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The motherfucker is lucky he’s dead. If he were still alive, I would tear the skin off his body, then make him watch as I rip his heart from his chest in brutal Bratva style and crush it in my hands. Men like him don’t deserve mercy or compassion. They prey on whoever they can sink their lies into and drain them until there’s nothing left. Not even the person they once were.
I speed down the road knowing Gwen is worried and scared for her dog.
She’s stopped talking now, but she’s still crying. She’s looking through the window with her head slightly dipped in shame as teardrops fall onto her lap.
I’m compelled to reach over and tell her it will be okay, but I don’t. I’ve already accomplished my mission with her, and she trusts me.
If I succeed, and she’s not Santiago’s daughter, or if I fail, I’m leaving. I’ll be gone without notice, as if I was never here. So, this thing between us, whatever it is, has to end here. Tonight.
“Over there. That’s his office.” Gwen points at the seedy-looking building in a complex with a pawnshop and a hair salon attached to it.
I turn into the parking lot, scanning the area.
A host of rowdy men hanging around by the wall on our far left look like they’re ready to start trouble, and there are two women who look like hookers standing on the sidewalk under the lamppost.
Most of Wilmington has that safety I’m not used to, but I can tell from the locked doors on the houses and apartments nearby that this is a bad area.
I’d get Gwen to stay in the truck, but since I don’t have backup and I don’t know if Conrad’s men are out here, it’s best she comes in with me.
I jump out of the truck and open the door for her to get out. She has a shiner now on that bruise, which just pisses me off even more.
“Come on, we’ll be okay,” I tell her when she looks hesitant. “All you need to do is stay close to me until I tell you otherwise. You hear me?”
“Yes.” She nods, pulling in a deep breath.
With that, I place my hand to the small of her back, ushering her across the parking lot until we’re at Conrad and Co.’s door.
I push it open, and we walk in. There’s no one around, but at first glance, the place looks like a normal office. There’s a reception desk, chairs in the waiting area, and magazines stacked neatly in a rack for you to distract yourself while you wait.
But the faint scent of blood cloying to the air that only a guy like me can pick up opens the reality of what Conrad and Co. truly is.
I take that scent as the cue to retrieve my gun. When I do, Gwen stiffens beside me. I glance down at her, but she doesn’t look at me. Her eyes are on the Glock in my hand, and I won’t tell her she’s not to be afraid of me.
A mixture of raised boisterous voices echoes off the walls in the back office. The sound amplifies the fear on Gwen’s face, suggesting one of the voices must belong to Conrad.
I proceed forward, pulling her to my side when we get closer.
I walk up to the door. A guy with a buzz cut notices me first.
He stands and balls his fist.
“Sorry, pal, you need an appointment, and as you can see, reception is closed,” he dares to speak to me.
Ignoring him and his dumb-as-fuck face, I walk into the room with Gwen at my side, finding three other men. One of which is Conrad. He’s sitting behind his desk.
At first, he and his goons look like they’re ready to kill, especially when they see Gwen. But when Conrad looks at me like he recognizes me, his face turns ghost-pale and he just about manages to signals his men not to charge at me.
I smile when I see that. “Conrad Duncan, a wise choice. You look like you know me, but we’ve never had the pleasure of meeting.”
“I do, Malik Volkova,” he answers with a cautious undertone lacing through his voice. He also looks at my arm with the tattoo on my wrist.
Gwen’s eyes are on me the moment he does that. From his declaration and actions, I’m sure she’s not thinking Conrad knows me because I’m new in town. She can also see Conrad looks like he’s about to shit himself just for seeing me.
“Good. We can skip the formalities and the bullshit, then. Give me the dog now and show me the loan agreement.”
Conrad stiffens, and his nostrils flare as he switches his gaze from me to Gwen.
“Man to man, I’m sure you can understand that—”
