Page 47 of Broken Queen
She clicked her teeth, those perfect dental implants gleaming in the light. None of those negative emotions showed, but it had to be a performance.
“You know what?” she said, tapping her nails against her sides again. “I can’t give you your sister’s killer. Couldn’t find his name. Sorry.”
I furrowed my brows. “Shit.”
“But I can give you her husband. He’s the man who offered her as a sacrifice at the Masquerade.”
My world swung to a stop. That grin was still plastered on her face, perfectly even.
“Ernest Dumas,” she said.
Zira
“Are you fucking with me?” Hazard asked. A jitteriness swam in my veins. This wasn’t what I had wanted to happen, but if I played my cards right, it would work out for both of us. I jumped up and ruffled Hazard’s red hair.
“Why would I mess with you on something as important as this?”
“Because you want Ernest dead.”
“Oh, you mistake me for a cheat then!” I laughed. But I was a cheat. I was getting something out of this. And I knew it was wrong that I was keeping his sister’s killer a secret, but I needed to be on the board before I let him kill my father. Hazard was too damn reckless, and I needed power for once. And if that meant keeping a secret, then I would sew my lips shut. Maybe Hazard would understand. I leaned into him. “It’s a perfect coincidence, isn’t it? We both want to kill him.”
“But he didn’t kill my sister?”
“She was basically a sign-on perk for joining the Marked Blooms Syndicate. The members are offered an arranged marriage with a gorgeous bride with a blank canvas of a past, willing to do anything to make her husband happy. Even take a fake name.”
I was rambling, but I couldn’t stop. I had to do something to make myself concentrate on what I had under my control, and I knew that if I was careful, I could control Hazard. If he was still on my side, then I could eventually give him what he wanted. He deserved that.
I just had to make sure I could get what I wanted first.
“But make a promise to me,” I said. “Please. Let me help you kill Ernest. He killed my mother, and while I can’t kill my father?—”
I let those words fall from me. Everything about this Syndicate always pointed back to my father.
But if I got to kill Ernest, then maybe it would give me patience. I could rest easy while we waited for that final kill.
No one will take you seriously no matter how hard you try, Ernest had said. How seriously would he take me when I shoved a knife into his throat?
“I need this as much as you do,” I said quietly. “I have a past with Ernest. I need to kill him too.”
“Revenge?” Hazard asked.
I nodded. “Promise me,” I demanded.
“I promise,” Hazard said. His shoulders broadened with excitement. “Once Ernest is gone, I’ll force your daddy to put you on the board. I’ll make him do it if I have to.”
“He won’t have a choice,” I squealed. I spun around frantically, then pulled him toward the door. “Let’s get out of here,” I said. “I don’t care about the welcome ceremony.”
“Neither do I.”
We ran down the corridor toward the side exit. After dismissing the driver, we took one of the golf carts over to the storage facility where they kept the dungeon equipment. I parked the cart right outside of the door, not caring who saw us in there.
“Let’s celebrate!” I said. “We’ll plan every little detail of their deaths, including their last breaths.”
“You are the fucking devil,” Hazard growled, lust brewing in his chest.
The room was dark, but windows lined the edges of the high ceilings, letting slivers of light swim through the space. Sharp shadows crossed in front of us like trees in a forest. Every piece of black metal gleamed.
“You’ve been thinking about Ernest a lot, then,” Hazard said. “You want to kill him specifically?”
