Page 34 of The White Rider
“I’m not going down without a fight!” one yelled, jumping to his feet and trying to run to where the guns were.
Leif was standing in the way and punched him so hard, I heard his neck snap as his head whipped to the side. I didnottake Leif for the type of angel that would punch a man so hard that it killed him, but I guess everyone had their limits.
“Sorry, Speedy. I know this one was yours, but Asher is right. We don’t have a lot of time. Your father wants you back, and he knows you’re here. He’s going to get creative to get you back into one of his labs. We need to grab what we can and destroy everything else. Dice, Ariel will still see your nice, big explosion on the way out, but we need to go, now!”
Dice pouted, but he disappeared with Leif. Aeron dragged the Bubba out by the neck to show him all his dead friends outside. It was probably a hot mess out there. I’d seen what Aeron could do with a sword. I’d seen what happened when he went full Horseman. He was out there playing with War and Pestilence this time, and they werepissed.
I wasn’t super shocked when the man started hysterically screaming and crying about evil terrorists. He was totally limp when Aeron dragged him back inside. Aeron dropped him and kicked him in the gut.
“Does anyone else need to go outside and see what happens when you follow the man that started the apocalypse?”
“China started—”
I kicked the Bubba in the face before he could finish that. I was so done with racist, conspiracy theory nut jobs.
“I almost wish I wasn’t going to kill all you fuckers, and we put you on trial instead. I’ve got all kinds of receipts to prove the shit you did was wrong before the damned apocalypse, and you followed a fucking mad man.”
One man broke. Someone was always going to break when the time came to die for the shitty things you did. He started crying and clutched the hem of my trousers.
“Please. I don’t want to die. Put me on trial! I’ll tell you who chloroformed you!”
“Traitor!” the Bubbas started screaming.
“Shut it!” Aeron yelled.
My brain was running on overdrive. Yeah, I really wanted to know who did that to me, but I also really wanted to know where they got the chloroform. Did they have more? Our team was pretty fucking small, but we had Dice and Leif on it. I knew what they were capable of with a stash of chloroform, and have it would mean fewer good people getting shot rounding up the scumbags of the apocalypse.
“Where did you get it? The chloroform?”
“Don’t you dare!”
“It’s just bleach and rubbing alcohol. There’s an entire factory that used to make cleaning supplies on this lot. We’d whip up batches for the men who went on raids. Using it meant they could save more people and bring them into the fold instead of killing them.”
Aeron grabbed me and kissed me. He knew how I felt about him touching me when he was covered in guts, but he smeared Bubba all over my face, anyway.
“I know where your mind is going with this. Consider it handled.”
Aeron disappeared, and they left me with Asher and the three pitiful Bubbas that weren’t dead… yet. I was a woman of my word. I was still pissed these assholes had no problem kidnapping me and dragging me back to my father, but this squirrelly little fuck was willing to tell us how they got the chloroform if I didn’t bash his brains in with Smurfette.
And I could work with that.
“Asher, is there a place we could stash this one until the trial?”
Asher smirked at me and disappeared another box.
“Has he been a very good boy?”
“We’ve got Dice, Leif, and chloroform. I think he deserves to not die in this warehouse.”
“You’re a generous soul, Speedy. If we’re doing this your way, then you need to get rid of the spares so I can help Aeron. We can’t stay here long.”
I was on board with that. I gave Smurfette a twirl and glared at the two remaining men who were willing to die for Isaiah.
“Any last words? Like which one of you chloroformed me?”
They refused to speak. They tried to run, but I easily caught them when they stepped out the warehouse door. I’d seen what the Horsemen could do before, but the scene they had left in their wake was still jarring.
And I got my revenge for myself. For everyone my father ever used to hurt me, I took it out on those two men. I regretted nothing.
