Page 68 of XO Karma

Leaving Roger at the bar, I make my way through the crowded room. Where is she? My eyes dart to the hallway leading to the restrooms, deep grunting drawing me further. I follow the sound, pausing just outside the ladies’ room. The smash of glass and Lily’s voice has my adrenaline skyrocketing. Is she seriously fucking this guy?

My body reacts, blocking my brain’s receptors to leave her be, and my hand finds the door handle. It’s locked. Damn it.

I shouldn’t have taken my eyes off her.

Jiggling it a bit more to no avail, I glance down the hall toward the loud, crowded bar. No one can hear us. There’s not a goddamn chance that prick is screwing her in this bathroom. Turning back to the door, I lift my foot and slam the sole of my boot against it. It budges slightly, and it takes two more heavy kicks before it busts open and off its hinges, the wood frame splitting.

Rushing in, I’m fully prepared to murder the sleazebag if he has his hands on Lily. Or in Lily. Instead, I freeze at the sight of them both on the ground, her straddling his torso, and he’s… unconscious? She glances up at me, brow cocked, a plastic baggie of pills dangling from her fingertips.

“I thought⁠—”

“I couldn’t handle myself?” she interrupts, standing and walking to the toilet, then flushes the pills. She readjusts the hem of her dress and turns to face me. Her perfectly styled hair is now disheveled, and the sight of fresh blood dripping on her arm has heat surging in my veins.

She steps on his stomach with her full weight, and he elicits a groan as she crosses over to get closer to the mirror. My jaw remains slack while she washes her hands thoroughly, then uses a damp paper towel to clean a few spots of blood off her, as if this is just another Tuesday. Maybe I have underestimated her.

“Care to share what he did?” I ask, glancing at the incapacitated idiot on the floor. “I’d like to avoid a similar fate.”

“Unless you plan to drug me,” she says, tossing the paper towel in the trash, “you should be fine.”

“He did what?” I step forward, and she waves me off, retrieving something out of her purse.

“He was a Karma request target. I baited him, and he took it.”

“What are you doing with the body?”

She freezes, a tube of lipstick inches from her lips. “Jesus, Aster. He’s not dead.” She glares at me through the mirror’s reflection. “We leave him here.”

A beat passes between us. “We… leave him?”

“Yes,” she says slowly, eyes narrowed, gaze returning to her reflection while reapplying her bright red lipstick. Fuck, those lips are so pretty. Bet they’d look even better wrapped around m⁠—

No! Focus!

“So, he drugs people to do God knows what, and this is his punishment? Knocking him out?!”

“You have your methods, I have mine.” She kisses the mirror, leaving a beautiful imprint, then uses the pigmented stick to add a note.

“This guy should be six feet under.” I wave a hand at the unfortunately still breathing lump of loser. “At the bare minimum, his dick should be cut off and fed to him.”

“We had that conversation too,” she replies when she’s done writing, returning the cap to the lipstick with a click.

XO Karma is written on the mirror in bright red, and I can’t help but bring my fingers to my neck.

“And here I was thinking I was special,” I tease, only partially kidding, as she turns to face me.

“Just a small addition to my body count.” She winks.

“Are you not concerned that it will completely give away your little alter ego?” I ask, staring at the words. “He saw your face.”

She turns back to it, then frowns. “You do have a point.” Using a wet paper towel, she smudges the words, then uses a finger to write within the red pigment. “Better?”

The word next points to the drawing of a dick broken in half, and I huff a laugh. “Certainly gets the point across.” She beams, then walks past me and out of the bathroom. “You’re seriously going to leave him there?” I ask incredulously, trailing behind her. “What about when he wakes? He could come find you.”

She spins around, pinning me in place with her annoyed stare. “I’ve forwarded his ID to Liam, explaining what he did so he can mark it in the system. He might not get a conviction, but it’ll be enough for Cleosville PD to check him out, keep him under watch.” We return to the main area, loud music immediately stifling my ability to hear. Lily holds up a finger, slipping away. When she reaches the bar, she whispers in a bartender’s ear, pointing towards the hallway, and his expression turns from confusion to anger in an instant. He gestures to two barbacks, and a moment later, they’re heading towards it.

Lily returns to my side, nodding at the exit. “Let’s get out of here.”

Once we’re on the quiet street, the cool breeze flowing over our skin, I ask, “What was that about?”