Page 43 of Promise of Hellfire

He smirked at her. “I mean, now that you mention it, that would be a great surprise, but that’s not it. I’ve been keeping tabs on Ayers for a while now and I have it on good authority he’ll be occupied at one of the seedy motels on 7th tonight. He has a standing date with one of the working girls.”

Leave it to Ethan to be the one to find Ayers’ exact schedule. It shouldn’t have surprised me. After all, he did decide to break into Rayne’s apartment to find out more about her instead of just talking to her. Not like she would’ve willingly given him any personal information.

Her muscles relaxed slightly, and she put her cup on the counter. “Did you take care of what we discussed?”

My eyebrows raised as he nodded. “What are you two planning?”

She shook her head. “Nothing you need to concern yourself with right now.”

I’d once told her that anything that concerned her was my business, but bit my tongue. With the mood she was in, I didn’t really want to provoke her temper, and instead focused my attention on our plans for the evening. “What time will Ayers be meeting his date?”

“Seven. Be sure to wear something black,” he told Rayne before stepping away. I struggled not to roll my eyes at him. Rayne always wore black to jobs. Flashes of the night she burned down Ayers’ building popped into my head. In the darkness, she looked like a shadow.

The rest of the day Rayne avoided us, primarily staying in her room, and I didn’t press the matter. She needed time and space to process everything that had occurred, and I could give that to her until tonight.

Dominic finally re-emerged and told us that Oliver had agreed to tonight, especially when he heard about Rayne’s family.

Thirty minutes before seven she appeared downstairs dressed in black. Her golden hair was pulled back into a bun, and her lips were pressed into a thin line. She grabbed a travel mug from the cabinet and poured more coffee into it. She hadn’t eaten any actual food today, and I wasn’t sure when the last time I saw her drink water was. After tonight, I would try to rectify that, even though she was going to fight me tooth and nail. “Ready?” she called out as she walked to the elevator.

Expedition Motel was only a twenty-minute drive from Jupiter Plaza, so I took my time grabbing the bag I’d packed earlier. It was in a rough area of town and the only place that charged by the hour, at least in that community. We loaded up in the car and drove, no one really chatting. We were all too focused on the task at hand: nab Ayers and end the nightmare the past two months had been.

When we arrived, I pulled into a parking spot behind the building and we waited as Ethan jogged into the lobby. When he returned, he knocked on my window. “Room 174. They’ve been here for about twenty minutes.”

I reached into the bag laying on the back seat and pulled out four ski masks, handing them out to everyone. We pulled them on and I opened my car door quietly. It was showtime.

Chapter twenty-seven

Rayne

Formostoftheday, I’d locked myself in my room. Not because I was despondent or in mourning. No, today I was angry. The emotion fueled my determination as I dressed carefully for the evening’s events. Wearing black honestly wouldn’t matter at this point, but it was a habit born from my past. A past that managed to haunt me at times despite every link being permanently severed.

The look on Hunter’s face earlier when I told him I didn’t care if I received Oliver’s blessing was priceless. I doubted he realized his eyes got wider and his jaw dropped open. I wasn’t lying when I said I was done. This had been going on long enough.

I sat in the back of Dominic’s SUV waiting as patiently as I could for Ethan to return. Patience was never something I had a large supply of and it ran even thinner tonight. The need to end this situation consumed my thoughts.

My parents weren’t saints; no one in my family was. They’d all put me through hell to different degrees. But none of them were a part of the web I found myself entangled in. Ayers had finally pushed me too far.

I rubbed my hands along my thighs and took in the motel's exterior with passing interest, noting how the pale blue paint reflected the flickering neon vacancy sign. It could have used a fresh coat of paint and the red doors were scratched and dented with age. The breezeway and parking lot needed additional lighting, but that was more than likely intentional. The owners knew the clientele that frequented here wanted their identities hidden.

Ethan approached the vehicle, tapping on Dominic’s window. His words were quiet when he disclosed the room number, but I didn’t care if anyone overheard us. I tugged the ski mask over my face, concealing my face before I opened the car door.

How did I feel knowing I was going to murder Ayers or die trying? Fucking free.

I’d never been big on the idea of hiding and the only time I’d run away from anything, I was barely eighteen, which was a lifetime ago.

I flexed my fingers at my side as we silently strode towards the room he was staying in, a key card tucked in Ethan’s palm. We walked to the motel room’s door, moving like shadows in the moonlight. No one said a word as Ethan slid the key card into the lock. Even through the door, I could hear slaps and grunts. A woman cried out in pain and I took a deep breath, trying to keep my rage at bay.

The heavy red door opened with a creak, but the occupants of the room didn’t seem to notice as we walked in, closing the door behind us. The space was dimly lit with yellowing walls bare of any decorations. Ancient stained brown carpet covered the floors, and I shivered trying not to think of what happened here previously.

I turned my attention to the bed where a strung-out woman lay sprawled with her legs parted. She was thin with glassy eyes and track marks covered her inner arms. A red handprint adorned her cheek, and I shook my head to myself. Her body was partially covered by Ayers, who was completely naked and propped up between her thighs.

Hysteria threatened to overtake me and I worked to stifle the laugh bubbling up in my chest as I watched him rut into the woman beneath him, oblivious to the fact we were standing here. His face was red and his muscles flexed as the sound of a gun cocking drew his attention, stilling his motions. The woman startled, grasping the sheets and scurrying towards the headboard in an attempt to cover herself.

Ethan leveled the gun on Ayers as he turned to face us. His pupils were as dilated as his companions when he sat up, reaching for a pair of pants. Dominic clicked his tongue. “No one told you to get dressed yet.”

Ayers raised his eyebrows, amusement lining his features. “Why bother with the masks and theatrics? I know who you are.”

He wasn’t taking this seriously enough, and it pissed me off. I stepped towards him and grabbed a fistful of his hair, yanking it harshly and tilting his head up. “The masks aren’t for you, they’re for her.”

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