Deadly Retaliation: A Dark Bully Harem Romance (A Twisted, Dark and Deadly Romance Book 1)

by C. P. Mandara

  My eyes narrow. I can’t decide whether she’s serious or not, which makes me a little nervous. Sticking my tongue in my cheek, I clear my throat noisily. “No objections,” I say, following it up with a smile. “But you should know I don’t work well with others.” I’m not lying.

  “So I’ve been told. Don’t worry your pretty little head about it.” She pats my hand in what should be an affectionate manner, but it feels a little like an anaconda hugging a mouse. Still, I’m a big boy. Is there any way I’m going to let a woman get the better of me? No way. Well, not unless she’s sucking my cock, anyway.

  “What’s the plan then? We strangle them with our joint cuffs, while you grab one and I grab the other?” To be fair, any plan she comes up with is better than the one I had. I was just going to wing it. I’ve been too preoccupied to think lately. Thankfully, my boss doesn’t know that I’ve found out about James and Lois because if she had, I’d be sitting on my ass awaiting a psyche evaluation. I can’t deal with that on top of everything else right now. If a therapist ever gets their hands on me, they’ll have a field day.

  Melinda turns to face me, and she bites her lower lip for a second. I wonder if she knows what that does to me? Scrap that, I know she does. This woman knows how to work a man in all the right ways.

  Finally, those red lips open, but they’re not telling me what I want to hear.

  “They’re installed in an office at the rear, which has a panic room. You’re going to be a decoy. They cannot get to the panic room, else you and I will go home empty-handed, and I never go home empty-handed. It’s likely they’ll both try to kill themselves rather than be captured, so we have that to contend with, too. I’ll do my best to protect Ruth, and you see what you can do to make sure Montgomery makes it out of here alive. I don’t get paid if she’s dead.” Melinda looks thoughtful, and then adds, “Well, they need her alive for a day or so. Then I can kill her.” Good to know.

  “So, let me get this straight,” I say. “We have guns, they have guns. We’ll be sitting ducks, and they’ll have a panic room. They’re both KGB operatives and will put up a good fight. We’ve got me, but you’re a girl, for Christ’s sake. We’re on the back foot before we even begin.”

  Melinda isn’t the least bit annoyed by my outburst. If anything, I’d say she was amused.

  “Ruth is a girl, too,” she whispers in my ear. It turns me on. Everything she does turns me on to be fair, but seductive whispering is at the top of my list.

  “You’re not trained by the KGB,” I point out politely. Those Russian operatives go through hell. Trust me, I know.

  “Neither are you,” Melinda points out, picking up my gun and tugging on my handcuff as we begin to edge our way along the steel shelves that are full of sawn wood. I kind of like the smell. It reminds me of being inside a butcher’s shop as a kid. They always used to put sawdust on the floor back then. I wonder if I got my taste for blood there? It’s probably unlikely. I wasn’t allowed out very often.

  “I’ve been around. I know how to fight dirty.” I know how to fuck dirty, as well, if she’d just give me a chance to show her.

  Melinda snorts. “You’ve been in this industry for five minutes. You don’t know shit. You don’t even know how I got the drop on you earlier, so cut the crap and listen for a change. When we get upstairs, you’re going in first. Surprise them. Take Montgomery down. If you have time, try to get him restrained. I’ll take care of Gagnon. Can you manage that?”

  I nod. “Do they have any surveillance that will alert them to our presence?”

  Leader gives me a long look. “Didn’t they tell you to deactivate the cams before you went upstairs?”

  No, they didn’t as it happens. Or if they did, I wasn’t listening.

  “Did you deactivate them?” I ask.

  “No, because that would have alerted them to our presence, idiot,” she fires back, almost dragging me up the stairs now.

  “Well, why did you ask me if I’d…” She cuts me off mid-sentence.

  “I reprogrammed them. They can’t see a thing. Can we focus now?”

  No, not really. I’m still picturing Melinda in my dungeon all tied up with rough, scratchy hessian rope, while I go at her with a tawse. When I’m not imagining that, Lois is in her place, and there are no depths to the lengths of depravity I’m prepared to go to, so I can even up that score.

  “Yes,” I hiss. “Go in, take down Montgomery. Tie him up. Wait for you.”

  “Excellent,” she says, bringing out the keys to the cuffs as we reach the bottom of the stairs. With one deft move, she breaks our temporary bond and I find I am almost disappointed. There had better be sex in this for me if we complete this thing without a hitch and everyone gets what they want.

  “So, what are you waiting for?” Leader hands me my gun and then smacks my butt. “Go get ‘em, soldier.”

  This is my cue to run up the industrial metal stairs in front of me as quietly as I can, while hoping that the woman behind me isn’t setting me up for a great big fall. If I burst in those doors at the top all guns blazing and find myself surrounded by dozen security guards – I am going to be pissed. There is one small thing that’s bothering me, though.

  “Why aren’t you going in with me? Surely two of us barging in at once is better than one?” It’s a reasonable question. She’d better have a decent answer for me.

  “Are you always this suspicious, Dumortier?” Leader grins at me.

  “It’s one of the reasons I’ve stayed alive so long,” I counter.

  “What are the other reasons, out of curiosity?” she asks me.

  “Well, obviously no woman is ever going to kill me,” I say. “As to the men, they’re obviously just blinded by my good looks, wondering whether they want to change sides.”

  Leader keeps her gun trained on me while she rolls her eyes heavenward. With a flick of the barrel, she indicates I should get moving.

  “Do you do men as well?” She looks up at me expectantly, a little smile playing around her lips. I can’t help but wonder what she’s thinking.

  “Yep,” I say with a grin of my own. “I shoot both men and woman, and I don’t lose any sleep over it.” My bad? I don’t turn around to see the expression on her face because I’m already sprinting towards the top of the stairs, praying that I’m not about to play the starring role in a major bloodbath. Here goes nothing.

  Adie

  My entrance to the spies’ lair is something of an anticlimax. For starters, there’s no one there, and if I’m reading my 007 sixth sense correctly, someone has gotten to these guys before me. Still, I’d better make sure, so I have a good look around.

  To my left is a small kitchenette, so I slowly walk over and place the back of my hand on the old chrome kettle. It’s cold. There are two mugs on a glass coffee table to my right nestled next to a brown corner sofa, so I saunter over to pick one up. Inside are the dregs of someone’s cup of tea, stone cold, but recent enough. It hasn’t been here more than a couple of hours. Hmm. Where is everyone? Did they get wind of us? Did Leader fuck up the camera loop? Were there pressure pads or infrared motion detectors that we were unaware of? There’s always the possibility that they’ve gone to their panic room already. If that’s the case, it’s going to be a giant headache trying to get them out of it again – and that’s if they’re even in there.

  Quickly scouring the small studio apartment from top to bottom to make sure I haven’t missed anything, I bite down the curse I want to utter. If I fuck this up, I am not going to be able to hold my head up in the office for the next six months at least. Still, there is not much I can do. They are not here.

  Striding back towards the door, I yank it open to see where Leader has got to. Some bloody back-up plan she is. If they’d been shooting at me, I’d have been dead five minutes ago.

  When I look out the doorway, there is no one there. My eyes then wander down the staircase, but that is empty, too. This is not a good sign. In fact, I have a feeling this is a very
bad sign.

  “Leader,” I yell. The time for stealth has long since gone, so I bolt out the door and prepare to run down the stairs to find the bitch.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Leader then finally comes into view, waving a set of car keys in her hands. Mine, if I’m not much mistaken. Patting down my back pocket, I confirm what I’ve already suspected. She’s lifted them.

  “Sorry, darling. I’ve just put Montgomery and Gagnon in the back, and I need them both, so I’m going to have to pull a fast one. It’s nothing personal, you understand. I still have the utmost respect for your ‘skills.’ She blows me a kiss but then ruins the effect by adding, “Whatever they may be,” under her breath. That is it. That’s the last straw.

  Roaring my head off, I take the stairs two at a time, but come to a shuddering stop before I’ve barely got halfway down. My vision is blurry, and my legs have suddenly turned to jelly. Blinking rapidly, I can feel my heart-rate pounding and I suddenly want to throw up. What the hell is wrong with me?

  “That would be the nerve agent I placed on the inside of the door handle,” Leader says helpfully. “I did try to warn you.”

  The last thing I hear is her laughing her ass off as mine hits the floor hard. To add insult to injury, the next thing I feel is her booted foot smacking me hard in the crotch. Thankfully, the lights go out soon after.

  Why is it that when I finally meet a girl who knows how to fight dirty, I’m never around for long enough to appreciate the fact?

  The look on the boss’ face when I came in empty-handed, several hours later, is thunderous. Actually, it’s worse than that. Not only have I lost the assets, but I’ve let the enemy take them. She probably wants to kill me here on the spot. I almost wish she would.

  “Don’t you have anything to say?” she asks, when I walk past her without saying a word. I think carefully about that.

  “Life’s a bitch, and then she doesn’t kill you.” I thought that summed it up quite nicely. For some reason, Leader didn’t leave me there to die. Either she had an antidote on her, or she managed to get me some medical attention fairly quickly because whatever she dosed me with was nasty stuff. Once you get a whiff of it, you’re not usually alive for too long afterwards. I am still undecided as to whether I am grateful or not. If I get a chance to put Leader in my dungeon at some point in the near future, then yes, I might be grateful. If not, I’d rather just be put out of my misery because that’s what my life is at the moment – miserable.

  “Seriously, Elizabeth, if you want me dead, just pit me against Leader again. She’ll do the job for you and she’ll clean up the mess. I have nothing further to say on the matter. My testicles are feeling very delicate and I need some ice. Now if you’ll excuse me…” Normally, my expression would be enough to send the fear of God into most mortals by now, but not Elizabeth. She, unfortunately, is made of sterner stuff.

  Standing straight in front of me, blocking the way to my office, she says, “Do we need to replace you, Adrien? This is the third assignment in a row you have failed to complete. We’ve never had an incident like this at this agency before. We pride ourselves on our good reputation.” She says it out loud, in front of all of my colleagues, while giving me the most condescending look she can manage. That was her first mistake. Her second was standing still while she said it.

  Taking her down to the ground with a little flick of my foot behind her knees, I catch her head just before it bounces off the floor. This isn’t to protect her. She deserves to have her head bounced halfway to the other side of the room, but most of the office is watching me. If I tried to kill the boss in front of them, it would look bad. I still have some morals – not many, but some. These mostly revolve around trying to make sure I’m nowhere near as much of an asshole as my brother was. Today might be a close-run thing, though.

  “Feel free to replace me any time, Elizabeth,” I say, snaking a hand up inside her skirt. This is not something I would usually do to the boss, but as I’m about to get fired, I don’t give a fuck. Humiliating her in front of the office has its own sweet reward, too. Her panties are soft silk and so wet I could almost wring them out. After my escapade with Leader, I feel the need to sink my dick into something, but I’m pretty sure I’m not going to get far with this one. Waiting for Elizabeth to speak could take a while, judging by the shocked expression on her face, so I decide to continue on with my rampage.

  “If you know anyone inside this room that wants to go up against Leader and have their ass handed to them on a regular basis, line ‘em up. Tell you what, let’s see if we can find a volunteer? Anyone fancy a go against Melanie? I mean, how dangerous could one tiny little female be?” My head looks up as my index finger and thumb pinch Elizabeth’s clit. She manages to smother her moan but produces a very unladylike snort instead. As she’s on the floor, below the line of desks around us, no one will actually see what I’m doing, but a few might guess. I smile to myself. Looking around the room carefully, eyeing each of my colleagues in turn, I am unsurprised to find that no one has stepped forward. Leader’s reputation around these parts is legendary. “Don’t be shy,” I cajole, as my fingers peel back my boss’ panties just enough so that I can sneak a finger into her, “so far this month I’ve been poisoned, shot at, stabbed, kneed in the balls, and today I was treated to a delightful little nerve agent that I think might have been Sarin. If you’re an adrenaline junkie, you’ll have a whale of a time.” I smile nastily. Everyone around us is now looking very awkward. I’m not sure if they know where my hand is, but if they don’t, they’re fucking lousy operatives. “Come on, there must be one volunteer, surely? Someone here must want their balls crushed?” My head sweeps around the room lazily one last time, as my fingernail flicks Elizabeth’s clit. If I’m about to be fired, I’m going to go down in style. My father taught me that you should always make a grand entrance and exit. He didn’t teach me much that was worthwhile, but there are a couple of things I hang on to. Our family goes large in everything that we do, and that isn’t likely to change any time in the near future.

  No one moves. That’s either because they are well aware of Leader’s reputation and the fact that she is pretty much the best in the business, or they’re afraid I might kill them – which is a distinct possibility. Good. I’ve made my point. Withdrawing my hand smartly from my boss’ crotch, I then carefully place her upright once more, because I am a gentleman at the end of the day, albeit a dreadfully twisted one. I then turn towards the corridor, so that I can go and pack up my desk before Elizabeth summons up the courage to chew me out. At the moment, she is still gob smacked.

  “You’re all very sensible people,” I remark quietly with a nod, before I then stride off towards my office. When I get there, I slam the door, just in case people haven’t gotten the message that I need to be left alone for the time being. Walking towards my desk, I bang the drawer open and start lumping all of my stuff about. I don’t know why I’m doing this. It’s fucking stationary, for Christ sakes. I’m not that hard up I need to steal a stapler, but it seems like something to do and there’s no way I’m doing the walk of shame just yet. I need to simmer down or I’ll kill someone. Sit down. Breathe.

  Pulling out my leather chair, I slowly lower myself into it. My balls are throbbing, and I desperately need ice. That would be another walk through the office that I am not prepared to take. Still, pain is my bitch. If there’s something I’m used to dealing with, pain is it. Compared to most of the stuff I’ve had to endure over the years, this is child’s play in comparison.

  Steepling my fingers together, I push them until the knuckles crack. Goddamn. I am going to have to look for a new job. I wonder who’s hiring assassins on this side of the continent in a global recession? Maybe I should stop working for the good guys. I’ve always worked for the bad guys in the past. I’m pretty sure they have more fun as long as you can deal with the sick and depraved part that comes with it. That shouldn’t be a problem. I’ve had plenty of training in that area
.

  Just as I’m about to sink deep into the darkest depths of despair, the door to my office comes crashing open. I automatically reach for my gun, wondering if Leader has decided to have a showdown here just to prove who’s boss, when Elizabeth bursts in. The door slams sharply shut behind her and she stands there, bristling with fury as steam starts pouring out of her ears. She looks like she’s about to explode. Her amber eyes are flashing fire at me and her blonde waves are a little more tousled than they were ten minutes ago. Fuck. I love angry women. Have I mentioned that before?

  When she stands there with her chest heaving and her eyes burning a path through the back of my skull, I wait for the tirade that is sure to spill out. When several seconds go by and she doesn’t say a word, I end up filling in the silence for her.

  “I’m clearing out my desk, as you can see. I will be gone in the next thirty minutes or so. You can even kick my ass on the way out, if it will make you feel better.” I smile coldly. She can try to kick my ass. She won’t like what happens afterwards, but she can try.

  “Why would I fire you?” Elizabeth finally says, walking slowly towards me. She then puts her arms down on either side of my desk, and her blouse dips dramatically, giving me a delightful view of her creamy décolletage. She’s wearing cream lace beneath that frothy, almost see-through blouse, and I suddenly have an urge to find out if her taste in lingerie is as good as her taste in clothes. The tight black skirt that clings to her hips would look magnificent up around her ears.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” I say, leaning forward slowly, mostly so I can get a better view of her bra, “maybe the fact that you called me out in front of all of my colleagues for being such a crap employee.” Now I’m the first person to admit that I’m never going to win any employee of the year award, but I don’t like being publicly humiliated. There’s no need to kick me when I’m down.