Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 108988 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 545(@200wpm)___ 436(@250wpm)___ 363(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108988 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 545(@200wpm)___ 436(@250wpm)___ 363(@300wpm)
Lassiter had a pretty face. Blue eyes. High cheekbones. A narrow chin that worked on him somehow. He liked to keep multiple earrings in his ears, sometimes an eyebrow ring, sometimes a nose ring. Tattoos went all the way up his neck. One was a giant black hand that surrounded the back of his neck. He kept his dirty-blond hair similar to a Viking style, with two thick braids that ran from the side of his skull and to the back, falling loose. Tonight he wore a dark-gray stocking hat, pulled low.
“I thought your agreement with Blake was to stay away from her?”
There was no judgment in his voice, but there was something else there. I couldn’t quite place it. “I have, as far as she’s aware.”
He snorted, shaking his head. “You’ve taken over the neighborhood surrounding her school. She’s going to find out, and she’s going to be pissed.”
I didn’t comment. There was no reason because yes, I had. Was I going to stop? No.
He laughed shortly under his breath. “You tasked me with looking for any incoming threat coming our way. We got a potential problem.” His hand came out of his pocket and tossed something my way.
Catching it in my hand, it was a USB drive. I held it up. “What’s on here?”
“Plans for a bill being introduced that’s going to allow new security measures such as AI and plans for a research study where they’re going to use drones for surveillance.”
Drones with artificial intelligence. This wasn’t good. I gave the USB a considering look. “Those drones are coming here.” It wasn’t a question. I already knew this was why Lassiter was even in town, otherwise he would’ve remained in Cincinnati, overlooking the city for me. “Who’s in charge?”
He indicated the USB. “It’s there.”
“Save me time and tell me yourself.”
A hard grin flickered over his face, but it didn’t match the rest of him. His eyes were dead. “You need to read the information for yourself. Tell me what you want me to do with it.”
A scream sounded from inside the warehouse.
Lassiter pushed off from the wall, glancing behind him at the warehouse because just on the other side of that wall someone was waiting for me. “I’ll keep a watch on the bill and the study, but what our tech guys are telling me is that it’s happening.”
A second scream came.
“Have fun with that. I’ll keep in touch.”
I watched him go. Change was inevitable. I was proof of that because of how I recruited and took over territories, but Lassiter was alarmed enough for him to make a visit in person. When a third scream sounded, I pocketed the USB and headed inside.
I had work to do.
Two of my men straightened upright when I stepped inside. They moved away from the man tied up, with his feet barely touching the floor from where a rope was holding him in place.
Ashton Walden.
His head hung down. Blood dripped out from one of his sides.
I gave a nod for my men to leave and began rolling up the sleeves of my own Henley.
I took hold of his hair and pulled his head up so he could see me, but also to surveil the damage already done to him. One black eye. A split lip. His cheekbone looked smashed, but for torture, that was the prerequisite. Even Ashton Walden himself would agree. A certain amount of maiming was necessary for a good torture session to be had.
“I was told on the way here that it was remarkably easy for them to take you. You really should always travel with your guards, Walden. Especially now when we’re at war.” My tone was chiding. Taunting.
He tried to glare at me through one of his eyes. The other remained shut. “Fuck you.”
I punched one of his good ribs and heard a crack. I flashed him a grin. “Satisfying, right?” I hit him again, and yep. A definite break. That rib was broken for sure.
He would’ve doubled over if he could’ve. Instead, he just tried to jerk away from me. A hoarse curse that was half of a scream ripped from his mouth. “I swear to Go—”
“Now, now.” I placed a finger against his mouth, hushing him.
He tried to bite my finger off, and I stepped back, grinning.
A different man would’ve been concerned about the emptiness he just saw in one of his employees’ eyes, someone who grew up with him. He would’ve been disturbed by his own stalking tendency and his disregard to break into a home and violate it, walking through it to watch a certain woman sleep. I wasn’t that man. But this, causing pain, I felt this emotion.
I fixed Ashton with a hard look. “You like torturing. Correct? That’s what my research says about you. You like to enact the pain, while your counterpart is the planner, and I’m not talking about that woman of yours. I’m referring to your best friend. Tristian West is the thinker. He thinks long-term. You’re the doer, but that research is shortsighted. Isn’t it? If it came down to it, if I really hurt someone Tristian West cared about, I bet he would enjoy enacting revenge. Wouldn’t he? I wonder what I would need to do to enrage him enough?”