Page 18 of Deceit
“Will do, Boss,”he said, nodding at his men, the four of them trailing behindErnie, and leaving me alone with the soon-to-be dead man.
I cracked my knuckles before ripping the gag from Adrian’s mouth. Thesecond it was free, he spat a mouthful of blood at my feet, and he raised venomous eyes to meet mine.“Let me go. You don’t know who the fuck you’re messing with.”
I smirked, folding my arms across my chest.“Isthatso? Do enlighten me,who the fuck am I messing with, ‘cos where I’m standing, it looks like I’ve messed you up good and proper?”
He spat again.“Go fuck yourself. I’m not telling you shit, other than whenthey find out what you’ve done to me, they’ll end you. You’ll spendthe rest of eternity in an unmarked grave where no one will find your rotting corpse.”
Itseemedfutile to tell himthatdeath didn’t scare me.ThatI’d wished fordeath practically every day since holding Theo’s dead body, andthaton the night me, Kai, and a whole bunch of our men launched an attack to reclaim our city, I’d secretly been hoping I wouldn’t walk away from it.
Besides, I was more interested in whotheywere. Surely he wasn’t referringto the cartel, or did we have another enemy knocking at our doorthatwe’d have to deal with?
“Let’s not waste any time here, Adrian. We both know how this is going togo. I’m going to ask you a question, you’ll tell me to fuck off, I’ll inflict some kind of torture on you, and you’ll eventually tell me what I want to know. Why don’t you save yourself the pain, andjusttell me what I want to know now?”
His response was to spit at my feet again; this time, a globule ofblood landed on the tip of my shoe, and a wave of disgust rolled through me. Without warning, I reared back and plowed my fist into his face, putting all my anger, jealousy, and every other fucking feeling swirling inside me behind the punch.
Fresh blood exploded from his nose as his head tipped back, and mutteredcurses were cut off when the asshole started coughing on it. Giving him a few seconds to compose himself, I moved to the cabinet, inputting yet another code to open it before pulling out a tool and smiling to myself.
Kai was known for being brutal. He tended to use his fists to do his talking.Me, on the other hand? I liked to toy with my prey, seejusthow much pain they could tolerate. Sure, they’d meet the same fate, but my preference was to take my time.
If I’d had my way, every single person involved in Theo’s murder would stillbe alive, but they’d be begging for the sweet relief of death. They’dbeg for forgivenessthatwould never come, and only when I was satisfiedthatthey’d paid with enough blood and pain,thenI’d grant them the mercy of death.
“How did you know Sofia was at Bar Forty-Four?”I asked, done withmessing around. I wanted answers.
“Fuck you.”
The words had barely left his mouth before I shoved the taser against hisbare chest and hit the‘on’button. Fifty thousand volts of electricity rolled through Adrian, his body turning rigid, and his cries of agony prevented from spilling out from how tightly his jaw was clenched.
Pulling the taser away, I grinned down at him.“I’ll ask again. How did youknow Sofia was at the bar? And before you tell me to fuck off, you should knowthatthe next time I zap you, I’m increasing the voltageandpressing the barbs against your dick.”
I pressed the‘on’button for dramatic effect, the electricity cracklingmenacingly between the electrodes at the top of the weapon. Wicked glee spread through me as I wondered how many volts Adrian would be able to withstand before he passed out.
“Go to hell,”he gritted out, attempting to glare at me with glazed-over eyes.
I pressed a button to up the voltage before jabbing the electrodes against hiscock, holding it in place as he screamed through gritted teeth, his body turning rigid for a second time.
“I did warn you, but if you want to play games…”I trailed off, shrugging asI pulled the taser away from his groin.“We can do this all night, Adrian. I’ve got no place to be.”
“I’ll…never…talk.”
The hint of doubt in his voice suggested otherwise.
“We’ll see.”
I held the taser in front of him, making it obviousthatI was increasing thevoltage once more.
I hoped like hell Adrian did hold out. The longer I had to play with him, thelonger I could keep my thoughts from the jailbait in my bed.
Chapter 4
Sofia
My head pounded like a marching band was parading through it, and afamiliar scent of wood and leather filled my nose, but with the thumping in my brain, I couldn’t place it.
I turned over in my bed, hoping to go back to sleep and get rid of theheadache, when memories rushed back in.
The bar.
The drink.
