“Yeah, what are you doing here, exactly?” Drago asks, peeking into the living room, which is, of course, one giant mess.
Fuck me. This is not going right at all.
“You guys can’t stay here,” I say. “Not even for a day.”
“Oh, c’mon. Can’t we at least have breakfast with you?”
“Already had one,” I growl.
“I didn’t,” Drago says, and he waltzes into the kitchen as if it’s his place. Goddamn, that son of a bitch. When he makes a remark of the mess we’ve made, I want to go on ahead and kill him.
“Don’t,” DeLuca whispers, putting his hand on my chest to hold me back. “Don’t do it.”
“Why the hell not? He deserves it.”
“The organization would kill you if you touched one of us.”
“He’s not one of us!” I whisper-yell.
“He is now. It’s not our call.”
“What are you doing with him? Why didn’t you two separate like I told you to?”
“Well, he kind of tagged along and things got hectic. I don’t fucking remember, okay? It’s a bit of a blur. I just wanted to get the fuck out of that cabin, and so did Drago. I contacted them, and they gave me a new job to complete first. I told them about Drago being there, and they said they wanted to see what he was capable of. He accepted the offer, of course. Next thing I know, he’s hired.”
I shake my head, walking to the kitchen with him. “I can’t believe this shit.”
“Neither can I, but you just gotta deal with the hand that’s given to you.”
DeLuca sits down at the table and looks at the mess Vanessa and I made. They don’t know we just fucked there, so it makes me grin thinking about the fact that he’s putting his hand on a tablecloth stained with her pussy juices.
“What are you grinning at, emo?” Drago growls.
“What did you call me?” I say, squinting, making a fist.
“Calm down, guys,” DeLuca says, trying to ease the situation.
There’s no easing here. I fucking hate the dude, but what I hate even more is that they’re in this house while Vanessa is only two staircases away. Naked. Shackled. Easy to assault.
I can’t fucking let that happen. She’s mine. This is my business. They’d better not get in between or heads are going to roll.
With every passing second, sweat builds up on my back as I ponder what to do. If she makes a sound, I’m done for. They’d know she’s here, and then Drago will want a piece of her. The code is code … the organization protects its own, which is why I know DeLuca will probably not come to my aid if I attack him. Or he may even help Drago, since I’m the one breaking the rules. I don’t want to fucking fight DeLuca. He’s a friend. Or at least, I thought he was. However, if I must, I must.
Vanessa is mine, and I protect what’s mine at all cost.
They’d better get the fuck out fast, so I can get back to business as usual. I don’t want to waste any time, so I quickly serve them some chips I found in the cabinet above the sink.
Sighing, I open the fridge while Drago is already drinking from a can of beer he found. “What kind of shit is this?” he says after a burp. “Tastes like piss.”
“Well, then I guess you’re all too familiar with it.”
“Say what?” He slams the can down on the table.
“You heard me. Must be your bottom lip that smells.”
“Fucking emo … always so polite,” he mutters.
“That’s it.”
I grab a knife from the counter, turn around, and lunge at him across the table. DeLuca only just manages to get between us, grab my arm, and twist it, causing me to drop the knife.
“Don’t fucking fight each other!” he says. “Goddammit. Enough.”
“What?” Drago says. “Want a piece of this? C’mon then, emo.”
“Fuck you,” I spit, giving him the finger.
“Feel strong with your black hair and your piercings, emo?” he taunts.
“Why don’t you come over here and fucking see for yourself,” I spit.
“Shut up! Everybody shut up!” DeLuca suddenly yells. He glances back and forth between the both of us. “Take a fucking breather, okay. Let’s all calm down. We’re just here to share a table, nothing more.”
“I don’t want to fucking share anything,” I say.
“I need to take a piss,” Drago says, as he gets up from his chair. “Where’s the bathroom?”
I wince. “Like I’d ever fucking tell you.”
“Fine, I’ll go find it myself,” he says, as he walks out of the kitchen.
Shit, that’s no good. I can’t let him roam the house. What if he finds her?
“It’s down the hall and to the fucking left,” I growl after him, but he’s already gone.
When I try to go after him, DeLuca grabs my shoulder. “Hey, dude, it’ll be okay. Just don’t take it so personal.”
“What?” I turn around. “Why do you care so much? Did you forget he tried to choke you back at the prison?”
“I didn’t forget, but I also know what a man will do to survive. You of all people should know that,” he says.
God, sometimes he pisses me off so much with his unwanted wisdom, although he is right. A man will do pretty much anything to get out of jail.
“Whatever,” I say, shrugging. “I just want him gone as soon as possible.”
“I get it. We’ll just be here to grab some food and then we’ll be gone again.”
“Fine, but you’d better not stay any longer than that.”
“Aw, you don’t love me anymore, Nix?” he says, laughing.
I roll my eyes as he throws his arm over my shoulder. “And here I thought we were best buds.”
“It’s nothing personal,” I say. “Just business.”
“Just business … I can agree on that one,” he says, as we walk back to the table and sit down for a good talk and an even better can of beer.
***
VANESSA
It’s cold up here with nothing but my skin to keep my warm. Phoenix’s cum is still dripping out of me, messing up the floor. I feel so filthy, but I can’t do anything about it right now except to wait until he comes to get me.
I’m huddled in a corner far away from the window, listening to the sounds from downstairs. I can hear the talk and some noise like scooting chairs and punches on the table. There’s a lot of yelling going on too, so now I’m sure Phoenix didn’t expect any company, and he’s sure as hell not looking for it. Which begs the question; who are they and what are they doing here?
There’s one stomping through the house, and I wonder what’s going on. I keep my ears on high alert as I hear him come up the stairs. Is it Phoenix? Is he coming to get me? Thoughts swirl through my head as the footsteps get closer, and I wonder what is going to happen to me. I can’t shake the horrible feeling that these people, whoever they are, are up to no good. Combine that with Phoenix’s hatred for me, and I think it’s safe to say that I’m screwed if they find out I’m up here.
But it’s too late to contemplate the future. Too late to even attempt to run. The door is already jerked open and in steps a guy.
But it’s not Phoenix.
His face is square, his nose crooked, his jaw tight, his muscled body broad, and his hands look like those of a man bred to kill.
I scoot back in fear, clutching my own body as his eyes zoom in on me and a devious smile appears on his face.
“Oh, what have we got here?” he muses.
“Stay away,” I say.
“So, this is what that dude has been doing in here all this time?” He laughs. “Banging a scared naked chick?”
“I said get away!” I yell as hard as I can, however, my voice is not nearly loud enough to reach all the way downstairs. I don’t think Phoenix can hear me. And even if he could … would he really come?
“And he put a leash on you, too?” He grins, and I grab the collar around my neck, feeling very vulnerable. “This is just too pe
rfect.”
The man steps closer, and in an attempt to rescue myself from his impending assault, I get up and grab the chair I was sitting on, holding the legs like some sort of shield.
“Oh, pretty girl has a little spirit left inside her?” he muses. “He didn’t break you enough, it seems.”
When he stomps toward me, I shove the chair in his face and run past him as he tumbles to the ground. Just before I reach the door, his hand wraps around my ankle and pulls me down.
“Oh, no, you’re not going anywhere,” he growls.
I scream and scratch the floor, wood curling underneath my nails as he drags me toward him. He pushes me down on the ground and crawls on top of me as I try to fight him off to no avail.
“Get off me!” I scream as he leans down on top of me.
“You think you can get away, pretty girl?” he whispers. His breath stinks of alcohol. “Oh, no, I want to have a taste first before I kill you.”
“What?” I scream.
“You heard me. No wonder that dude has been keeping you up here. He wanted to have a personal pet to play with. Fuck, I can’t believe he’s been keeping this a secret. No wonder, I would kill to have a pet like you.”
“Don’t you fucking dare!” I scream as he pushes my wrists above my head.
“Shut the fuck up,” he says, smashing his hand into my mouth.
It fucking hurts, but the adrenaline is keeping me from feeling any pain because he’s literally on top of me, almost suffocating me with his weight.
“I didn’t fucking come here for that dude, but I’m going to take you instead,” he says.
And then he unbuckles his belt and pulls out his dick.
Oh god, I feel like I’m going to be sick.
“No!” I scream.
Fighting him, I turn around and scratch him in the face, and then kick him in the balls. He makes an ‘oompf’ sound, and I crawl out from underneath him as he grabs his sack. I make a run for it, but he catches up to me again in the hallway, pushing me against the wall with his elbow in my throat.
“You fucking bitch,” he whispers. “Now you’re gonna get it.”
He pulls off his pants, twisting me around until my arms almost break, and then pokes me with his hard-on. I can’t believe this is happening. I don’t want this. Please tell me this isn’t true.
Suddenly, he’s gone, almost like he’s whisked away by the wind, leaving my cold, naked body trembling against the wall. But that was no wind … it was a different kind of storm. An inferno raging in the form of a man I know all too well.
“Phoenix,” I whisper.
CHAPTER 25
VANESSA
I shudder in place, watching Phoenix tackle the guy and put him down on the ground.
“You fucking son of a bitch!” Phoenix yells, his voice raspy from fury. “I’m gonna fucking kill you!”
His anger has me frozen in place as he beats the living shit out of the man lying on the floor, helpless to his relentless assault. He’s so quick with his jabs and punches that I can’t even keep up.
“You fucking laid a hand on her?” he screams.
“No, I was just …”
“You had your fucking dick out! You fucking piece of shit!” he yells, slapping the shit out of him. “You tried to fuck her!”
“Fuck you; you’re keeping a chick up there all for yourself. The least you can do is share,” the man spits.
“SHE IS MINE!” Phoenix yells so loud that I sink to the ground.
I watch the two men fight; hitting each other with such force that teeth are flying through the air and blood is dripping from their faces. And all I can do is sit here and feel numb. I want to move, but I can’t. I feel glued to the floor, images flashing through my head of that man and his fingers, the way he touched me, the way he crawled over me like a slithering snake, his smell, and the fear it instilled in me. His flesh coming into contact with mine. He almost … almost … Oh fuck, I think I’m going to puke.
As Phoenix keeps jabbing him, I lean over and puke on the floor beside me. There goes breakfast. What a waste, but damn, do I feel sick.
“I DON’T FUCKING SHARE!” Phoenix screams.
I glance at him and watch him pull a knife. I don’t stop him. All I do is watch as he jams the knife into the man’s chest. He gurgles, spitting up blood, groaning in pain as Phoenix takes the blade out and stuffs it back into his body again. It’s almost like a blow-up doll filled with hay that he just keeps stabbing. Maybe I’ve lost my mind for thinking this, but I’m not even opposed to the idea of Phoenix killing this man. In fact, I would’ve done it myself if I wasn’t completely fazed out right now. But watching that man get ripped to shreds is somehow soothing to my volatile heart.
“You put your fucking filthy hands on her, fucking pig.” Phoenix grabs his fingers and slams them to the ground. “Say bye to your fucking fingers, dipshit,” he growls.
And off goes the thumb. One chop is all it takes.
It’s quick. It’s painful. It’s certainly merciless.
And I don’t give a damn.
I just watch him as he chops off the man’s fingers one by one with only a knife. The same knife he used to threaten me with. The same knife I now wish to use to cut off the man’s balls.
The man screams, but it only calms me down. My heart should be racing right now, and my mind should be rallying to come to his aid. He’s a man who requires help, but sometimes the need to see someone punished goes beyond what we tell ourselves we should do.
Only now, after seeing him being brutalized, do I realize that I’m just as fucked up as all of the people in this house.
He’s being tortured, and I don’t give a damn. In fact, just watching it happen in front of me is calming me down.
Someone else storms up the stairs. A guy with slick black hair, a square jaw, and a frown so deep I swear it’s locked on permanently. He rushes toward the two and pulls Phoenix off the dude.
“Nix! Stop!” he yells, literally dragging Phoenix away.
“Get the fuck off me!” Phoenix screams. “I’m gonna kill him!”
The man is groaning, his noises getting quieter with every passing second.
It all happened in a flash. One minute some guy is assaulting me, and the next, Phoenix is chopping his fingers off like cutting grass. He’s fast as lightning, striking with equal ferocity.
And he did it all for me.
***
PHOENIX
Age 20
“Hit him harder!” my trainer yells to me as I punch my opponent. “Harder, Phoenix!”
When he calls out that name, it makes me frown, wondering who the hell he’s talking to. But then I remember … that’s me now. Phoenix is my name. I just haven’t gotten used to people calling me that way yet.
My trainer told me that I would get a new identity. A new name. The moment I joined, Miles would be dead. Gone from this earth. I would be reborn as a killer, and a killer needed an appropriate name.
Phoenix, I’d decided. Like the hero from my past.
I would be own my hero now.
Momentarily distracted, my opponent smacks me in the face, causing me to drop down on my back.
“Phoenix, get your ass back up!” my trainer yells. “Stop letting yourself get distracted. Focus!”
I nod, jumping back up on my feet again, ready for the next attack.
I’ve been training for the past few months. Nonstop, ever since I met him. My trainer is harsh and so is the organization. Everyone is ruthless here, just like me. After training here for so much time, I finally realize why he chose me that day on the streets. It wasn’t because I was strong or fast, even though I am. It was because of my attitude. My relentless pursuit of justice. My justice. I would achieve anything in whatever way necessary … and all of the people here would do the same.
We are killers.
They’re born and bred to fight, to escape the law, to hunt for their prey. They murder the guilty but don’t always spare the innocen
t. They fight for two things—money and power. And now that I’ve seen them in action, I realize that there are a lot of people who would do anything to attain either of those two. The only thing being is that they hire us to do their dirty work for them.
So essentially, they’re not the ones with money and power; we are.
I dropkick my opponent to the other side of the mat, making him touch the ground.
My trainer blows his whistle and shouts, “Well done, Phoenix.”
I get up off the floor, wiping the sweat from my forehead, and shake my opponent’s hand. He’s a lot tougher than I am, and yet I still managed to beat him. He grins and winks at me, “Good match, Nix.”
“Thanks, DeLuca.”
It’s the first time I managed to beat his ass. He’s a lot bigger and stronger than the others are, but I guess that’s why my trainer wanted me to fight him. He’s been handing me tasks he doesn’t want anyone else to do, like point-blank shooting a guy in the face, even though I knew nothing about his background.
It didn’t matter to me. I didn’t care. And the more I fight and kill, the less I feel.
My emotions have been waning ever since I lost her, the girl I believed was mine. Now all I dream about is making her and her new family pay.
I will show them all what real power is. The one you can’t buy. It’s unattainable without losing a piece of your soul, and I’ll gladly barter with the devil.
I can do anything I set my mind to, whether it’s training, fighting, or killing. Day in and day out, I set a goal, and I don’t look back. The past is behind me; this is who I am now. Phoenix; the guy who doesn’t give a damn.
My trainer just wants to see how far I’ll go to win.
How far I’ll go for justice.
Just like that one day, when he stopped to talk to me from his car after I fought my own damn friends. He saw something in me that day. Something I didn’t even know I had inside me, until now.
Let’s just say I’ll do pretty much anything to get my way.
Stalker Page 23