by Dori Lavelle
“Shut the fuck up.” Dax’s voice is so sharp it cuts through the wall and slams into my eardrums.
“Look, I’m calling to let you know that we’re tired of covering your ass. When you joined, you were given one other simple rule to follow. One murder a year and nothing more. But you haven’t followed that rule, have you?”
“I’m tired of you and everyone else telling me what to do. You know what, I’m out. So is my money.”
“No, bro. It’s not as simple as that. You’ve done too much damage to simply walk away. There are consequences to your irresponsible actions.”
A long silence follows which makes me think Dax has ended the call, but he speaks again, his defeated voice cutting the silence. “What do you want me to do? How do you expect me to kill her?”
“Like you killed the rest. You’re an expert. How about you make it look like a suicide? It shouldn’t be hard. You already made everyone believe she’s a junkie. Say she overdosed.”
“No, fuck you and fuck them all. I’m not killing her.”
I sink to the bottom of the bathtub, trembling and unable to believe what I heard. Dax is not the only monster out there. He’s working with someone else, a whole club of monsters.
When their voices break through the wall again, I pull myself to my feet even though my knees are threatening to give way.
“You don’t have to do it alone. You should’ve known that from the start. Kill her and we will get rid of her body for you. We will use our best resources if we have to. There are cops on the team ready to help you clean up this mess you’ve made,” the man says. “But you have to make a quick decision. You have three days to kill her or we will come and kill you both.” He clears his throat. “And while you’re at it, kill the sister as well.”
“How do you—”
“I already told you. We know everything about our members. Get the job done and call the headquarters.”
The alarm bells inside my head are so loud now that I can no longer hear what they’re saying. I sink back to the bottom of the bathtub and wrap my arms around my legs. But I snap out of my shock immediately because I know he will be back soon. I can’t hear anyone talking which means he might have ended the call.
The moment I stand again, a wave of dizziness hits me. With the help of the basin, I climb out of the bathtub and take a few steps toward the door. But I stop myself from knocking, terrified of coming face to face with him. He’s much more dangerous than I ever thought possible. The other man’s words won’t stop repeating in my head.
Dax lied to everyone in Hollywood. He’s not the author of Ragged Waves. He murdered his way into the movie industry. The world will be shocked to find out he’s both a liar and a murderer.
Of all the information I heard today, the most terrifying is that there are other monsters like him out there, people who kill one person a year, as though it’s some kind of sick game they play. How many are there?
I need to pull myself together. He can’t see me in this state, shaking and drenched with sweat. If he sees me now, he’ll know immediately that something is off. He’ll put two and two together.
If he ever finds out that I know, his decision to kill me will be so much easier. That’s if he hasn’t already decided to do what the other man told him: to end my life right away.
Still dizzy, I turn away from the door and go to the sink to splash cold water on my face.
With water dripping from my chin, I clutch onto the edge of the sink, my fingers so tight that my knuckles whiten. Tears and water drip into the sink when I bend my head forward.
I slide my bottom lip between my teeth to stop it from trembling and force myself to hold it together. I have no choice now. I have to carry out my plan. The end has come. I have to kill him before he kills me and Christa.
The fear trickling through my veins drives me to fling open one of the cupboards where I hid some of the items I want to use.
My unsteady hand goes to a metal hanger I found under the cupboard, yesterday. Thinking quickly, I straighten it. I shudder when the sound of something crashing to the floor hits the wall, followed by curses flying all over the place.
I move even faster, lifting the shirt to wrap the hanger around my stomach. Then I sit on the edge of the tub and wait for him to come and get me. Hopefully he will not shoot me before I get a chance to act. But I think that would be too messy. It would be hard to call my death a suicide.
Or maybe he won’t kill me. He might decide to ignore the other man’s orders. Driven by his obsession, he might take me and run to another place where no one will find us.
Both scenarios terrify me. If he takes me away, I won’t be able to see Christa again. She will die in the shed. No one will be able to find her in time.
When a door slams, I scramble to my feet. I can hear every footstep as he makes his way back to the room. My mind follows the sound all the way to the bathroom door. I can hear him breathing heavily as he stands on the other side. My own breathing is labored. But I’m ready for war.
My hands curl into fists at my sides as I mentally prepare myself to become like him. To become a killer.
Chapter Fifteen
The door to the bathroom is finally flung open. When our eyes lock, I hope he doesn’t see through me to my thoughts. One little suspicion from his end and it’s over for me.
Standing in the doorway with nostrils flared and neck corded, I know something has shifted inside him. He’s furious. Is it with me or the man on the phone?
“Do you love me, Emma?” A dark chill coats the edge of his words. “Tell me the truth.”
My body stiffens from the inside. On the outside, I do my best to stay calm.
I don’t need to answer his question. He knows the answer. I’ve told him often enough on the yacht, but his twisted mind refuses to face reality.
I know what he’s trying to do. He’s trying to decide whether he should kill me or let me live. He wants me to make it easy for him to pull the trigger. If I want to live, I have to feed him lies again.
I part my lips to tell him the words he wants to hear. To my surprise, they refuse to leave my lips.
My mind is still spinning from what the caller revealed about Dax, that he was never the man I thought he was. He was a lie from the start.
My gaze searches his eyes. I only find lies there. I can’t do it. I can’t find it in me to tell him I love him, not even if I don’t mean it. Not this time.
“Answer my damn question.” He looks like a volcano on the verge of erupting. “The question is simple. Do you love me or not?” He takes a step toward me, his nails digging into his palms, his hands shaking.
I take one step back. “I don’t. . . I don’t get why you’re asking. I already told you how I feel about you.”
“Say it again. I want to hear the words.” His jaw is tight, his eyes boiling pools of fury.
I tilt my head back and cross my arms. “I’m tired, Dax. Let’s talk about this later.” I know my response will piss him off. It’s all part of the plan. The time has come for me to put my plan into action sooner than I had planned. But I worked on this plan late into the night while he slept soundly next to me. I might fail and end up dead, but I might also succeed.
“Don’t fuck with me, Emma.” He charges forward. My breath catches when his hand closes around my neck. Air bursts from my lungs when he slams my back against the wall. “I’m having a really bad day. Don’t make me do something I might regret.”
“I—I—” It’s hard to speak when I can barely breathe from his hands and the rope of fear wrapped around my neck.
I thought I was ready for this, but now I’m not so sure. What if he kills me now and I don’t get a chance to carry out my plan?
“You what, Emma?” He brings his face close to mine. His spit lands on my skin.
“Love,” I manage to croak. My hands clutch his, my fingers trying to unravel his before I lose my strength and my plan goes to hell.
“That’s not enou
gh.” To both my relief and shock, he loosens his grip and shoves me away from him. “You hesitated.”
With my hands around my neck, I gasp and cough, greedily snatching oxygen from the air. It’s not enough. It doesn’t matter how much I inhale; the oxygen will never be enough to fill my lungs.
The truth is, I stopped breathing weeks ago, when he kidnapped me. I’ll only be able to breathe again when all this is over.
“Now what?” I ask, meeting his gaze without flinching, even though my bladder is loosening. “What will you do to me? Will you throw me into your dungeon?” I drop my hands to my sides and shrug. “Fine, go ahead.”
“Maybe I should.” His eyes narrow to glowing flints. “Maybe it’s time for me to release the snakes.” Before I can recover from his earlier attack, his hand shoots out again and grabs the back of my neck. His touch awakens the pain from the cigarette burn. “Let’s go.”
If he’s surprised that I’m not fighting him, he doesn’t show it. I have my reasons for not struggling. The last thing I need is for him to see the hanger around my stomach.
With each step I assure myself it will all be fine. Everything is working according to plan.
When we get to the door of the dungeon, I spin around to face him, fresh tears in my eyes. “No,” I shake my head. “Please, don’t. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”
“Too little, too late.” He unlocks the door and throws it open. When he shoves me inside, my arms are around my stomach to prevent the shirt from going up and revealing my weapon. I land on my knees. I keep my eyes away from the snakes underneath me and focus on the most dangerous one of all. This is it. I only have a few seconds to act before he slams the door shut. “Dax, I’m really sorry. Come here, please. Let me explain.”
Just as I had planned, he charges into the room, his face a mask of rage. He can’t stay away from me, in anger or lust. From his expression, I can tell that he has finally realized the truth.
“What’s there to explain, huh? Do you want to explain all the lies you’ve been feeding me?” He comes closer, falling straight into my trap. “You’ve made a fool of me long enough. It ends today.”
He hovers over me, his hands in thick fists at his sides, the knuckles white. “I gave you so many chances. I even kept your sister alive. I should’ve killed her a long time ago, but I knew how devastated you would be.” His laughter chills my spine. “I was such an idiot. You’re just like all the rest, a piece of shit.”
I press my teeth together, force myself not to react yet. One mistake and I’ll be dead.
“Why so quiet? Don’t you have anything to say? Won’t you tell me I’m wrong?” The murderous look in his eyes warns me we’ve reached the point of no return.
“Dax, please,” I say quickly. “Don’t kill me. You love me. You said so yourself.”
“That’s right,” he shouts. “I love you. I’ve loved you from the moment I first laid eyes on you in your shitty little town. That’s why I gave you everything. I opened doors for you.” He sucks in a shaky breath. “But it’s over now. Is there anything you want to say before you die?”
“My sister. . . Please let her live.”
“How many times do I have to repeat myself? I already told you the bitch is not leaving this farm alive. Neither will you.” He starts to pace the room. It looks as though some of the snakes are following his movements.
It’s amazing how I’m more terrified of him than the snakes.
“As soon as I’m done with you, I’m going straight to the shed to blow her brains out. That’s if she’s not dead already.” He halts and taps his lips with a finger. “Even better, maybe I should set the damn place on fire and let her die a painful death. Either way, she’ll be paying for your sins.” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Such a shame you won’t get to say goodbye.”
“It’s me you want, Dax. She did nothing to you.” I squeeze my eyes shut and gather up the courage to take the next step. I crawl toward him, looking up at him with pleading eyes. “Let her go. Spare her.”
Someone is dying today, and it won’t be me. It won’t be Christa either if she’s still alive. God, I hope she’s still alive. We have too much to live for.
I need my life and freedom back. I need to avenge the people he has wronged, hurt, or killed. The lives of his future victims are in my hands. He has destroyed enough lives. The time has come to end this madness once and for all.
Chapter Sixteen
Whatever I do, I can’t look away from his eyes. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for. I have to make it work.
My breath shakes as I crawl across the floor toward him.
“Stay where you are. What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” He takes a few steps in the direction of the door.
“Give me another chance, please. Let me prove myself to you.” I do not have to force pain into my voice because it’s already there. It’s real. “Don’t do this to me, Dax. You don’t want to kill me.”
“Damn right. I don’t want to kill you.” He shakes his head. “But sometimes we have to do things we don’t want. I’m doing this because I love you so damn much.” He shoves a hand into his hair. “But you have betrayed me over and over again. You’ve run out of chances, sweetheart.”
He takes another step toward the door, away from me. My stomach twists as my chance of escape starts to slip through my fingers. Left with no choice and no more time, I spring to my feet and throw myself at his feet, holding tight to his legs so he doesn’t move. “I don’t want to die.” My eyes well up with tears. My fear of death is real. I don’t doubt for one second that if Dax leaves this room, he will push the switch that will end my life.
“It’s over. I’m done with you.” He tries to shake me off, but I hold on. It’s a matter of life and death. He tries once more to push me away. This time he succeeds but loses his balance. He stumbles backward, his back hitting the wall next to the door.
I make it to him before he can recover, taking hold of his legs again, crawling my way up. “No, it’s not over, baby,” I choke on my tears. “I do love you, Dax. I love you so much. Let me show you one more time.”
He looks down at me, his eyes a dark shade of amber. Like mine, they’re shining with tears.
Dax Pierce is crying. He lied about a lot of things in his life, but the truth is, he does love me. Only not in the way I want to be loved. His love hurts way too much.
“You mean that?” He wipes the tears from his cheek with the back of his hand.
He looks so weak, like a little boy. Deep down he wants to be needed, to be loved. But I cannot find it in me to feel sorry for him. I don’t even know who he is. He’s a complete stranger to me.
“I mean it with all my heart.” My lips tremble as I speak. “I never stopped loving you. You’re the one for me. But you hurt me, Dax.” I continue to crawl up his legs. “But it doesn’t have to be like that anymore. We can begin again, you and me. Let me prove my love to you.”
He doesn’t push me away when I tug his hands until he’s on the floor with me. I place myself between his legs.
He doesn’t move a muscle as I unzip his pants and push my hand inside. He’s already hard. How can he be turned on in a situation like this? I’m his weakness. This weakness will be his downfall.
He presses the palms of his hand behind him on the wall as though he’s trying to hold on, to keep from falling into my arms. Too late. I’ve got him right where I want him.
“It’s okay,” I whisper. “I’m here. I want to prove to you that you’re the only man I ever want. You don’t want us to really be over. You were right all along. We’re meant to be together.”
He opens his mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. More tears trickle down his cheeks.
Here he was pretending to be a strong man when he’s nothing but a little boy desperate for love and affection. It was the boy inside who believed the lies I told him, who believed me when I said I loved him.
Suddenly he knocks the back of his head again
st the wall behind him and shakes his head. The dangerous man returns. “Back off,” he growls. He plants his hands on my shoulders to push me away again, but there’s no way I’m letting go. Not when I’ve come this far, not when I’ve seen the fragile side to him.
“You don’t want that.” I kiss his lips. “Let me make you feel good. I can make it all better, baby. You will love it, I promise.” With a small smile I pull out his dick and cover it with my mouth. I don’t give him a chance to say no.
A defeated groan escapes him and the anger on his face is quickly replaced by lust.
I suck him until his body loses strength and he’s barely able to keep his head upright. Even when my jaw starts to ache, I don’t stop. There’s only one way to get what I want. His dick is my weapon.
I only stop when I know he’s about to come. My gaze on his face, I remove his penis from my mouth. “Should I continue? Is this what you want?”
“Don’t fucking stop. Don’t. . .” Whatever more he wanted to say dies on his lips when I slide him back into my mouth, flicking my tongue as I go, pushing him even deeper.
I suck harder, my hands moving faster around the bottom of his shaft.
The moment I realize I’m completely in control, and he’s far gone, I sink my teeth into his flesh so fast and so hard he doesn’t see it coming.
The guttural roar that bursts from him bounces off the walls and deafens my ears momentarily.
He grabs my head and tries to push me away, but I’m determined to end this game my way. I bite until I taste blood. As soon as I let go, I don’t waste time.
While his hands are on his injured penis, I jump to my feet. He’s already down and I didn’t even need to use the hanger.
Before I can distance myself from him, one of his hands shoots out and grabs my ankle. I manage to kick him away and stumble to the door.