by T. L Smith
“Dance for me,” I tell her.
She steps back and throws her hands above her head and starts to swing her hips in a perfectly synchronized dance. Isadora closes her eyes as she does, and I imagine she’s dancing to her own beat in her head. When she opens them again, she stops, drops her hands back to her side and smiles at me. “Tell me you like me,” she says, stepping back between my legs.
I’m sitting up, assessing her. “I like you, Isadora. Isn’t that obvious considering where I am?” I tell her the truth.
“Will you tell me about her?” she asks. Leaning down she places her hands carefully on my chest. She then climbs up, straddles me, and smiles as she does so, positioning herself just above my hard cock.
“Who?” I ask reaching for her hips.
She goes down, touches just barely then uses those powerful legs and lifts back up. “Your mother, you mentioned her once. I’d like to know more.”
My answer is a simple, “No,” I reply, not mincing my words.
“Okay.” She pauses, ready to move, and before she can get off me I pull her back down, her mouth opens in a wide O shape as she sits on my dick.
The way her body moves over mine is a sight I will keep in my mind, even when she’s testing my every last nerve.
“You...” she breathes but it’s breathless, “… cheated,” she finishes.
I smile up at her. She hypnotized me and I like it. I like the way she makes me feel lost. And at the same time sane.
My life’s nothing but rules and death. It’s what I was brought up on. It’s like a menu for my life and it’s how I know I will die.
It’s how my child will rule and die as well.
It’s the circle of life in my family.
There’s no way out.
There never will be.
I’ve come to live and learn this. Also accept it as I’m the last breathing Moretti. The rest of my family have been killed off or have died of old age.
And I have to carry on the tradition.
This was my father’s last dying wish.
And I hated that fucker, with everything I am.
He ended up being the fucking shittiest father a son could be given.
But he was my father, none the less.
Even up until the day I killed him.
“Jasper…” she stops from touching my chest and concern flashes in her green eyes, “… did I lose you for a second? Are you okay?”
I lift my hand and slap her on the ass. “Move, Isadora.”
She does as she’s told. She leans in and with the touch of her lips my father’s memories are gone and in their place is all her.
What a good way to replace that sadistic prick.
She throws back her head and a smirk touches her lips as her mouth opens in pleasure.
“Jasper.” My name on her lips pushes me on, but she stops rocking on my cock, so I take control pushing her forward and back making her orgasm last even longer. Isadora collapses onto my chest, her hair falls over my face as she catches her breath. “I would like to do that again. After my vagina heals, that is.”
I touch her hair, it’s soft and beautiful. It sprawls out all over my shoulder as she lays there. Stroking my fingers through it, she starts to drift off, then just before she does she bounces up. “Bathroom,” she says running.
I wait for her to return and can tell she’s washed her face. She walks back over and lays next to me, her head falling back on my chest as I moved to the head of the bed when she was gone.
“This is nice. Do you do nice?”
“No,” I reply truthfully.
“You should, sometimes it’s good to take a break from a hectic lifestyle.” Her green eyes look at me as she waits for me to speak.
“I killed my father, too. Did I tell you that?”
Those beautiful green eyes that were looking sleepy are now wide. Telling her should be a risk, let’s be honest though, I could kill her before she speaks of it. Which I won’t.
She shakes her head.
“It was his time to give up what I’d worked for and he didn’t want to.”
Her soft hands stroke my chest. “Did you like your father? Not love him. But maybe like him?” she asks. No one has ever asked me that before. What a strange question.
Did I like him? Before everything I would have answered yes, before he became a ruthless leader who killed everyone in sight that is.
I answer her truthfully. “No. I appreciated who he was as a leader, but not so much as a man. His choices were harsh, brutal, and he didn’t see things from a business perspective. He merely saw things the way he wanted them to be. I quickly changed and fixed that. Now I do nothing for personal gain, it’s all from a business perspective. For example…” I sit up and face her. “You. I’m fucking you right now because when I do it makes me a better man. I think clearly, and when I don’t have you, or sex in general, I become agitated and don’t get things right.”
“Is that the only reason you’re fucking me?” she asks.
“No,” I answer.
She smiles.
“I’m fucking you because I want to know what you’re hiding. You interest me, and because your pussy tastes like my sweetest treat.”
“Talk about making a girl swoon,” she jokes, while fanning her face.
“You should get some sleep,” I say to her.
“Are you going to stay?” She lays her head back on my chest.
My fingers run through her hair, feeling the silky smoothness. “For a little while.”
It doesn’t take long and she’s asleep, and when she does drift off, I’m right behind her closing my eyes.
That never happens.
I sleep alone.
I don’t trust anyone.
Least of all women.
And least of all her.
14
Isadora
When I wake he’s still here, his hands are on my side, as I stayed glued to him during the night. Pulling away, I slide out of bed and notice his phone on the floor. Picking it up, a voice startles me. “I’ll take that.” I turn to Jasper and notice he’s seated in bed, still with no clothes on and looking perfect with his chocolate hair ruffled from all our sex.
Passing it to him, he flicks it on, and when he does it automatically starts ringing. Immediately he answers and puts it on speaker as he stands to pull up his jeans.
“Boss, we know what it was.”
I freeze.
Jasper doesn’t look at me as he reaches for his shirt, sliding it over his head.
I find my dress lying on the floor and slide that on to cover my naked body.
“And?”
“It’s a flower, boss.”
Jasper’s face scrunches up. “A flower?” he asks, confused.
“Yes, it’s a flower. It was in their bloodstreams, both of them.”
“How?”
“Doc says, crushed up and digested, more than likely.”
I look away as Jasper looks over at me.
“You are sure?” Jasper asks.
“Yep. What kind of flower?”
“Hemlock. It’s most harmful ingredient is coniine, which affects the motor nerves and causes paralysis. It’s one of the most dangerous plants on the planet. It can take up to three hours for the subject to die.” He finishes speaking and how he knows that I have no idea. My heart beats out of my chest and my hands are sweating. I look to my bag, the same bag which holds that plant crushed up and ready to slip into any drink at any time I see fit, it also holds things I need as well if I was to run. Cash, ID, anything I need for my backup plan. Let’s face it I would be stupid to not have one.
He will kill me. I have no doubt about that fact. Sooner or later, he will.
“Isadora…” Jasper touches my shoulder, making me jump on the spot. “Do you not want me to touch you now?”
I shake my head while faking a smile. “Of course, just daydreaming,” I lie.
He leans in and kisses my lips.
&
nbsp; I hear a car pull up out the front.
Shit! That was fast.
“I have to go, I want to see you again,” he says.
“Okay.” It’s all I can manage to get out, I’m afraid if I say anything else my words might not make any sense.
He lets me go and walks to the door, I hear him pause, and my heart rate picks back up. “Isadora…”
Turning to look at him, his eyes assess me.
“You’ll be here when I get back, right?”
I nod. It’s all I can do.
He walks out, shutting the door behind him with a click.
Quickly, I run over, lock it and slide down with my back against the door. Reaching for my phone, I sit up straight and dial my uncle, who picks up on the first ring. “They know.”
“Leave, now.”
I manage to get my limbs working by climbing to my feet. Reaching for my bag, it doesn’t take me long to pack a few things and grab my purse. Changing into something casual, I pull on a hoodie as well as a beanie which covers my curls.
“ETA?” my uncle asks.
“Ten minutes,” I reply, clicking off the cell.
Grabbing my car keys, I fling open the front door but when I do someone pushes me back inside by my chest. Looking up, I notice Gabe standing there with a dirty big smirk on his lips. “I had concerns about you, seems you just confirmed them.”
Pushing his hand away I say, “No.”
He forces his way inside, shutting the door behind him. In his hand he holds a pistol, his eyes move to the bag in my hand. “Going somewhere?”
“Yes, to visit family,” I tell him the truth.
“Tell me, Isadora… who are you, really?” He sits on my bed, and my eyes dart to the door to see if I can make it out before he can react, but all I hear is, “I dare you to try. I haven’t shot one of these in a long time. But my aim’s always been spot on.”
I freeze on the spot as he raises the gun to my eye-level.
“Jasper had to go about his business, but he said you were off. So, here I am,” Gabe states looking around. “I like what you’ve done with the place.” He laughs then continues, “Nothing.”
“Thanks.”
“Planning on a quick exit, hey?”
“Something like that,” I tell him a half-truth.
“I need to go to the bathroom,” I state.
Gabe stands and walks to the door, looks around checking it out, then steps back out and sits on the bed. He waves his gun at me and says, “Go ahead.”
So, I do. Dropping my overnight bag and taking my purse with me, I shut the door behind me. Quickly I grab the baggie of crushed flower, and flush it leaving no trace that I’ve ever had it.
It’s a perfect weapon, potent and deadly. If they hadn’t had so many connections, I could have killed so many more. Damn it!
“Girl, hurry up.”
I cringe at his words.
Opening the door, Gabe waves the gun around and points to the table. “Sit.”
I shake my head. I’ve been trained for all of this. I have the skills if I need them, I’ve just never had to use them in a life or death situation before.
“You don’t want to sit?” Gabe stands and walks over to me. He’s taller than me by a mile. He breathes slowly, deeply, and I feel it on my skin. And those eyes are so alert, vigilant, cautious, they tell me exactly what he’s thinking.
“Do you know how they died?” I ask.
“Yes. You somehow gave them Hemlock. Well, so I’ve been told.”
“I did.”
Gabe looks at me, surprised, like he can’t believe I’ve just admitted it to him.
“Where is it?”
My eyes absently look toward the bathroom, and his eyes follow my movement before they come back to me. “Smart girl. You aren’t just a stripper or hooker are you?”
I shake my head.
“Who are you?”
I wave my hand around. “You don’t know me, Gabe, but I know you and what you people do. How you take lives that aren’t yours to take.”
Gabe chuckles at my words. “Are you an Avenger? Come to stop us from killing the good?” He steps back from me.
“No Gabe, I’ve come to kill you. So, no more Moretti Mafia live.”
His eyes go wide in surprise but also glimmer with humor. “Girl… that will never happen. We own this town. You can’t honestly think you could kill us all. Granted you did a great job with the first two, but honestly, they aren’t a great loss, but you did it none the less.”
“And you, Gabe, sadly… you are next.”
He raises an eyebrow in surprise. “You think you can take me?”
I cross my hands over my chest. “Yes,” I state categorically.
Gabe leans in close, so close I can feel his breath in my ear. “I would like to see you try, girl.”
“Easy.” I smile as he pulls back and then kick his shin, hard. He stumbles back and I take the gun from his hand knocking it to the floor, my knee comes up quickly as I reach for his shoulders, and knee him as hard and fast as I can in the balls. He drops.
When he’s on the floor, I reach for the gun that he had pointed at me, then raise it until it touches the base of his skull.
He freezes, his movements stop but his hands stay on his balls because he cannot straighten due to the pain. “You wouldn’t,” Gabe says through gritted teeth.
“I would.” I take the safety off and watch as the muscles in his neck tense.
“He’ll chase you down, for the rest of his life for betraying him.”
I lean down to whisper in his ear, “I hope he does,” I say with a smile.
“Why?”
My finger’s pressing on the trigger ever so slightly, after I clicked off the safety. “You all killed my family. So, it’s simple, I want to take yours.”
He gasps and in one moment the gun fires, even with a silencer on it, it’s not completely quiet, and the sound that it does make rings through my ears.
Quickly reaching for my stuff, I run to the door and without looking up I slam into another hard body.
“Woah there, pink. Where’s the damn fire?”
Oh fuck! It’s Ace.
He’s going to be harder to kill.
The door clicks behind me and I shove my bag up on my shoulder.
“No fire. Just have to take these clothes into work for the girls.” The lie rolls off of my tongue so easily, so smoothly, even I believe myself.
“Okay, pink. But slow down a bit. Let me walk you.”
I shake my head. “No,” I yell and he squishes his eyebrows together in a frown. “Sorry, I’ve been stressing about shifts I need to pick up. I have to get in their good books again, since all the time I’ve been taking off.”
Ace steps up to me, touches my shoulder. “You aren’t meant to lose money, pink. I’ll fix it. You’re not meant to be working.”
I pat his hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Ace. I have to go, though. I need to find my own way, make ends meet. Maybe next time we can hang out?”
Ace removes his hand and slides it into his pockets. “We can’t. Jasper has laid claim to you. I shouldn’t even be here right now, but I needed to speak to Gabe.” He looks around. “Do you know where he is?”
I shrug as an answer, it’s all I can do.
“Okay, he probably went and got something to eat.”
I offer him a small smile before I start taking steps to the club which is within walking distance. Passing my car, I cringe knowing I can’t get into it straight away because Ace is not far behind me. Walking quickly to the club, I push on the door and I’m glad when it opens and Benny’s at the entrance when I arrive. He looks up, shakes his head, and goes back to what he was doing. “What are you doing here, and dressed like that?”
I check the small glass panel through the door and see Ace walking to his car. Without answering Benny’s question I state, “I need your car keys, Benny. I have to go. Now.” My car is not an option right now.
�
�Fuck no! Are you crazy?”
I look out the small window in the door once again and notice Ace is walking back to my door with his phone to his ear.
“Benny, please? I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t an emergency.” He sighs loudly then throws his keys at me. “Thank you. And Benny?” He stops to look at me. “I’m sorry.” His eyebrows draw together and he looks at me as if I’m going to say more, but I don’t.
Quickly, I slip out the back entrance and to Benny’s car.
15
Jasper
“Boss, the door’s locked,” Ace says into the phone.
“Where is she?” I ask him as I’m driving back from the mansion to get her.
“She went into the club. Said she isn’t getting paid enough because of lost shifts, so she was picking up extra.”
“She’s fucking lying.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Where exactly did she go, Ace? Find her. Now.”
“She hasn’t left the club, Jasper. What’s the matter?”
“Kick that door in. Now,” I tell him.
“Fuck, okay. Hold on.”
I wait for him. I hear the sounds of boot meeting wood and then the door swinging open on its hinges to meet the wall with a loud thud.
“Fuck.” He doesn’t have the phone to his ear, but I can still hear him. “Gabe! Oh fuck! Shit. Fuck.” I hear rustling and Ace swearing but that’s all.
“Faster,” I tell the driver.
“I am, boss.”
“Ace,” I yell into the phone waiting for him to respond.
“Boss, you aren’t going to like this.”
“Tell me,” I urge.
“Gabe’s dead. Bullet to the head.”
“Where is she?” I seethe.
“You don’t think?” Ace asks.
“It makes perfect sense. Now, find her.”
“Got it, boss.” He doesn’t hang up. Instead, he awaits further instructions from me.