Page 23 of Shattered Skull

Skull turned his glowing eyes my way and lifted his brow in confusion.

“What?”

“You said, girls. There are no girls here. Just me. I’m the only girl here.”

He snorted, finding me ridiculous before he faced Erik again.

“She’s not involved, but if you don’t give me my ladies, she will be.”

Erik looked at me, his dark eyes wild and full of fear.

Aiken reached out and gripped Erik’s cheeks in his large hand, forcing him to look in his face. “You felt my fist last night. You know I don’t fuck around. Tell me what I want to know, or shit’s about to get real.”

Erik’s shoulders dropped, and he nodded in my direction. “In her room on the dresser. Top of the stairs to the left.”

What was happening?

“Erik!” I screeched.

Skull and Joker took off up the stairs, their heavy boots making the handrails shake.

“Don’t you dare go in my room!” I called after them, fighting against the tight hold.

I struggled, kicking at his shins, knowing he could break my arms if he wanted to.

“Stop, Everly. Just let them get what they came for, and they’ll leave.”

He wasn’t serious.

I didn’t want a group of strangers ransacking my bedroom—especially not Skull. He and I had already had a run-in. There was no telling what he would do up there.

“No!” I kicked the big guy holding me once more, and finally, he released me.

I took off, rushing up the stairs to my room and tripping over a few of the steps. Just as I broke through my door, I watched in horror as the guy with the joker handkerchief over his face picked up my dad’s urn, tossed it to the floor, and stomped on it until it shattered beneath his boot.

Dust puffed out of the broken pieces of wood, and I knew it was my father’s ashes.

“No!” I screamed, rushing across the room.

I fell to my knees beside the broken urn just as the joker was dusting off his boots.

“What the fuck is that?” he asked, shaking my father’s ashes from his boot laces.

“My father, you idiot!”

At that, he burst out laughing. His laugh somehow sounded scary and evil.

“Oh shit. There’s burnt man all over my fucking boots, dude,” he joked.

How could he joke about something so terrible?

They had desecrated my father’s remains, and yet he was stomping his boots on my floor and laughing about it.

I stood with a growl and used all my strength to push against his broad chest.

“How could you, you freak!”

His icy eyes turned red before he snatched my arm and pulled me into his chest. He glared down at me, his grin deepening, showing me his jagged teeth.

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