AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I rolled my eyes and gestured for him to sign.
“I don’t give a shit about your promises, Barney,” I reassured him. “That’s why I need your collateral.”
He paled and visibly swallowed, taking the pen in his hand to scrawl his signature at the bottom of the paperwork.
“I’ll have the money for you—all of it,” he promised, leaning forward, his blue eyes bright and worried. “But you can’t hurt Briar.”
I scoffed, distinctly irritated by the suggestion.
“I’m not the one offering my daughter as collateral,” I retorted, yanking back the pages and glowering at him.
Instantly, Barney’s face twisted into an expression of humbleness.
“No, of course,” he agreed quickly. “I wouldn’t suggest—”
“I’ll babysit your kid for three weeks,” I went on. “But if you don’t produce my payment in full, you’ll have absolutely no say in what I do or don’t do with her.”
Perversely, I relished the fear in Barney’s pupils as his mind raced. I honestly had no idea if the good doctor was going to honor his debt or not, but it was fun watching him squirm. This was all part of the loan business and truthfully, I hadn’t given much thought about what I’d do with Briar if he didn’t pay. That was tomorrow’s problem.
“She’s special,” Barney mumbled irrelevantly.
My eyes rolled upward again. “I’m sure she is,” I replied sarcastically as I stood. Barney eagerly followed my lead, glad to escape the office finally. “There’s one more thing.”
He froze in place, and I was impressed by his astuteness. Without actually reading the fine print, he could sense that bad news was coming.
“What is it?”
I withdrew a dagger from the top drawer of my desk, and Barney recoiled, his eyes almost falling out of his head.
“What is that for?!”
Using the blade, I tapped the bottom of the last page, just above where he’d signed.
“For the blood oath.”
Trembling now, Barney strained to look, but I could see he was having issues focusing on the words. Grunting, I summarized the legalities for him.
“If you fail to repay the loan, including the twenty percent interest charge, exactly three weeks from today, not only will Briar become my property entirely, but you will also lose your life.”
“Is that really necessary?!”
Annoyance crept down my spine. Interesting that he didn’t mind giving up his only progeny in a world where children were sacred, but his own life was too much to ask.
“Yes,” I barked. “It is. You’ve already signed on it. Read the fine print. You really don’t have a choice in the matter.”
It wouldn’t have mattered if he did it or not. If he didn’t pay, I’d kill him anyway, but I wanted the assurance of the paperwork.
Paling to opaque, Barney swallowed again, and I slashed at my open palm before I could listen to any more of his sniveling, reaching for his hand with lightning-fast precision. He yelped lightly, but his feeble attempts to withdraw were like fly wings against my hold.
I stabbed him deeper than necessary, his personality grating on me even after such a short time, and we bound our blood together with the promise of his death.
“Now get out,” I told him. “I have work to do.”
Sniffling, Barney turned and tripped out the door, droplets of blood spilling over the marble flooring of my office and deepening my scowl. No more than a minute later, Rachel appeared in the doorway, shaking her head in that reproving way.
“I think he peed himself.”
“Good,” I smiled. “Then my work here is done.”
