Page 38 of The Queen of Nightmares

I jerked my head up in disbelief. "How did you get in here?" I asked in utter disbelief.

After everything that had happened recently, I had completely forgotten about Dr. Stein and the threat he had posed. Seeing him standing there now after the hell the Boogeymen had put me through was almost anticlimactic. As if he were a weak man playing at being a villain. His overly theatrical announcement made in his nasal tone almost had me rolling my eyes.

Dr. Stein smiled while leaning heavily on a cane. "You seem to forget how long I can wait in silence, my dear. My hours of standing over a body doing surgery have well prepared me for waiting for the precise moment to make my move."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I snapped, tired of his weirdly formal way of speaking and the way he always acted as if he were the most intelligent person in the room. After the long months I spent listening to his monologues about how wonderful he was, I had been ready to poke my eardrums, just so I wouldn't have to hear it anymore.

He shook his head as if he were disappointed in a particularly dense child. "I was hiding in a shed until late last night. Once everything was quiet, I snuck into the building and hid in a storage closet." He grinned, proud of himself.

I stared in disbelief. "Where did you go to the bathroom?"

"One does what one must to accomplish their goals," he said without really answering the question. I wrinkled my nose. Did that mean he went in his pants, or did he go on the floor?

Dr. Stein reached into his pocket and pulled out a black gun, pointing it at my chest. I froze and could do nothing but stare at the barrel, the small black hole taunting me. I had seen firsthand what a bullet could do to a person's chest.

"Get up, Sally," he demanded, finally deciding to do what he'd apparently been waiting hours for. In the dark. In his own shit.Eww."And shut that dog up before I put a bullet in it. I won't leave him alive this time."

I glanced down at Zero, finally noticing his vicious snarls. His wickedly sharp canines were bared, and he had drool dripping from his muzzle. Zero stood by my side, his hackles raised along his back. It was an impressive show of doggy rage.

"Zero," I whispered, "sit, boy. Quiet." He immediately sat at my command, his growls easing, but his displeasure was still projected through his snarls. He likely recognized this man from what had been done to him months ago. I figured he could also sense the threat coming from Dr. Stein and wasn't going to ignore it, no matter what I said.

"Good boy," I murmured. As much as I knew Zero could handle the doctor, the man was holding a gun. I didn't want anything to happen to Jack's dog. I loved Zero with all my heart, but I also didn't want Jack to return to me only to find out his beloved pet had been killed while trying to protect me.

I was jarred out of the wayward thoughts of Jack by the hand that reached out to grip my chin. I'd been doing that a lot lately, getting lost in my thoughts and letting the world fade away around me. This time, it had gotten me in trouble. Dr. Stein had limped around the desk and was right in front of me. He brought my face up to meet his gaze, jerking it roughly. Zero gave another warning growl that would have had me cowering in fright had it been directed at me. The Doctor was more stupid than I thought.

"It's time to end this, girl."

"Yes. It is," I said with a finality that I felt deep inside. I was sick and fucking tired of others getting killed or seriously injured from trying to protect me. And I was seriously god damned tired of having a gun pointed at me. I was done with being a victim or allowing others to take the hit that was meant for me.I was done.With my hand curled around one of the knives that was always in Jack's desk, I lifted it swiftly and plunged it directly into Dr. Stein's shoulder, effectively making him let me go. He dropped his cane, letting it clatter to the floor as he stumbled back several steps. He held his shoulder with one hand with a pained grunt. He continued to stumble backward until he was near the window, leaning against the wall next to the filing cabinet that held the small Christmas tree.

"You fucking bitch! You're going to pay for that! I am your father! I created you! I made you what you are. It is my right to take your life away."

I shook my head as I stared at him, at the gun that was once again raised and trained on me. The man was unhinged; I already knew that. Looking at him now, though, I could see he was at the end of his tether. The very fragile, broken fibers that were barely keeping him sane were snapping at a rapid pace.

"You didn't create me, Finkle Stein. You destroyed me. A beautiful man put me back together. He made me whole again. You are nothing but a monster. You aren't my father, and I'm not your patchwork doll. I am the Queen of Nightmares."

I reached over to Jack's leather cut and withdrew the shiny purple gun, the same gun I had recently used to end the life of the man who had taken my King from me. With a steady hand, I lifted it, flipped the safety off, and aimed. Without a single moment of hesitation, I pulled the trigger.

The impact of the bullet knocked Dr. Stein back against the wall. The only indication the man gave that he knew his life was over was the brief flare of shock in his eyes before they drooped. There was a strange, macabre image of a rose that bloomed from the center of his forehead before it began to run in thick rivulets down his eyes, nose, and chin.

"That was for Lock, you piece of shit," I whispered.

His body slumped against the wall and slid to the ground as his legs crumpled underneath him. As it came to rest on the floor, I stared at the Christmas tree that was now covered in dripping red, the gingerbread ornaments splattered in crimson, somehow making them almost more festive than before.

Heavy boots thundered down the hall, and the door was flung open with so much force it bounced off the wall, making a deep dent in the plaster where it hit. I frowned at the hole, thinking how Jack wasn't going to be happy with the damage.

Several men stormed into the room, weapons raised as they took in the scene. Zero was still growling and barking, still unsettled by the entire event. I set my pretty purple gun down on the desk before placing my hand on his head to calm him. His whole body shook with pent-up rage. I knew he would have wanted to be the one to end the threat, but I just couldn't take the chance that he'd be hurt.

"What the fuck, Red? He could have killed you!" Barrel yelled as the entire contingent of Devil's Nightmares holstered their weapons and stared in disbelief at the small man who lay dead against the office wall.

"His safety was on," I mumbled. "It was about as harmless as a paperweight."

I heard someone mutter from the group, and others rumbled their agreement while giving me the side eye. "That was a good shot," one of them said.

I shrugged. "I was aiming for his chest."

Shock stepped forward with a grin on his face. "Jack would have been proud of you, Red. You did good."

I looked up at him with a blank stare. "Will be."

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