a Cavalieri, but didn’t care enough to press. If it mattered, Killian would have elaborated.
Several attendees eyed us as we moved, most of the men admiring the low neckline of my dress. It dipped to my belly button, providing an indecent display of cleavage that marked me as an escort more than a date.
Which was entirely the point.
I needed to grab Jefferson’s and Edward’s attention, to entice them into bidding on me with Killian, and lure them away from the ballroom.
