Page 9 of Broken Surrender
My body tensed, everything heavy with anxiety. So he had seen, then. My jaw twitched, everything tight. This wasn’t how tonight was supposed to go.
“You are trespassing onmyproperty,” I said, widening my shoulders as best as I could, trying to seem stronger than I felt. “You need to leave.”
“Sure. And I’ll call the police for you on the way out.”
His eyes were calm and full. Like he wanted something from me. Was he bluffing?
“Go ahead,” I snapped. “Call now.”
He smiled, the expression more malevolent than I was ready for. His eye contact probing, searching me.
“I’d rather have fun,” he said.
I put a hand on the back of my neck. “What do you want from me?”
“Why were you burying your victim?”
I raised my chin, searing into him. Did he honestly think John was a victim?
“He was no victim,” I said.
“The police—or worse, the Marked Blooms Syndicate—will disagree.”
Blood pulsed in my veins. He was bringing up the Marked Blooms Syndicate?
“What do you want?” I asked again. Panic rose inside of me, straining my throat. “Take his money. I just want—”
What did I want? He was gone now. What was I supposed to do next?
“Here’s your predicament,” the man said. He stepped forward, his shoulders broad. “I saw everything. And I have it here.” He pulled out a small device from his pocket, a tiny lens shining in the dim light. “Footage of you dragging your husband to his grave.”
“That doesn’t prove anything.”
“Not in court. But all it takes is one delivery to the Marked Blooms Syndicate, and the Board will decide your fate.” I sucked in a breath, bracing myself. He knew what would happen to me then, didn’t he? I would be killed if they found out I had betrayed the Syndicate. The man took another step forward. I leaned back, almost stumbling into the hole. “Or I could tell them I did it.”
I bit my lip. What was he getting at? “Why would you do that?” I asked.
“The Board won’t interfere with issues between initiates or members. It’s left to us to deal with it ourselves.”
“You’re part of the Syndicate?”
“I’m being initiated,” he said, a subtle grin etched across his face. I scoffed. He was so proud, it was disgusting. “They’ll make sure that law enforcement never sniffs around.”
“What do you get out of this?”
“Smart woman.” He clasped his chin, looking down his nose at me. “Part of the initiation is offering someone to the Syndicate.” He traced a finger down my arm, studying the dirt on his fingertip.
“What do you mean? Like, sexually?”
He smiled to himself, that smug grin tracing his lips. I wanted to slap him. “You would like that, wouldn’t you, little slut?”
I clenched my jaw. “How dare you—”
“Let me offer you to the Syndicate, and all of this goes away.”
My stomach tensed. Would I ever be able to get out of this? “You want to offer me? To a group of men or something?” I shook my head. “You are sick.”
“Who knows? It could be men. Women. A mix of both. Sex, or something much, much more,” he grabbed my wrist, “revolting.And you just killed your husband.” He let go of his grip, brushing his fingers down both of my arms. I dropped the shovel. A smile crept across his lips. I shivered. “What negotiating power do you truly have?”
