Page 83 of King of Hearts

“Brass fucking knuckles…shit.” Kyle spat blood out on the carpet.

“Stop it—why are you doing this?” a female screamed, running into the room, her long dark hair swinging around Kyle like a shield. She had pale blue eyes that shone with tears as she looked up at me and held her palm against Kyle’s chest.

Decker casually wandered into the living room, his hands shoved into his pockets while he watched his little brother. His face was expressionless, like this situation didn’t faze him in the least. His eyes flicked once to the girl, and their gazes seemed to lock for long enough for something to pass between them. The girl suddenly looked down at the person lying under her, and it was as though pain had suddenly been etched into every surface of her skin.

“You going to do anything?” Kyle yelled, aiming the question at his older brother.

Decker finally broke his stare with the girl and looked his brother in the eye. “The way I see it, little brother, you’re headed toward an early grave. Not sure how to get your attention, so maybe Juan here can knock a little sense into you.”

The girl hung her head in defeat, removing her hand from his shirt. “You didn’t stop, did you?” Her whisper might as well have been a trumpet for how loud it felt between us. She was disappointed in Kyle, and the way his face twisted in remorse told me he cared what she thought of him.

“Rylie, it’s not what you think,” he muttered while trying to get to his feet.

I moved forward and pressed my boot into his chest to stop him.

“Are you working again? It’s a yes-or-no question, Kyle,” she yelled, tears glimmering in her wounded expression. There was obviously some story here, but I didn’t currently give enough fucks to figure it out.

The girl scrambled away from Kyle, getting to her feet and running from the room, and that was when I took advantage and punched him in the stomach.

Kyle rolled over, groaning.

I spoke carefully, trying to control my tone. “Where. The. Fuck. Are. They?”

“Fuck this…it isn’t worth it. She…” He swallowed thickly, trying to catch his breath. I moved to hit him again and he put his hands up. “Okay, okay. Just…Jesus.”

“Start talking,” I commanded with my fist ready to slam into his nose.

“She came here, asking for a meeting with Markos.”

I didn’t want to believe that. She wouldn’t…but…fuck. She would.

“Did he accept it?” I stood over him, removing the brass knuckles, feeling my anger dissipate for a brief second. Now that I knew where they were, it felt a little easier to breathe. Not that I liked where she was, but not knowing was half the fear.

“He did…gave her an address for where to meet. I have it.”

“Get it.” I turned away to give him room, walking toward Decker, who was still just watching things play out.

“You done with him?” my best friend’s husband asked me, raising a dark brow.

I nodded, pacing around the room while Kyle got to his feet so he could pull out his cell.

“Here…” He handed it to me with the screen illuminated, and I put the address into my phone while Kyle held his stomach. “You should know…Ivan…he put her up for sale.”

My fingers stopped moving as my heart seemed to flop the fuck out of my chest. Impossible…but it seemed her own father doing something so evil was too, yet here we were.

“What does that mean?” I whispered.

Kyle shook his head, wiping at the corner of his mouth. “It means I told Taylor El Peligro was the only safe place for her, but she said she couldn’t go back and needed Markos…said it was the safest place for her.”

We’ll fucking see about that.

Kyle grabbed a bag of peas from the freezer and plopped it against his jaw. “Ivan is after her. He wants to sell her as a form of punishment for going against his wishes. He isn’t honoring any deals or anything set up with you or Markos.”

“Then he’s declared war against me.”

I turned to leave, but Kyle’s question stopped me.

“You didn’t get that memo when he broke into your security feed, had your lead man called off, and completely emptied your place?” The shit scoffed, which renewed my anger.

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