Page 16 of F*ck Steal Kill

“Alright, psycho killer, time to set a trap and see if we can get you to come out of hiding.”

First, I checked the locations of Grady and Quentin, finding them still at the local attractions they’d chosen to investigate for the day. This town was so odd, but I liked it in a weird way. It had a unique concept, making it more alluring than most cities, even if their best attraction was a massive toilet bowl.

Scouring my database, I still couldn’t figure out how this person picked his victims. They ranged from young to old, men to women, and covered all socioeconomic backgrounds. The only common factor we could identify was that they were all despicable human beings. From child abusers, rapists, to drug addicts, the world was a better place without them around.

Which was why we were here in this odd town of Foolshope. Someone taking the law into their hands and bestowing their own form of justice was dangerous. It was only a matter of time before other people discovered what this person was doing and wanted to use them for their own gain.

The pressure to successfully secure this person was insurmountable. It was our last chance to prove to our boss we were ready to take on the Savages.

“You like bad people, so let’s see how bad I need to be,” I mumbled into the quiet room, typing in a few things onto a dark web message board. I didn’t know how to get this guy’s attention, otherwise.

User19740: My usual haunt has become dry as of late. I’m headed to Foolshope. Does anyone know if there are any circles? I’ll pay top dollar. I like them young.

Shuddering, I worried I’d give myself nightmares from this message board alone. I had a bot running to scour them and find users we needed to monitor. It saved me from reading through some despicable things I wouldn’t be able to get out of my head and cut my time in half. I was filtering through some of the lines of code when a message popped up.

User89173: I know someone. They will only meet if you can show proof of what you’re requesting. A trade per se. They don’t want to be set up.

User19740: Whatever they need.

User89173: I’ll reach out and get back to you for a fee.

They signed off, and I realized my heart was pumping. My hands shook slightly, and sweat had beaded along my brow. This was why I often stayed behind the computer. I wasn’t good when it came to interacting with people. Taking a deep breath, I rechecked the guy's location to ensure I still had time to research. Finding them both still where they said they’d be, I closed out the dark web browser I’d been in and opened a new one.

The other night, I’d finally stumbled upon something. I’d been digging more and more into the Savages, hoping to find something new to use against them. Grady and Quentin wouldn’t approve—especially Q—citing it was too dangerous, so I kept my search quiet.

But then I discovered something. I just wasn’t sure if I could use it or not. Was our vengeance worth ruining an innocent’s life?

I could hear Q asking how innocent a Savage could be, but I had a feeling even he would hesitate at this one. At least, I hoped.

Ava Savage, age 17, daughter to Alec Savage—known to most as Viper, head of the Savages.

Viper was the leader of the Savages and the man who’d killed Q’s mom, my uncle, and Grady’s fiancé. Camila had been his last victim before taking over as head of the family. We all had a reason to hate the Savages, especially Viper, but was this too far? It felt like it was.

I worried Q and Grady wouldn’t think so. They were often singularly focused on their revenge, assuming once the Savages were gone, they’d feel better.

But I knew nothing would bring back the people we loved, and killing a teenage girl felt a step too far over the line into Savage territory.

Staring at Ava’s social media page, I couldn’t help but wonder how she fit into that world. She looked sweet. She played the flute and supported her local animal shelter. While there were several pictures of her with kids her age, she never looked like she belonged. More like she was there, but not part of the group.

I could relate to that.

Until I met Q, I’d always been on the outside, looking in. And often, the punching bag to anyone bigger.

Her dark eyes held the truth, and I didn’t believe she was anything like the rest of her family. Just another victim of the Savages.

Which was why I hadn’t shared this information yet.

Would they hesitate or just go after her to prove a point to Viper?

If they did, I didn’t know if it was something I could live with.

I wanted to trust and believe in my team to be better, but we’d all been hurt by this man, and it would be the easiest way to pay retribution. But would it make us any better than him in the end? I didn’t want to gain vengeance just to lose my soul.

The door beeped open, catching as the deadbolt activated. Closing my browser, I wiped my history and put my computer away before hopping off the bed and headed to the door. I peered through it, despite knowing it had to be Q.

“Password?” I asked, just to be an asshole.

“Dickwad,” Q grunted, though I could tell he was pleased.

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