Page 127 of Forsaken Oath

I don’t stop my stroll until I’m right in front of him.

And then I punch him in the face.

Blood spurts from his nose, his hand flying to cover it. “The fuck, Carter?”

“That’s for making my girl cry. Consider it a friendly warning. The next time, I won’t be so fucking nice.”

Thomas holds up a rag to his nose, his eyes shooting fire. “Fuck you, Carter. She’s not even with you anymore.”

I look at him, letting him see the feral beast inside of me that’s usually content to stay indoors. Except when it concerns my girl. Because when it comes to Eloise Hawthorne, there’s little I wouldn’t do.

“Wrong, and just for being a motherfucking dipshit, that’s your second strike. And Thomas? You know what happens after strike three? Ask your buddy Wallis.”

I turn on my heel and saunter toward the small office at the back of the garage, leaving Thomas to nurse his bloodied nose. The adrenaline still sings in my veins, my knuckles throbbing in a satisfying way. But I'm not done yet. Not by a long shot.

I push open the office door without knocking, the hinges creaking in protest. The small room is cluttered with filing cabinets and stacks of paperwork, the air stale with the lingering scent of cigarettes. Walker sits behind his battered metal desk, boots propped on the end of the table.

“Well, if it ain’t my long-lost son,” he says, grinning like a fucking loon.

“I’m asking you to let Eloise and her sisters out of whatever fucked-up thing you have them in. Let ’em walk outta Seven Pines free and clear.”

Walker stares at me for a moment before he tips his head back and cackles. I dip my chin in acknowledgment and push open the glass door to the parking lot.

I reach into the bed of my truck and pull out my favorite baseball bat. Twirling it around in my grip, I swing it up on my shoulder and stroll back into Walker’s office.

And then I start swinging.

His laughing turns into shouting, but I tune him out. I get a good seven swings in before the guys from the garage fill the doorway.

Resting the bat on my shoulder, I face Walker. “I asked you out of common decency. That was my mistake. So now I’m telling you, the Hawthornes are done.”

Walker’s grin is sharp. “Not Darla. We go way back.”

I shrug and take a few steps backward, toward the door. “I don’t give a fuck about her. Eloise, Margot, Vivienne. They’re under my protection now. So if any of your Seven Pines fucks even breathe in their direction, they deal with me.”

Walker laughs, the sound grating, and the guys in the doorway chuckle.

I pause in the doorway. “Didn’t you hear? My brother-in-law is a fucking Reaper.”

Walker’s face pales, and I almost feel a little guilty for the joy it brings me. But then I remember the mountain of absolute shit Graham uncovered about Levi Walker and how he makes his money and where it goes. Graham is currently reallocating all the funds Eloise has paid Walker over the years.

“I’ll be seeing you, Walker.”

I push open the door with my ass and walk to my truck, whistling and twirling the bat around. I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial my brother. He answers on the second ring.

“Burn it down, Graham.”

56

ELOISE

The phone buzzesin the cupholder, the screen lighting up with my sister’s name. I sigh and hit the answer button, putting her on speaker.

“Hey.”

“Sis, I love you, so trust that I’m saying thiswith love, but you need to get your shit together. You’re about to drive the fucking Gauntlet finals and your energy is trash.”

I shake my head and take a left, my headlights sweeping over the Black Hollow National Park welcome sign.

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