Page 36 of Cruel God

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, smelling the familiar scent of death and victory.Another battle won. Another move closer to checkmate.

Colton remained frozen, expressionless as he stared blankly at X’s corpse. Dark red blood oozed out of X’s chest, every ounce of life draining from his body. His head was hanging eerily to the side, the knife still lodged in his hand.

As I watched X’s blood soaking through his shirt, all I saw was Hope’s bruised face as I carried her to the infirmary that day. The blood on her lip and the red marred skin of her cheek. Every step I took, holding her, cradling her against my chest, all I thought about was the day I’d fulfill the promise I made her. No one had the right to touch what was mine, and for that reason alone, I knew the day would come when X would die…and that day was today.

“Well then,” I started, clapped my hands together, and walked around my desk. “Now that that’s taken care of, I suggest we start planning.” I looked at Colton, his expression still emotionless and empty.

“Mr. Riggs,” I said clipped, and Colton cut his gaze to meet mine. “See it as getting rid of an obstacle on the road to finding your sister.”

Even as the words came out of my mouth, I knew there was no way in hell that Colton would ever find her. He’d be dead before he got the chance. I was simply feeding his determination which in turn would make him the perfect pawn to do my bidding.

He thought he could bullshit me by pretending he had nothing but a large bank account to gain by being here. Thought I was stupid enough to let someone into my home, someone I knew nothing about. I knew every little fucking detail of his life. I knew his favorite food. His favorite drink. I knew his goddamn blood type, and the last time he took a motherfucking piss. Colton was in my world now. He was walking around in my realm—and what kind of god would I be if I’d let a loose fucking canon walk freely? If I jeopardized losing that which I held most dear?

I was no fucking fool, and today I showed Hope’s big brother that no matter how many lies he told, how many secrets he tried to hide. I was always. In. Control.

Chapter 13

It’s been days since X bled out all over my office. Colton seemed more grim than usual but also more determined than ever. He handled five shipments and personally delivered three girls to buyers throughout Chicago. It was as if murdering someone in cold blood made all the other shady activities he had to do pale in comparison. Pretty Piper had been summoned to Colton’s room every time he arrived back at the mansion. I no longer had to demand she seduce him. And every morning, Piper would show me the evidence that proved Colton was slipping deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole. Not only was her ass covered in grotesque red and purple lashes, but her wrists had grooves from the rope Colton had tied her up with. Luckily I knew Piper was into the hardcore shit Colton was dishing out, which meant I didn’t have to worry about her safety. Not like I would have if she weren’t a hardcore bitch. But still—it lulled my conscience just a teeny-tiny bit.

This morning when Piper left my office after reporting back to me, I saw the way she walked. She had been thoroughly fucked, and exhaustively used. It’s like Colton had finally been consumed by the demons that roamed these halls.

I also noticed that while Colton had driven about fifty miles an hour on his quest to find his sister, he was now driving at two hundred miles an hour toward his end goal. It made me nervous to see his determination grow stronger while his soul turned black. I had to be extra careful around the big brother. He would be a loose cannon real fucking soon.

Standing behind the bar, I poured two glasses of whiskey and eyed the gloomy-looking Colton, who sat on the other side of the bar. Poor bastard had bags under his eyes, his irises no longer flashing with life like they did when he arrived here a few weeks ago. His expression had hardened, his shoulder squared, yet it seemed to carry the weight of the world. One thing was for sure; if he managed to survive me, he’d be too far gone to ever have something that resembled a normal life. It was a win-win for me, no matter what the outcome.

“You look like shit,” I remarked while keeping my eyes on Colton’s face.

He brought his glass of whiskey up to his mouth. “Thanks.”

“It’s not a compliment.”

“I didn’t take it as one.” He took a big gulp of alcohol.

“You need to pull your shit together. The party is in two days, and you better be fucking ready and prepared, or it will all blow up in our fucking faces.”

His lifeless eyes shot up to mine. “I’ll be ready.

“You have your way in cleared?”

“Yup.” He drained the rest of his whiskey and slammed the empty glass down on the counter before wiping his mouth with his sleeve. “I have my way in, and I know exactly where the vault is where he keeps the recordings.”

“You have the code?”

“I’m working on it.”

“Work faster.” I took my glass and moved around the bar as Colton turned in his seat.

“Are you going to tell me why you had me kill X?”

I stopped and turned around to face him. “I told you, he knew too much.”

“You and I both know that’s a crock of shit.”

“I don’t care what the fuck you think you know. X knew too much, and his loyalty was questionable, so he had to die. As easy as that.”

Colton shook his head and got off his seat. “I call bullshit.”

“I don’t give two flying fucks what you call.”

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