Okay, this she didn’t like. She always arrived first and spotted the bastard before being seen. Her stomach knotted and sweat beaded underneath her wig. Tonight she wore a leather pantsuit, a push-up bra, which made her boobs look bigger than they actually were, and moderately high heels so she could fight and run. The jacket was loose enough to conceal her short swords, their cool hardness against her skin reassuring.
The woman slowed, motioning toward a table where a man with golden eyes sat staring at her. He was definitely a vampire, but dressed in a very expensive suit. Diamond earrings decorated his ears, and she knew without a doubt they were real and very expensive. It was him. She knew it. This was the Savior. Not an imposter, not a wannabe.
Flashes of her sister’s battered body slammed into her memory, and she tried to push them aside, but her hatred for this evil piece of shit had her emotions all over the place. Her fingers itched to grab her sword and be done with it, but seeing the two men standing behind the seated vampire stayed her hands. She wanted to savor his death, and killing him now wouldn’t serve that purpose because she would die instantly. That she knew.
The man stood and pulled out a chair. “Please, sit.” He smiled down at her, though his smile didn’t reach his eyes.
Sophia had to play her cards carefully. And acting nervous wasn’t very hard to do because she was petrified, but not of death. She was terrified of failure. She sat, not liking that her back was to the two men. Savior then took his seat, but not next to her, across from her.
“Are you Savior?” she asked, playing the dumb game.
“I am.” He leaned back, watching her closely. “And you are the Slayer of Vampires.” It wasn’t a question, but an observation.
Shit! Okay, be cool, she told herself. “The Slayer of what?” She gasped, her eyes wide with fake surprise.
He chuckled, oddly without a smile on his lips. “You’re good.” He nodded then tsked. “Real good, but drop the act. What I want to know is why you’re coming for me?”
“I really don’t know what you’re talking about.” Sophia’s hand moved up her leg under the table to get closer to her sword. “I was told that you can… help me.” She whispered the last part after looking around to make sure no one heard; at least that’s what she wanted him to believe.
“Like I helped Anna?” His voice turned from his fake pleasantry to matter-of-fact, as if her sister were a bug beneath his shoe.
“What?” Her heart pumped harder than it ever had. Just hearing her sister’s name from the bastard’s lips was enough to make her scream in rage, but she kept calm, kept the act going. She had no choice. It wasn’t over until he was dead under her blade. “I don’t know who you think I am. I was told that if I put out an ad that you would answer and not to trust anyone else. I really need your—”
“Enough!” His hand slammed on the table, making her jump. “You have no idea who you are dealing with Ms. Deluce, Sophia Deluce. Sophia Karma Deluce. And I have to say the K carved into the foreheads was genius.”
Sophia’s hand inched closer to the cold steel against her body. The rage inside her burned as her eyes narrowed. “It was, wasn’t it?” She gave him a smile that was pure hatred. “And I can’t wait to see it on your forehead.”
This time when he chuckled, he did it with a smile. “I like you. Almost enough to turn you and make you my whore.”
“Over my dead body,” she hissed as she placed her feet in position to stand up. “I’d kill myself first.”
His golden eyes slowly slid down her body until it disappeared under the table. “Such a waste.” He shook his head, his eyes returning to hers. “But you have caused so much grief for me I have to make an example of you. Pity. You’ve killed five of my men.”
She turned to look at the two men who had stepped closer to her, then back at him. “Soon to be eight.”
He laughed. “Now that would be quite the accomplishment, Ms. Deluce, and one that would definitely earn you the name Slayer of Vampires that some have given you. Many have tried to get rid of me. This is big business and I’m at the top, no one fucks with me. No one.”
“Killing innocent women is big business?” She knew she wasn’t dead right this minute because of the witnesses. Sophia had no idea how she was going to pull this off, but she would die trying.
“You are nothing like your sister.” He ignored her question with an observation that sent chills down her spine. “For twins, that is unusual, but it’s true. While she was weak, you are strong.”
Now she ignored him, knowing he was trying to get her to lose her shit. Instead, she wanted answers. “Why?” She leaned back as if she was having an every-day normal conversation with a handsome vampire. “Why did you have to kill her?”
His face slid into a stone mask, his eyes hardened. “Because she was short.”
“Short?” Sophia frowned.
“On funds, Sophia. She was short on the fee.” His casualness when talking about her sister’s death was almost more than she could handle. She had never hated anything more than she hated this vile piece of shit.
“How much?” she managed to squeeze out of her tightening throat.
“Two hundred.” He glanced down at his large diamond ring on his pinky finger with a smirk.
Her heart stopped with a painful twist. Her sister was dead over two hundred dollars. The injustice of the conversation was mind-boggling. Her breathing came in short gasps that she needed to control, and her shakiness from rage needed to calm.
“Two hundred dollars short of what?” Her lips thinned with anger.
“Six thousand.” He didn’t even blink as he stared at her as if enjoying telling her everything about her sister’s death. “She was going to die anyway, you know this. She wanted to be saved, beat the cancer, and I could have helped her, but my price was six thousand. She knew that. My men have their orders.”
“Your men?” Sophia tried to digest everything at once while struggling not to throw up or fall down crying from the pain. But she would do none of that. She wanted to know it all because when she did kill the bastard, she needed the rage, the anger to do the job in the most heinous way possible.
“I am everywhere.” He waved arms around. “I am Savior.”
“You are an evil bastard, who I will enjoy killing.” She leaned toward him.
“Oh, Sophia, stop being so dramatic. It was just business. Nothing more, nothing less.” He nodded toward the two men, never taking his eyes off her. “But you took it so personally.”
“You bet your ass I did.” She kicked the chair back as she stood, hitting the two men in the legs. Her hand wrapped around the hilt of her short sword as she shot across the table.
Savior’s hand wrapped around her throat; she was too slow. He had been ready, and because of his goading, she had lost her cool and reacted.
“Mistakes will get you killed sooner, my dear.” His voice was smooth and confident. “As I said earlier, you have no idea who you are dealing with, and I’m afraid, Ms. Deluce, you have bitten off way more than you can chew.”
This time when he smiled, his fangs elongated in front of her eyes. His gaze turned black, and she knew it was time to meet her sister on the other side as her plan had failed.
“Take her and watch her swords.” He used his hand on her throat to push her back across the table. The men grasped her arms in a punishing grip. “No one touches her until I get there. At least this way I’m saving money.”
“Yes, sir,” one of the men replied, making Sophia snort.
“Got them trained well,” she mocked. Her eyes narrowed though, wondering what he meant by saving money.
He straightened his suit, fixed his tie, and then glared back at her. “Absolutely.” His smile was deadly. “Watch this.”
Sophia prayed for one of their grips to loosen so she could get to her sword. She wanted nothing more than to slice his throat before plunging her sharp blade into his black heart.
“As soon as you secure her, get th
e drag queen.” The triumphant look on his face made her gag in shock. “Darlene the Darling, isn’t it?”
“You bastard,” she spat, struggling to get away, but she knew it was useless.
“No, I’m Savior.” He stepped before her, bent down, and ran his nose across her cheek until his lips were against her ear. “And I’m everywhere.”
Chapter 6
Axel was livid as he sat outside Blue’s Cocktail Lounge. What in the fuck was she thinking? He followed the damn black Nissan that he knew was hidden in the garage and he had been right. She was playing a game that was going to get her killed. She was so ridiculously reckless. If he had already figured out who she was, so had others. There was no doubt about that. And her disguise, well that was pretty good, but shit, she was no expert at this killing shit. Though he had to admit, she was doing pretty damn well. And if she was dealing with vampires, her time was near to being up.
Getting off his bike, he glared at the Nissan as he passed. Once he paid his door fee and walked inside, he kept to the shadows, checking to make sure all his weaponry was in place. He had a feeling he was going to need them.
Not only was he going to have to watch out for the asshole she was after, but there was another assassin taking his place. Just because he turned down the job didn’t mean someone else wouldn’t snap it up in an instant. It actually put more of a hit on her because he was known as one of the best, so he probably sealed her fate even tighter than it already was. Other assassins knew who was doing what jobs. Once Axel turned this down, they would just see it as a failure. There would be lines of them for the new contract to prove they could do the job. In turn, if they succeeded, they could match or even go over Axel’s going rate. It was a brutal and very competitive business.
“Fuck!” Sophia Deluce was definitely making him behave out of the ordinary and against what common sense told him to do. He never turned down a six-figure payday.
He found a spot along the wall in the darkness. He waved a cocktail waitress away with a smile as to not cause any suspicion. His eyes found Sophia immediately, seated at a table with a large man in a suit while two other men stood behind her.
He could see her face clearly, but the man’s back was to him. He watched the different emotions play across her face, but fear wasn’t one of them. Damn, she was something. And that damn wig had to fucking go. Okay, where in the fuck did that thought come from?
He forced his gaze off her and scanned the bar area. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, nothing that caused him alarm. His eyes traveled to the spot he would go if she were still his target and he wanted to collect his pay. No one was there. Then he glanced at the second spot, and again no one stood. Relief was swift, but as his eyes went back to her, his relief turned to madness as the large man wrapped his hand around her throat when she shot up out of her chair and across the table toward him.
Casually, his hand slipped into his coat, his grip comfortable around the handle of his firearm. If the fucker didn’t let go and let go now, the guy would be eating lead from the back of his skull. While Axel’s hearing was excellent, he was too far away, and with the muttering of conversation and music, he couldn’t quite hear what was being said.
Just as he was pulling his gun out, the man let go—lucky for him. But then the two assholes with him grabbed Sophia. He could take two out, one bullet to each forehead. “Piece of fucking cake,” he growled low, his eyes narrowing in on his targets.
The man in the suit laughed, then turned, heading his way. Axel relaxed his grip as he moved his head as if digging the music from the live band. His eyes slowly shifted so he could get a good look at the asshole he was going to kill. Vampire. The motherfucker was a vampire, just as he figured, but he wasn’t sure until he’d seen his ugly pale face.
The vampire didn’t even look his way, which alerted Axel that this fuck thought he was invincible and that always made a kill… simpler. His eyes went back to Sophia who was being taken, none too gently, out the opposite way.
“Shit!” He raced out toward the front, the way the vampire left. Axel slowed when he watched the man exit the club and step into a limo that sat idling. Not waiting for the limo to pull out, Axel walked out the door, turned left along the building and then disappeared around the corner. He knew he didn’t have much time.
Taking out his suppressed Rugers, he held them against his sides as he walked normally, but at a fast clip. The sound of struggling clued him in that he was close. Just one more corner.
“Knock her the fuck out,” a man’s voice carried toward him, spurring him faster. If one of them laid a hand on her in any way, he would make their death painful.
He turned the corner and his steps faltered for just a second. This little slip of a woman fought two grown men, who were trying to get her in the trunk of their car. She used her feet against the bumper, making it awkward for them. A touch of respect lit inside him as a smile quirked his lips, but the smile faded when one of the men raised his fist toward her. That’s when he lifted one of his Rugers.
“You drop that fist anywhere near her, I will kill you.” Axel’s voice was deadly and serious. The men turned, and he realized that the two were vampires; it seemed like they were wearing makeup to hide their paleness. The fangs growing out from under their upper lip gave them away, though.
“Who the fuck are you?” one man asked, his eyes going from the gun back to Axel.
Axel didn’t even hesitate. He put a bullet between the questioner’s eyes and then before he could drop to the ground, one to his heart before aiming back at the other, who was slowly lowering his fist.
“And I don’t answer questions,” he added as an afterthought. “Let her go.”
“Do you know who I am, who I work for?” The vampire’s voice rose as if shocked Axel dared to confront them.
“Don’t care,” Axel replied, then sighed with a shake of his hand. “Shit, I forget I don’t answer questions.”
He shot the fucker right between the eyes. As he was falling, Axel rushed to pull Sophia out of the man’s grip.
“Are you crazy?” She looked at him, shocked. “You could have hit me.”
“Obviously, you don’t know who I am.” He snorted, then when the vampire’s eyes came back into focus, Axel aimed and shot him in the heart. A vampire could be stopped with a bullet anywhere, but to kill them, it had to be the heart, which made no damn sense because they were technically dead anyway.
“Why is it men think everyone should know who they are?” Sophia tugged on her suit top, fixed her wig, then marched around to get into the back of the car.
“Guess it’s an ego thing.” Axel shrugged, his ears picking up the sound of sirens.
“Ya think?” Her muttered response was full of sarcasm.
“We gotta go.” He walked around and then stopped to observe her ass, which was at the right height for him to bare her ass and fuck her like no tomorrow, as she fumbled in the back seat of the car. The sirens grew louder, shaking him out of his thoughts. He reached for her, but stopped when she spun with the tip of the sword in his sternum. “This is the thanks I get for saving your sweet ass?”
“Who are you?” She pushed the blade… just enough to let him know it was there. He also knew he could easily disarm her, but he let her have her moment.
“Your new best friend,” he replied. Then with a snap of his wrist, he knocked the blade away, yanking her to him. “Since introductions are over with, let’s get the hell out of here.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her along with him. He went in the opposite way he came toward his bike. He stopped at the edge of the building and peeked around the corner. He spotted his bike instantly. It was a clear shot, but the sirens were on them. He waited as red and blue lights sped past the bar. Relieved he didn’t have to deal with them, he pulled her with him again.
“Hey, wait, my car.” She tried to dig her feet in, but he was stronger.
“Leave it, we’ll get it later if it’s still here.” He s
canned the area for trouble, but it was looking good.
“No!” This time she kicked him in the leg, which loosened his grip. “I have to get my car.”
“Son of a bitch.” He reached down to rub the spot she kicked. That fucking hurt. “Is that car registered in your name?”
Her eyes shifted away as she shook her head. “No, it’s not. It’s in my sister’s name. I can’t leave it.”
And he understood that more than she realized. “Jesus. Okay, but follow me.”
“No, I have to go to Darin.” She shook her head, edging toward her car.
“Who the fuck is Darin?” His tone turned deadly, and so did his mood. Another man’s name leaving her lips pissed him off to a level of rage he hadn’t felt in a long time. Even seeing the man about to hit her hadn’t set him off quite like this, but then again, he knew the asshole would have been dead before he had made contact.
“You met him.” The worry in her voice and expression concerned him. “That asshole knows about Darin. I have to warn him. This is all my fault.”
He had two choices. Axel could just throw his hands up and say fuck it and walk away. Or he could make sure this woman remained safe under his protection. Obviously, since he turned down a six-figure pay and killed two men, he knew the answer.
He grabbed her keys out of her hand, opened the door and motioned her to get in. Once she was seated, he handed her the keys.
“If you pull any funny shit on the way and try to lose me, you better hope I don’t find you.” He cocked his eyebrow at her. “Do you understand me?”
“Yes.” She nodded as she started the car. “I just really have to get to Darin.”
He gave her a nod, then shut her door after making sure she was tucked inside. He went to his bike and got on. “Fuck me!” He watched her back up, then waited for her to get in front of him. He had a really bad feeling he had just signed up to some major shit with no payday.
Chapter 7
Within minutes, she would be at Ruby’s where Darin was. He hadn’t picked up or answered her text. She glanced in the rearview mirror to see the single headlight of the man’s bike. She didn’t even know his name, yet he’d killed two men because of her. Biting her lip, she looked back at the road, debating for the hundredth time whether she should try to lose him. Something other than fear of his threat told her not to. She obviously needed help and was in way over her head. While it was hard for her to admit, she wasn’t stupid, at least that’s what she had been telling herself for months.
Karma's Revenge (A Bad Girls Novel) Page 4