Page 121 of Deadly Vows

“We’re in,” Romelo says.

I shift my attention back to Nora.

“Thank you for that…but it was Daniel I asked, remember?”

Snip.

Her screams fill the air, and I shudder in pleasure at the agony leaving her lips. I stand, pulling out my knife as I hold it to her throat, ready to cut it open, and her pants grow darker as she loses control of her bladder.

“Luca,” Romelo calls to me, pulling my attention.

He has an amused grin on his face, gesturing to Nicolai. For once, he won’t meet my gaze.

“What?” I snap.

Finally, Nicolai’s eyes meet mine, and I note his face is red. I laugh aloud as realization dawns on me.

“You’re kidding,” I say.

Out of Romelo and me, Nicolai has always been the most normal. I never thought he’d want totakesomeone, especially in this situation.

I pull my blade away from her throat, holding it by the steel as I throw it across the room. Daniel grunts in pain as it plunges into his chest, and I close the distance between us, ripping it out before plunging it into his lung. When I finally pull it out, his eyes are wide as he looks at me, and he suddenly begins choking.

“You will not die quickly,” I say.

I grab a bucket of blood from the corner where we’ve drained most of the agents’ bodies, dropping it in front of his feet. I then kick the chair forward, holding his head under the thick liquid. His body jumps and struggles, eventually stopping. And I leave his head submerged.

“Bring me some ice,” I call to Nicolai.

Seconds later, I’m placing her severed finger into the ice, handing it off to Nicolai in irritation.

“Better move quick or she’ll lose them,” I say, looking at her.

She’s sobbing with her head down as she murmurs a prayer.

“Did you have an address for me?” I call to Romelo as I move past Nicolai.

“That and more,” Romelo calls back.

I look back at Nicolai, gesturing to the area.

“Stay here, survey cleanup, make sure this place is destroyed. Leave no trace that we were here,” I say.

I pause mid-stride.

“If she escapes and we are caught, I will kill you before the cops can,” I say.

“I understand,” he says.

I can’t help but laugh at the situation. “Enjoy.”

Romelo and I quickly copy all of the data possible as we wait for reinforcements to arrive to help with the cleanup. Once we finish, we make our way out of the facility to our final destinations. We are far from being in the clear. We’ve only just taken out the low-level subordinates. Now, we must cut off the head. As we approach the cars, I turn to him.

“Don’t get cocky. These men are actually trained for this,” I say.

Romelo scoffs, nodding. “I know.”

His smile disappears as he watches me with his usual calm exterior.

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