Page 69 of Emperor of Corruption
I brace my palms on the filthy ground and slowly push myself into a crouch. Locke keeps his hands on my shoulders, lifting me up to a stand. I sway, but I’m not dead or dying, which is more than I can say for my attackers.
A low moan comes from behind Locke’s shoulders. My eyes move to Ski Mask Two, who’s curled up in a fetal position, whimpering.
“Y-you k—” I can’t even get the word out. There’s acorpseon the ground, and another man who I suspect will shortly become a corpse.
“Don’t worry about that,” Locke says tonelessly. He holds my arm and starts steering me out of the alleyway. There’s a dark BMW idling on the curb just in front of the sidewalk, the engine still humming. Locke walks me to it, opens the door, and puts me inside. As soon as my body connects with buttery leather, all the strength seeps out of me in one go. A sob catches in my throat as he closes the door behind me.
I think I’m in shock. I feel cold and hot at the same time, chilled to my very bones yet feverish.
I was almost raped in an alleyway.
Killian’s guard dog came out of nowhere and saved me.
And now I’m in Locke’s—Killian’s?—car.
I need to get out of here. Locke just put a bullet in someone’s head; I can’t stick around to see what he’ll do to me next. I’m awitness, and I know how loose ends are approached in this city.
They usually don’t live to see the next sunrise.
I lunge toward the door and yank on the handle, but it’s locked.Child-locks.
The trunk opens, and a weight thuds into the car. I don’t even want to know what it is. I reach toward the front of the car, trying to click off the childlocks, but before I can succeed, the driver’s door opens.
“Don’t.” It’s only a single word, but the dark authority Locke carries makes me freeze. “Sit down and calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.”
I can’t breathe.Each breath hurts my abs and heightens my fear, until I’m hyperventilating and sweating through my torn clothes. My shirt got ripped at some point during the conflict, and my pants are halfway off,and I’m trapped in a car with a killer—
“Please let me go,” I cry out.
“Not my call.” Locke adjusts the rearview mirror and glances at me. “I’m not a liar. I said I won’t hurt you, and I meant it.”
Strangely… Ialmosttrust him. Locke belongs to Killian. I don’t think he’ll kill me without Killian’s orders. But Killian might decide that I’ve really seen too much now, and act accordingly.
“C-can you take me home?”
“Nope. You’re going to Killian. He’ll want to see you.”
I have a dreadful sense that this visit may end with me in a body bag.
“Pleasedon’t kill me,” I cry.
“I’m not gonna kill you. I doubt he will, either—he’s fucking obsessed with you. So, calm the hell down and try torelax.”
“Have you ever been assaulted in an alleyway?” I demand, voice rising in pitch. “It’s hard tocalm down—”
“Little girl, I’ve seen and experienced things that’d make you hide under your bed for the rest of your life. If you won’t calm down, at least shut the fuck up.”
He pulls a phone out of his pocket and sends a message—probably to Killian. Immediately, it starts buzzing, and Locke picks up.
I listen to his side of the conversation, desperately trying to regulate my breathing.
“Yup,” Locke answers. After a pause: “She’s fine. Cut on her cheek. Possible abdominal trauma—I didn’t see. Two perps. One’s gone, the other’s still breathing but both are contained. Orders?” He listens intently. “Yeah, okay. ETA is 15 minutes.” Another pause. “I can push for ten. Yup.” He sets down the phone.
I fold my arms over my chest, shrink into myself, and don’t even try to stop the tears from falling.
By the time we pull up to Killian’s apartment, my breathing is back to a normal rate, but my heart is still thundering away like it wants to burst out of me. My stomach hurts—my entiretorsohurts, and I feel humiliated with my ripped clothing. I feel like a battered woman, I feelfarworse than I ever have after even my worst encounters with Killian.
I refuse to examine that fact. After even the most painful and forceful moments with Killian weeks ago, I didn’t feel nearly as bad as I do now. I don’t want to know what that says about me or how fucked my head is.
