Page 203 of Lethal King

Smoke drifts through the shattered tail lights as I survey the scene. All I see are corpses.

These fuckers hardly put a fight. If they hadn’t gotten the jump on my men earlier, then I doubt they would have even made it this far.

But their weakness only makes the mess they caused so much more infuriating. Lifting my gun, I empty my clip into the nearest cadaver.

This was my fault. I knew something like this was bound to happen. I should have committed myself to stopping it and sent more men to the union strongholds months ago. If I had, none of this would have happened.

Fucking hell.

Another mistake.

… But not a failure. No. I won’t allow this to be a failure. I’ll learn from my mistake. I’ll—

Suddenly, my train of thought is interrupted by a loud battle cry. Through the high beam haze, I spot a figure running frantically towards me. His arms are raised. A sharp blade glimmers in his hand.

He jumps at me.

I don’t even bother to shoot the fucker. Instead, I just step aside and grab his collar.

“Idiot,” I growl.

Pulling him into my body, I grab his knife-wielding hand. He’s not strong enough to stop me from pushing the blade into his throat.

Blood spills from the widening gash as he tries to cry out again. But all he manages is a gurgle. It’s the last thing he ever does.

“Fucking pathetic,” I spit, pushing his dead body to the ground.

His skull cracks against the pavement. I bend down and pick up his scarlet-stained knife.

Through all of the rage, I’m almost disappointed.

These aren’t mafia men. Underworld soldiers fight like demons. These grunts barely did enough to earn their paycheck.

My chest tightens.

I’ve fought men like this before. At the beachside mansion where I first took Roz.

That must mean…

“Hey, boss!” I hear Deacon shout from behind me. “We should probably start our interrogation. This guy isn’t going to last much longer.”

Wiping the blade of my new knife off on my shirt, I turn around. But I’m not so desperate to get answers anymore.

I feel like I already know everything.

These aren’t mafia men.

These are mercenaries.

And I’d bet they were hired by Leander fucking Onasis.

“Step aside,” I tell Deacon. Twirling the knife in my hand, I approach the poor sap bleeding out against the alley wall.

His eyes are already starting to get hazy. I decide to shock him awake.

Deacon steps aside and I crouch down. Without saying a single word, I crack the fucker’s nose open with a vicious punch.

His head snaps back. I grab his hair and force him to look at me.