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I stared at Fiero over the glow of the small fire. Our events were already typically risky, but with Amedea's presence on the property, this risk had not exactly decreased. And her curiosity would cost her everything sooner or later. I had to find a way to keep her at a distance and make her stay in her rooms instead of exploring like she was on a damn adventure.
"We can't afford to make mistakes," I muttered. Especially not tonight. The woods behind the house were dense and not a place an average person would enter at this hour, but I was sure I was harboring prying ears in my home.
"We've never made a mistake before," Fiero replied irritably. "Are you nervous? About Amedea?"
I rolled my eyes. "She has a particular talent for asking the right questions. And it's getting harder to give the wrong answers."
"She's only been with you for two days."
"That's two days too many," I growled, thinking about what had already happened in those forty-eight hours beside the wedding.
I had assumed I would have no further problems once she was my wife on paper and under my protection. But her father didn't seem to want to give up and not only harassed Emilio with his demands and left me almost no choice but to come up with a solution that neither she nor I would like. We had established that killing him was not an option for the time being.
Did Taddeo really think he enjoyed such significant advantages because he had hawked her to a de Archard? I would rather emigrate before I accepted him as part of the family, privileges and all.
I wrinkled my nose just thinking about it.
Fiero laughed. "I guess you should have thought better of it. Before."
"And you should think about what you say to me tonight." There was a warning undertone in my voice.
I couldn't wait for our customers to show up and for the hunt to begin.
"Tonight, among others, the guy beat his girlfriend to death. Her father wants to be the one to kill him. Also, a mother comes along whose unborn child almost died because of a man. And the brother of a young girl who was raped by the third guy." It was only a brief summary of the external circumstances so Fiero could behave accordingly.
Some of our clients changed their minds at the last second and did not dare to kill another person, but that did not mean that the perpetrator went unpunished, and we let him go.
No. It just meant that one of us continued the chase and ensured that the person fell.
They died like animals, and that's exactly what they deserved. Everyone who had died on this property in recent years had earned that and nothing else.
"It sounds like we have another wonderful constellation," Fiero replied, his eyes fixed on the sports bag I had brought. It was filled with a small yet refined selection of weapons. Ones used for close combat, killing from a distance, or hunting an animal. Whatever the heart desired of those who would take their revenge tonight and extinguish life.
I nodded and left it at that.
Fiero was an intelligent man and had become a close confidant in recent years. Initially, he knew nothing about what I did on my property. But at some point, it had become too much for just one person. So I had let him in on it because I was sure he would understand my motives.
And he could do that. After all, he had also lost his girlfriend. She had died before his eyes without him being able to do anything about it. I felt a sharp sting between my ribs. It had been almost exactly the same with my wife.Rina. Only I hadn't recognized the danger in time and had simply come too late.
There was nothing more I had done except hold her in my arms and be there for her in her final moments. I didn't want to think about what had happened afterward. Or how she had lost her life because she tried to save someone else.
To my relief, I heard a car slowly approaching. "I guess the show's starting," I muttered, casting a smug glance at the three men I had tied to a tree trunk.
You didn't have to be particularly smart to see where this was going.
If they didn't break their necks in the dark forest, they would die from a bullet. Or an arrow. A stabbing or some injury inflicted by a human being.
Our three customers got out of the car. Even at first glance, I could tell that they had followed my instructions. Sturdy shoes, multifunctional clothing, gloves, and no loose hair.
Fiero took over further contact with the two men and the woman while I moved on to freeing my three prisoners from their bonds.
"This is going to be very simple," I announced. "You all know what you're guilty of, and it's time for you to atone."
They were still hindered by the shackles on their wrists. But soon… soon they would be free. "I grant you a head start of two minutes. Run as fast and as far as you can if you want to have a chance to escape. If you've managed to remain alive when dawn comes, you will have survived the hunt and earned your freedom. However, you should not get your hopes up. No one has survived yet."
I grinned, cut the ropes that were around the three offenders' wrists one by one, and pushed them deeper into the forest. The first few steps, they merely stumbled, looking back at me. They were probably wondering if I was serious about this or if they would get help from the other people.
