Page 38 of Killer Reign (The Chaos Crew 4)

I tramped through the woods for several minutes, putting plenty of distance between me and my men, until the trees gave way to a stretch of fields full of patchy grass and wildflowers. Insect life thrummed in the vegetation around me. I couldn’t see any buildings or vehicles from my current position. It felt secure enough.

I pulled out my phone and looked up the number on the card I’d photographed in case I lost the actual item. My finger hovered over the keypad for several heartbeats before I finally tapped it in and brought the phone to my ear.

He answered on the second ring, the low dark voice I recognized at once spilling through the speaker. “Hello?”

“It’s Dess,” I forced myself to say. “Decima.”

The Blood Hunter made a scoffing sound. “If you’ve decided to take me up on my offer after all, you’re too late. We’re well past the deadline I gave you. I don’t take on people who can’t follow simple instructions.”

I resisted the urge to grit my teeth. “That’s not why I’m calling.”

“What is it, then?”

“I’m calling to suggest that it’s in your best interests to back off on me and my crew.”

A startled chuckle carried through the line. “You wantmeto back off? After what your team has done to undermine my business?”

“We only went on the offensive after you blacklisted two of my men with the police,” I retorted.

The Blood Hunter didn’t speak for a moment, and I thought I heard the growl of an engine in the background. He inhaled slowly. “I told you that if you made the wrong choice, you’d regret it, didn’t I?”

I grimaced. “All you’ve done so far is make me even more convinced I made therightchoice. You aren’t entitled to ruin my life more than you already have, and you aren’t in control of the crew or what we do. You don’t own us. And we’re going to hit back every time you try.”

“Correction,” he said with a small laugh. “I don’t ownthem—not yet. That tattoo on the back of your neck shows that I do own you, and there’s nothing you can do about that.”

I reached automatically to the back of my neck and rubbed my fingers where I knew the mark was branded into my skin. When I had enough breathing room to consider it, I’d need to shave the hair there and have the tattoo removed.

“Sticking your mark on a kid doesn’t make them belong to you,” I said. “I don’t belong to the people who brought me into this world or the person who stole me from them. I only belong to myself.”

“We’ll see about that, won’t we?” The Blood Hunter paused again, for long enough that my skin started to prickle with apprehension. “And what exactly are you going to do if I continue taking whatever steps I can to crush your little band of mercenaries?”

As if I’d reveal our plans to him. Hell, I didn’t even know what our next plans would be. We were basically flying by the seat of our pants here.

“All you need to know is that they’ll hurt as much as what we’ve already done—or worse.”

The Blood Hunter let out a soft but menacing laugh. “Do you really think you’ve done that much damage? A couple of minor irritations, like a mosquito taking little bites. Soon enough I’ll swat you, andmylife will continue as usual.”

“Funny,” I said. “You’re awfully determined to crack down on us if we’re nothing more than mosquitos to you. I think we’ve hit you harder than you want to let on.”

“Do you now? You underestimate me, but then, you have all along, in so many ways.”

In the silence that followed, the engine’s thrum seemed to get… louder. But that didn’t make sense if I was hearing it through the phone while the Blood Hunter drove. Unless—

My gaze darted over the landscape around me. I picked out a figure on a motorcycle that’d just zoomed into view on a country road I hadn’t noticed, a few hundred feet distant across the field. My heart lurched.

It couldn’t be. How could he have located me so quickly? Blaze had said the phone wouldn’t be enough… But maybe the Blood Hunter had methods our hacker didn’t know about. How else could he have eyes on me?

Before I could wonder if it was just a coincidence, the motorcycle pulled onto the shoulder and the man riding it swung off it. He walked into the field straight toward me, leaving his helmet on. It looked fitting atop his broad frame. His hands appeared to be empty, but it seemed unlikely that he didn’t have some kind of weapon on him within easy reach.

I pulled out my gun, flicking off the safety, and walked sideways until I was close to the trees again. When the Blood Hunter was only fifty feet away, I raised it, hanging up the phone call. “Stop right there,” I shouted across the remaining distance.

He halted, cocking his head to one side. I didn’t need to be able to see his face to recognize the smirk that carried through his tone. “I thought you were so eager for a proper conversation, Decima. And now it bothers you that I’ve come at your beckoning?”

I didn’t want to show him how unnerved I was by his sudden arrival. “What do you want?” I demanded, holding the gun steady.

“I want you to realize who you’re dealing with and that you can’t win,” he said, with a snarl in his voice that he couldn’t quite disguise. Oh, we’d hurt his operations all right. He was absolutely enraged, as much as he was trying to hide it. “Your life is mine, and for your interference, I’m going to take the lives of your friends as well. It’s only balancing the scales.”

“Fuck you,” I spat. “You don’t own me, and you don’t stand a chance against us.”

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