AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Hearing that striking language straight out of his mouth makes him seem like an entirely different person, and there’s a hint of evil in his laugh that has the hair on my nape bristling.
“Feel free to tell me to mind my own business,” Hertz continues, “but are those heels I saw in the hallway?”
“They’re my woman’s,” Derex grits as if he doesn’t like that the other man noticed my shoes and Hertz makes a surprised sound. “She lives with me now.”
“You have a woman? Since when? Who is she?”
“Remember the girl from the metro?” Derex pauses and his voice is softer when he adds, “That’s her.”
Hertz lets out a whistle “Fuck me. Why haven’t you ever brought her to the compound?”
What compound?
“I don’t want to introduce her to that part of our lives yet.”
“But she does know you’re in the mob?”
“She knows what she needs to know and stop with the fucking questions.” Derex swipes his drink and lets out a long exhale. “Luna’s very different from us, she doesn’t understand the lifestyle or why we’re the way we are.” Derex silences before adding, “Violence isn’t a word in her vocabulary.”
“If she’s as good as you say then what the hell is she doing with scum like you?” Hertz guffaws but abruptly stops and I have a feeling Derex just gave him a deadly glance. I chew on my lower lip and I’m rubbed the wrong way because of what he called Derex but then Derex snarls,
“Ask me that again and I’ll blow your fucking head off.”
My hands start trembling. That didn’t just sound like a threat but as if he’d do it...gladly, as if that’s something he does every day without blinking. It seems that the man I want, the one who ripped me out of my wretched situation is far more coldblooded than I ever could’ve thought.
****
Derex
Staring at the pale face opposite me, I drum my fingers against my knee. I think I made a mistake bringing him here. This is supposed to be a verbal warning, maybe some light aggression thrown in but then I’m meant to take him to the boss and let him deal with it. However, the more I sit here, the more I’m tempted to take matters into my own hands.
“How long have we known each other, Hertz?” I ask and he clears his throat.
“Years and years.”
“We’ve been partners for a long time,” I nod, adding, “You must be wondering why I brought you here.”
He shrugs his shoulders and he’s been looking fatter rather than muscular lately, slacking on his duties, slacking on fucking everything...almost as if his loyalties lie somewhere else.
Leaning over the table, I rasp. “Remember our good friend John boy?” I say and he turns into a rock in front of me, as if he thinks I won’t pay attention to him anymore if he keeps still. I circle my finger around the rim of my glass. “You were supposed to get rid of him.”
“I did, Derex...”
“Without it being known,” I grit. “You were supposed to be discreet and yet you might as well have shouted our business from the rooftops.” A muscle ticks in my jaw. “I want the truth. Who paid you off? Who’s bribing you...?”
His pathetic explanation doesn’t surprise me. He was bribed by the local MC gang to keep John alive but things got out of hand since mixing allegiances like that never turns out well. Hertz starts muttering an excuse but I cut him off.
“Unfortunately for you, my woman isn’t home. If she was, I would’ve reconsidered but I want you to pay and it’s not just about your treachery either.” I inhale. “You’ve put me in a tricky situation. Luna reads the newspaper and she found out about John.” I reach for my gun. “And you’re the reason why she’s been looking at me with distrust ever since.”
An aggressive look flashes Hertz’s face as if he’s willing to fight me but I pull the trigger under the table, the soundless bullet hitting vital organs and Hertz drops off his chair. I rub my eyes in annoyance at the mess but don’t regret it. Well...at least there’s that taken care of.
Stabbing my fingers through my hair, I get up. I’ve been worrying about Luna finding out the truth about me before the stage’s right but she won’t be home in hours yet and there’s plenty of time to clean up. I need to find something to put him in and I look around when I hear a mousy squeak. My muscles tense at the sound, my senses on edge and I whirl around. It came from behind the shelf and my heart begins pounding when I pull a shaking Luna out of there.
Regret nearly makes me unconscious. No, no, no...not this. This isn’t what I wanted, never wanted her to found out about it like this, never wanted her to see my true nature with her own eyes before I got a chance to explain myself.
She stutters my name, her gaze glassy and I let out curse after curse, covering her eyes while dragging her out of the office and I’m in a vile mood. “What the hell were you doing in there?” I snarl and she wheezes, stumbling after me.
“What are you doing? You just killed a man, Derex. In broad daylight, in your office, you just pulled the t...trigger.” She gulps, looking up at me as if I’m once again the man she once was wary of. “You’re dangerous.”
