Page 48 of Murder & Mayhem

Both Cain and Oliver have their guns raised, pointed at the two other men, and while the idiot who still has his hand wrapped around my throat was distracted by the commotion, I slipped my own blade out of my boot. When his attention returns to me, I subtly jab the tip of the blade into his side. His whole body tenses as he recoils, glancing down, and when he returns his shocked, wide-eyed stare to my face, I grin viciously at him.

I dig the blade deeper into his side until his fingers loosen around my neck, his hand eventually dropping away as he takes a step back, clutching his side. As a team, Cain, Oliver, and I advance until we have the three boys corralled in the middle of the room.

“What the fuck is this all about?“ the guy in front of me demands. He should know, though, that he’s not the one in charge here. He is not the one asking questions. What really pisses me off is the fact that he directs the question to Cain and Oliver. His panicked gaze darts back and forth between them as he practically ignores me, not seeing me as being as much of a threat.Stupid, fucking, dick-wielding boys.

To make him realize exactly who is in charge here, I poke him hard enough in the chest with the point of my blade that it pierces through the cotton fabric of his top and into his skin, drawing blood to match his wound from a moment ago. He hisses at the sting of pain, swiveling his gaze to mine. Unrestrained loathing burns in his eyes, and I meet his stare head-on with a chilling one of my own. He’s face-to-face with the Reaper right now, and after one agonizingly long second, he seems to realize it. I smile smugly in satisfaction as fear flashes across his face before he quickly masks it, straightening his spine.

One of his buddies snorts. “Please, three against two? We can easily take you on.”

Eh, hello! Does he not see me standing here?

Surprisingly, Cain speaks up, the thread of violence in his tone only making the blood rush faster through my veins. He looks so fucking hot with his smug smirk, the thrill of the challenge dancing in his eyes. “I wouldn’t underestimate Red, there. She’s probably killed more men than we have.”

I grin savagely as all three fuckwits stare at me, a combination of skepticism and disbelief in their eyes. “Easily.”

With a pinched expression, one of them asks, “What do you want?” His question gains my attention, and I focus my cold-dead eyes on him, noting the rage simmering just beneath the surface of his calm facade. “If it’s money, we have plenty of that. Just name your price.”

“I don’t want your money.”

My casual dismissal of his wealth surprises him, and he stutters for a second before speaking up again, this time not sounding as confident as he did before. “W-well, whatever it is, I’m sure we can get it for you.”

I tilt my head to the side, maintaining eye contact with him as I act as though I’m thinking about it. I tap my finger against my lips, taking my sweet time as I let the three of them sweat it out before finally responding.

“There is one thing I’d like.”

The guy who spoke up is already nodding his head in agreement, and a moment later, the other two agree as well, all three of them willing to give me whatever I want so long as it means they walk out of here with their lives intact. “Anything,” one of them insists.Fucking idiot.

“I’m a big believer in karma,” I muse, ignoring everyone's confused looks. “If you put nasty juju out in the world, then it’s only fair that you receive bad fortune in return.”

“I don’t—Ouch!”

I stab the asshole in front of meagain, sinking the blade deep into his skin and smirking in satisfaction as a third steady stream of blood soaks through his white t-shirt, and he hisses in pain. Maybe the third time is the charm.

“You are done talking,” I snap. “It’s time you fucking listened.” Anger licks along my spine as I hold myself back from just finishing him off here and now. “It is time you realized you arenotthe one in charge here. You arenotcalling the shots. Your moneycannotbuy you out of this. You are atmymercy, playing bymyrules, and if you want any hope of surviving this night, you will do exactly asIsay.” My threat is delivered with such vehemence that all three of them shrink away from me—well, as far as they can without colliding with Oliver or Cain.

“Phone,” I snap, holding my hand out. Fumbling in his pocket, the guy in front of me hands over his phone. Looking at the screen, I frown when it asks for a passcode, and I flick my gaze up to him, silently demanding the code. He rattles off the numbers without hesitation, and I type them in before beginning to search through the phone. The girls had mentioned that the guys liked recording them, and it doesn’t take long before I find a group chat where the three of them have been sharing videos of theirconquestsback and forth. Anger and disgust bubble inside me as I scan through the various videos and photos. Each one is more disgusting than the last, but I’ve seen all I need to. Sneering, I toss the phone to Oliver, who scrolls through the videos before handing it off to Cain. Unlike Oliver, who remains cold and emotionless, Cain vibrates with anger as he stares at the screen.

“You sick fucks,” he snarls when he’s done, pistol-whipping the guy in front of me and sending him crashing to the ground. He immediately reaches down and hauls him up by his shirt, but before he can land a punch, I call out his name, my tone sharp.

He pauses and looks my way, rage simmering in his dark eyes. I silently stare him down, reminding him without words that this ismyshow. His lips thin, and I can tell he’s not one bit happy about it, but eventually, he lowers his fist and lets the guy go.

When I’m confident he’s got himself under control, I grab three gags from the cart, tossing one each to Oliver and Cain. The boys’ gazes follow every little movement, their postures tense as they wait to see what we do next.

“Put these on,” I order, holding out the ball gag in my hand.

The dickhead just gapes at it before he starts shaking his head. “No way. No fucking way.”

I sigh in disappointment, pinning him with an unimpressed look. I notice the other two guys glancing furtively at the gags Oliver and Cain are both holding, but they wisely don’t verbally protest their objections. “It wasn’t a request.”

Still, none of them move. I bet if it had been Cain or Oliver who had directed the order, they would have jumped into action. Regardless, I quirk a brow at Oliver, and with a grin, he doesn’t hesitate to shoot the asshole in front of him in the knee.

“What the fuck?!” his friend cries out, as the guy falls to the floor, screaming bloody murder as he stares in shock at the gaping wound.

“Put the fucking gags on,” I order yet again in an ice-cold voice.

This time they realize I mean fucking business, and the two still standing immediately reach for the gags, but the guy in front of me hesitates with it in his hand, glowering at me with too much defiance for my liking. “Everyone in this building just heard a gunshot going off. I bet the police are already on their way.”

The laugh that bursts out of me is cold and caustic. “You’re in Black Creek, you fucking idiot. Not to mention the fact you’re in a brothel. No one will be calling the police.” As he roughly swallows, his Adam’s apple bobbing, I grin so fucking vindictively that I’m surprised his heart doesn’t give out there and then. “You’re all mine for the night, and I intend to have some fun.”

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