Camryn’s eyes widen. She looks at me and something flashes in her eyes.
“I’m not asking again.”
“I don’t take orders from you, bastardo. I wonder if your woman is as brave as you. What do you think, Ms. Park? How would you feel if I cut off your nipples?” He pushes the tip of the knife deeper, and Camryn sucks in a breath, her chest heaving. But what I see more than anything is the way her single eye narrows. I can feel her brattiness. “Oh. I guess that won’t bother you, but what about your genitals?” The knife moves down to the right above her vagina, which is already covered in blood. Whose, I don’t know. My hand shakes slightly, praying he won’t do what I know he’s capable of.
“Fuck you,” Camryn mutters, slurring her words, clearly in pain, but not letting it show. Love blooms inside me.Her jaw is so swollen. It could be broken.
Shithead bites her ear, and I try to prevent myself from reacting, and leaping across the room and ripping his face open. She screams, arching her back, and tears threaten my eyes. Just a little more time, baby. Please hold on.
When he lifts his head and spits her blood on the bed, I promise myself I’m going to bleed him out. Drain every fucking drop until he’s an empty husk.
“Your taste in women is to be admired, even if this one is very mouthy. Ms. Park is not like the last whore who thought herself in love with you. Now she was fun to play with. Very submissive. Did you enjoy the gifts I left inside her?
Denise.I knew he was involved, but not directly. Now it all makes sense. Hatred flows through me for his callous cruelty to Denise. She was innocent in all this.
“I thought you would appreciate my efforts. You seem to enjoy the same form of beautiful mutilation.”
I see the admiration in his eyes, and it sickens me. I don’t want his respect. I want his death. “Then they disappeared. Poof. Gone. Where did you take the bodies, Dr. Stefan Hayes?”
That he knows my legal name is not surprising.
“Your lovely Denise had no idea that by giving me access to your club she was already dead. Stupid bitch fucked me minutes after she met me.”
That Denise was helping him, allowing him access to the club, is a shock. I would have never thought she would do it, not after all the years with the Legion. The betrayal stings, but I’ll never know her motives.
“She was so eager to please me, and my men certainly enjoyed her when I was done. Her screams were so lovely. You see, Stefan, they have no loyalty. She gave you up while my cock was in her ass.” He yanks Camryn’s hair back. “Just like this one will.” He licks the side of Camryn’s face, dragging his tongue along her cheek, leaving a trail of saliva in his wake. His eyes don’t leave mine when he nuzzles her temple, breathing in her hair. Before I bled him, I’m going to tear his hair out by the handfuls whilehescreams, use the strands to gag him. I try to communicate with Camryn using my eyes. “Look, Ms. Park,your man wants to kill me. He hates that you will die with my touch being the last you ever feel, and I’m going to enjoy cutting open her belly and spilling her guts. Payback because you keep taking what’s mine, El Búho. You think you can take what’s mine without repercussions?”
“An eight year girl doesn’t belong to you. She’s a child. They are all children and they are not yours to sell.”
“Their bodies are mine! I paid for every last one of them!” He screams, fury twisting his once calm features into something monstrous. Spittle flies out of his mouth, and his grip on Camryn gets tighter.Come on, Onyx. I need you, brother.
A shot rings through the window that hits El Jefe in the shoulder. Onyx. Even as he cries out in pain, slumping forward slightly, he still has a hand around Camryn’s neck. Surprisingly, she elbows him in the stomach and snatches the knife from his hand, and pushes him back, wildly stabbing into his body. I rush forward as she screams, puncturing him over and over. Blood splatters with each arc of her hands. He jerks to the side and stumbles off the bed. I go to Camryn and take the knife from her, tossing it away. “Camryn?—”
She ignores me and scrambles off the bed, sobbing as she falls to the floor, crawling away. She curls her body into a ball, and I can’t help her now. It’s killing me not to know if she is injured. There’s too much blood to know.I pull my eyes away from her and focus on the bastard slowly pulling himself up El Jefe stands, swaying slightly. He’s covered in his blood, her blood. He laughs, blood staining the inside of his mouth. The gunshot in his shoulder is spurting blood.
“You can’t save all the rats, Stefan. Millions are born every, and there’s always someone there to hunt them. It keeps the balance.” He pants, stepping forward.
“Move another inch and I’ll put a bullet between your eyes,”I growl.
“Go ahead.” He sways, and I can see the blood loss is affecting him. “Someone will just take my place, ready to buy and sell. You think you stopped me?” He laughs cruelly. “While you’re here with me, thousands of children are arriving at their next stop. Money exchanged. Pedophiles, rapists, generals, soldiers, doctors, lawyers, priests, professors, and politicians are all waiting to claim their prizes. There are so many people with money who enjoy sadistic things you can’t imagine. Just another day in a capitalistic world. I give those children purpose.”
Before he can continue, I shoot him in both kneecaps, not blinking. I can’t hear anymore. He screams again, falling to the floor. He doesn’t know it, but he hit his mark. Between Camryn and his words, my stomach roils with acid. Every fucking word he said is accurate. There will always be someone like him exploiting children and women, and killing them all feels impossible. But right now I can kill him. Make him feel more pain. I head over to him using my ties to bind his feet and hands. His groans of pain give me immense satisfaction. His breathing is choppy and his eyes are closed, but he’s still alive. Good. I have plans for him later.
Outside the door, I hear more gunshots. Onyx, Riggs, and Scout must be inside.I head back to Camryn, curled on the floor. I yank the blanket off the bed and wrap it around her. “I got you,”I murmur as I help her stand. I need to get her to a hospital. But before I can get her out of the room, she limps over to his prone body, kicking him in the ribs. “That’s for Cara,”she whispers, crying.
She wraps the blanket tighter around her, looking like the goddess she is. I pull her forward and kiss her forehead. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper against her skin, filled with so many regrets. She has no idea my role in this, and I don’t have time now to tell her. Her eyes are glazed, and shock is starting to set in from her blood loss and adrenaline. Urgency fills me. I lift herin my arms, holding her close to my body, needing to feel her skin, her heartbeat, her wholeness. If I had arrived later, if I had been slower, El Jefe’s threats could have been real. Even now, the room reeks of blood. His blood. Her blood. Its sticky warmth saturates my shirt. She lets out a moan, and I move faster.
“Jacinda and Kami?” She mumbles, tucking her head into my neck.
“Don’t worry about that now. Stay away, baby. Keep your eyes open.” I marvel at her. She just experienced a terrible ordeal, yet her thoughts are about her friends.
“Cara. You need to help Cara.”
“Who’s Cara?” I ask, needing to keep her awake and talking.
“Only 15. Ten when he hurt her.”
Her words are disjointed, slurred, and her body suddenly goes more limp. Fuck. “Camryn!” I shake her slightly. She opens her eyes briefly and looks at me. She’s getting weaker. Hypovolemic shock. I recall it well from my time in the Marines. I hustle out of the room and down the hall until I reach the stairs and descend quickly. I step over the bodies of men strewn around the living room and look up to find Onyx patiently escorting women down the stairs. They look shellshocked, mutely following his soft commands. One looks back at me. Her young eyes widen as they settle on Camryn in my arms. Heavily pregnant, she waddles toward me. When she’s close enough, she touches Camryn’s arm gently.
