Page 24 of Cruel God

“She can be glad I didn’t fuck her while she took her last breath.” He turned to me, and I clenched my jaw. “Do you see the true power you and I possess? Once you experience the kind of power you just witnessed, you will realize that nothing can compare to that.”

How could I respond to that? My mind was too messed up in a haze of death and blood.

Victor leaned down, bringing his face inches from my own. “Tonight, you forgot the most important rule. Never question me. When I give you an order, you do it without hesitation. Or you’ll force me to teach you a lesson you will never forget.” Another threat that clasped around my throat, a reminder that my father was the dictator—the devil himself, and no one could stop him. Except God. But God had forsaken everyone in this house a long time ago.

“Now.” Victor straightened and smoothed out his tie. “Since you were too fucking weak to do what you were told, you will take care of that mess.” He pointed toward the dead body. “Get rid of it and clean up this mess.”

My nostrils flared as the metallic smell of blood, and the stench of death filled my room. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. I didn’t want to. I wanted to engrave the image of that dead girl’s face into my fucking mind so that I’d never forget what a monster my father really was.

“Do you understand, Rex?”

“Yes, sir.” I barely got the words out as I allowed the hate to fill my insides slowly. That was the day I realized my fate was lost within the blood my father spilled. There was no escape for me. This was my life. This was who I was, and one day I would become my father. There was not a damn thing I could do about it.

Chapter 9

Present

Iplaced my hand on the bathroom sink, trying to shake the memory. That scar above my eye would always remind me of that day. The day girl number 00657 died against my bedroom wall. The day I buried my first secret.

With one last glance at my reflection, I turned to the side and saw a patch of skin behind my shoulder that wasn’t covered with ink. I decided that that spot would be perfect for the next piece of art I wanted engraved into my skin. I carved my sins into my skin so they could rot with me the day I died.

I made my way to the closet, passing my huge, ornate, king-sized bed. My room was the exact opposite of Hope’s. It was light, where hers was dark. The walls in my room were painted white, and hers a dark gray. Where she had a choice between a set of black and a set of violet silk sheets for her bed, mine was pure white, the light gray cushions the only hint of any color in my room. It was almost as if I was trying to compensate for the darkness that occupied my soul by surrounding myself with light—like her.

I shrugged into a navy-blue suit jacket, and just as I turned to grab my phone, it started vibrating.

“Motherfucker,” I cursed when I saw the name flashing on the screen. I hated whenever she called, even if it was just once a month, to remind me of my duties toward my allies. With my father’s death, not only did I inherit Victor’s millions and his entire empire, but I also inherited his allies and so-called friends who brought with them a responsibility that I had to uphold. They had to be kept happy if I wanted to enjoy their allegiances and the protection they offered. But, unfortunately, with those allies came his enemies, which was why I went to such extreme measures to keepherhidden.

“Lilith,” I answered.

“Hello, Rex.” Her voice slithered through the receiver, reminding me just how much I disliked her.

I moved to stand in front of the window overlooking the back garden. “Right on time.”

“You expected my call?”

“I always do. It seems that you think I need reminding whenever it’s time for our little get-together.”

“I’m just a concerned friend who wants to make sure you know what’s expected of you.”

Her voice and overconfidence irked me, and I clenched my fist at my side. “I know what’s expected of me, Lilith. I don’t need reminding.”

“Oh, I know you don’t. I just like hearing your voice.” Her voice dipped low as she camouflaged her words with smooth allure, and I could almost see her flipping her black hair over her shoulder while her mouth turned into a smug grin.

Just the memory of her had me swallowing the bile that crawled up my throat. I never liked her, but she was my father’s favorite ‘ally,’ and Victor took extreme measures to keep her happy. Unfortunately for me, Lilith had found a liking to me ever since I turned sixteen. Being the obedient son I was, I didn’t hesitate when I was given explicit instruction to make her…happy—multiple times. But now that Victor was dead and I had control of the Cain empire, I wasn’t sure if Lilith was an ally or an enemy. I was betting on the latter.

“I’m pretty sure you like more than just my words, Lilith.”

“Be careful, Rex. There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance.”

“I was about to tell you the same thing.”

There were a few seconds of silence before she replied, “You’ll be ill-advised to fuck with me, Rex. Especially if you want to keep the empire Daddy left you.”

“Are you threatening me?”

“Do you feel threatened?”

“Not in the least.” And that was the truth. She didn’t threaten me. We were both part of the elite members of thissociety.We were both respected and sought-after traders envied by other members—which had us both walking around with giant targets on our backs. No one was untouchable, but Lilith seemed to think she was. I was sure the day would come when her ignorance would bring forth her demise, and I prayed to God that it would be by my hand. It was a sick, twisted game we all played. But I learned that if you keep your enemies close, learn their tactics, get to know their moves, you had a greater chance of survival by keeping your cards close to your chest.

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