Page 51 of Rise of the King (Checkmate 5)

10

Answers

Sophia

“Sophia!” Jay’s roar echoes inside my brain and almost feels like splinters being pushed through the very fabric of my skull. Stars float in my grayed vision as I lift my head and watch Jay pounce on Trenton Neal, his heavy-set body crushing Neal’s against the wall a mere two feet from mine and his hands slamming over Neal’s face so his blood and mine mingle on the white shirt.

“Jay.” I try to get to my knees, only to sway and fall back to all fours. “Jay, stop a sec.” His fists fly with lightning speed, but Trenton covers up and parries every third or fourth strike. Bones crunch under Jay’s fists, and his gun lies forgotten just beside my feet. “Jay?” Trying again, I climb to my knees and breathe through the suffocating nausea. It’s like there are hornets inside my brain, stinging, buzzing, stinging some more. The belt remains around Neal’s neck, and when Jay notices it, he pulls the end tight until Neal stops fighting completely.

His feet twitch, and his eyes almost pop from their sockets.

“You have ten seconds before I snap your neck,” Jay seethes. “Who is CAB?”

Trenton shakes his head, not in refusal, but to say he doesn’t know.

Lifting to my knees and holding my hand to my face, I hiss at the sting, but allow it to clear the fuzz from my brain. I shuffle forward and press a hand to Jay’s bulging forearm. “Just wait one sec, please.”

Wild, untamed, his black-eyed gaze swings around to me and makes me think of a starved bear in the wild. Nothing can penetrate his mind; nothing will stop the hunt. “Sophia?”

“I’m okay. Nothing is broken. Loosen the belt for a sec. Give me a moment to think.”

“He hurt you, Soph.” Blindly, he swings his hand down again and crushes Trenton’s jaw to the side. “He hurt you.”

“He’ll pay for it. Just give me a second to think.” When his hand remains clasped around the belt, I squeeze his arm. “Please. You can get yours in a sec. I need answers, but my brain hurts. Just give me a moment.”

I rub my fingers against my temple as Jay loosens the belt a tiny bit at a time. He pulls the pin from the holes and loosens it enough that Trenton’s bucking feet slow and oxygen finally travels down his throat and into his lungs.

“Thank you. Just give me… We have a minute before his soldiers come in. You can have him in forty seconds.”

“You’re Sophia?”

I think Jay’s in shock. Bullets in the back? No big deal. Bullet in the brain. No biggie. Two hours sleep a day? He can roll with it.

But his innocent dancer not being as innocent as he thought?

Impossible.

“Yes. I’m Sophia. I’m Ace. I’m your friend. We’ve been friends for two years already.” Leaning across when I catch sight of my blade on the floor, I pick it up, then push Jay back with gentle hands to make room so I can sit on Trenton’s broad chest and use my weight to hold him down.

“I’ll kill you.” Blood covers his swollen face, his eyes, his shirt and chest. His words are garbled, but his intent remains lethal. “Nobody fucks with me and gets away with it. I’m gonna fuck you, then I’ll peel the skin from your cunt and feed it back to you while you cry.”

Flipping my knife open, I smile through the fog crushing my brain and bring the blade to his throat. “You talk a big game for a little guy. You’re the one on his back, with a busted face, a knife to his throat, and a tiny dancer on his chest holding him down. No…” I sit taller, as though to ponder our situation. “You won’t kill me, but I’ll kill you. You sell little girls. You’re part of the problem, so whether you rat out the guy further up the ladder or not, you still die.”

Jay hovers close beside me, his rage like a tangible beast that takes up space in the small room. Colored lights still flicker and move, because to the outside world, I’m still a dancer showing this asshole a good time. But Jay… he’s wild, and he’s losing patience fast.

“Think real hard, Neal. CAB. CAB. CAB. That’s my next step. Tell me who CAB is.”

“I don’t know, bitch. And even if I did…” His bloody spit hits my chest.

“Does it make you feel bad to call me names?” I ignore the disgusting sensation of his saliva sliding along my chest and into my bejeweled bra. “I’ve already won this round. I’ve already dismantled one more layer of this empire. Now you get to choose whether you want to be redeemed. Tell the truth, think hard and give me answers; maybe Heaven will let you in. But if you stay quiet, you might be met with something else in the afterlife.”

“You think I give a fuck? You think I believe for one second that my life ends today? My men are waiting for my signal. When I give it, they’ll take this room and fuck you with your own pocket blade.”

“So give your signal,” I dare. “Call them in. Show me your army. I bet they don’t come.”

He knows I’m right, because no one can hear shit in this club. The music is too loud. The dancers too captivating.

“That’s what I thought. I’m the only person on this planet who might make this easier for you. What does CAB look like?”

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