AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"So because he wouldn't leave, he got killed?" That seemed like a flimsy excuse to murder someone to me.
"No, he was killed because he was trying to take business from Leo, and because he was harassing some of the girls in town." Ice had an unusually angry expression on his face.
"One night, it went beyond harassment. She spent two weeks in hospital, recovering from what he did to her. Leo called us home from Brutham early to deal with him. He doesn't tolerate men who assault women."
It wasn't difficult to put one and one together, but I wasn't sure if I was getting four or five.
"You killed him because he raped a woman?"
"I wanted to do it slower, starting with his balls, but Mannix over here wouldn't let me." Ice jerked his thumb towards Mannix.
Mannix shrugged. "He deserved a slow, painful death as a message to anyone else who might think about doing that, but we didn't have time. Eric was getting slippery, and harder to pin down. If we'd tried to drag him away, it would have been difficult to do without being seen by someone from the ball. It was difficult enough to get rid of his remains."
I decided against asking for specifics about that. I'd never unhear it.
"If Leo tells you to kill someone, you do it?" I asked tentatively.
"Are you asking if we'd done it before?" Ice cocked his head at me. "Yes, we have, and we've done it since. We think someone is coming after us. Eric was part of it, but it's going to escalate."
"It's them or us." Mannix slipped out of his tuxedo jacket and tossed it over the back of a chair.
I was silent for a long while, trying to process at least part of this. I wasn't sure if it wouldn't be better to leave people like Eric to the police, but I knew the legal system often didn't work in favour of victims. That would leave him free to do it again. So yeah, I got why they did what they did. But that wasn't the whole of it.
"You seemed to enjoy killing him," I said to Ice.
"Ice is fucked in the head," Ares said.
I was starting to figure that out for myself.
"Don't feel bad for his victims," Ares said. "If they're coming after us, they're coming after you too. This goes beyond one thug. This is war."
Chapter Eight
Kennedy
Their words went around and around in my head for hours while we drank, danced and ate. I tried to act naturally, but everything had changed.
I now had a stepfather and a stepbrother, and knew a lot more about the people around me. Too much, maybe.
I spent some time chatting to Daze like we were old friends. I got the distinct impression she knew a lot more about me than I knew about her. That was undoubtedly true. People like her didn't let other people into their circle without knowing all about them.
I also sensed she was aware I knew more than I had the first time we met. Did someone tell her, or was she that astute? She seemed like the type of person who was good at reading other people.
Me, on the other hand, I was someone who hadn't had to hide before. Not really.
I even danced with Ric, but for only half a dance before Mannix interrupted. He gave Ric a death stare, while smiling at the same time. Apparently there was a fine line between threatening upper management and claiming what's yours. A line Mannix wasn't scared to step on, if not over.
He whisked me away, put his arms around me and spoke into my ear. "Don't make me kill him for touching you."
"Wouldn't you get in trouble for doing that to the boss?" I asked.
He gave me a look like he'd do it anyway, regardless of the consequences.
Oh boy.
"I've been thinking about your punishment," he said. His hands slipped down to my ass. He squeezed my flesh hard enough to hurt.
I winced, but I liked the way it felt. It was his words that concerned me.
