Page 45 of No Saint

“Gabriel,” he growls, a furious scowl on his face, “We’ve got to go.”

Something passes over Gabriel in that moment, his shoulders square and his jaw goes tight. He looks at me once more before he storms from the room and closes it behind him, leaving me alone with the lingering whisper of his kiss and a riot of thoughts that were threatening to pull me into a deep dark hole I would never come out of.

19

The car stops at the warehouse and as I climb out the stench of burned flesh and hair hits my nose, the building still smoking and bellowing black smog into the blue sky. Bodies lie on the ground in front of the large building, some covered, others not, their features now unrecognizable beneath the blisters and melted skin. Fire still burns towards one end of the warehouse, but the main section has been extinguished though there wasn’t much left of it. The roof has collapsed, the windows shattered and inside there would be more bodies.

“How?”

Atlas passes me the tablet in his hand and taps the screen, playing security footage from around six AM this morning. Three hours ago.

The warehouse sits in the industrial district on the outskirts of the city limits, far enough away that a fire of this size would remain undetected for a few hours before either workers arrived for their shifts, or the smoke was spotted.

There were guards that patrolled the grounds twenty-four seven, some in my employ, some not but they were all murdered, either shot or stabbed so no one could report the fire before it became uncontrollable.

I watch three men, dressed in that black attire I saw before with the vessel, enter the warehouse, they’re only in there for ten minutes and when they exit, one lights a match, throwing it through the open door. Flames instantly ignite and then spread like a wildfire.

“The footage between midnight and six has been erased,” Atlas tells me, “It only started rolling again from six.”

I keep watching. The man who threw the match turns to the camera, tilts his head and stares directly at it. With his face covered and the flickering of the raging fire, there’s no way to tell who it is.

And then he leaves with the rest of them, leaving the warehouse and everyone and everything inside to burn.

Ahead, firefighters battle errant fires while others scour the building for survivors. There would be none.

If the fire didn’t kill them then these men would have.

“Fuck!” I bellow.

My city was under attack. This was war but I was battling blind. I knew nothing of the enemy, no clue for the motive and I would lose if I didn’t fucking figure it out. First the vessel, now my stock. They were taking it all!

Someone wanted my city for themselves, but they were going to have to kill me first.

The Saint’s run Redhill and they have for generations, it wouldn’t be in my timeline that we lost it.

“Find out if there’s any salvageable stock,” I order Atlas, “And triple the security at our other locations. I’m finding who’s doing this.”

Atlas nods once and heads towards the warehouse and the men coming and going from the building. Anger makes my blood boil, my heart picking up speed. I climb into my car, hands balling into fists atop my thighs as I lean my head back and close my eyes to settle the fire inside me.

Amelia’s face flashes behind my eyelids, her soft hair leaving a whisper on my fingers at the memory of my hand weaving through the strands as I cupped the back of her head. The taste of her lips lingers on my mouth, the pillowy softness engrained into my brain.

Remembering the kiss soothes that rising tide. I let the memory take over. I never think clearly angry, who does? And having her controlling this side of me, even in just memory is enough to keep that rage at bay.

The echo of her sigh is like music to my ears, the moment my lips touched hers and she melted against me, letting me in, letting me possess, it was like nothing I’d ever experienced before.

I wanted more. I wanted to devour her, I wanted to taste her tongue and bite her lips and sink my fingers into her supple flesh, exploring, teasing…

But then she shut down.

I felt it the moment she did, her body going stiff, her mouth freezing on mine, but I know, if that war was not going on inside that pretty little head of hers, she would submit to me. She would let herself fall into my web and I would have her.

But my wife was too stubborn and afraid. Afraid of me and other things I had yet to find out about. But I would.

There would be no secrets she can hide from me.

But first things first, I needed to get this city safe for her, for us.

Now calmer than I was moments ago, I press the button to start the car and pull away from the smoldering wreck of the building and head across the city. Everything remained as it should, with people going about their daily lives, mingling around the shopping centers and many diners and restaurants dotted throughout Redhill. With the city being close to the sea and the famous landscapes that surround it, tourists were common. They were great for my economy and while they pump money through the many businesses, the Saint’s have always supported. No one cares where the money comes from, once it lands in their bank accounts it’s a roof over their head and food on the table. It keeps business doors open and traffic flowing. If the money comes from the dead or through less than legal activities, then so be it.

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