He places a hand over his heart, like a soldier pledging his allegiance to the flag. “You have my word.”
So dramatic.
“So what did this guy do?” I ask, nodding toward the corpse.
“Got a bit too friendly with his daughter. Most fucked-up part was that his friend was also assaulting her, and the dad pinned it all on him, and got away with it.”
I shake my head, my heart hurting for the little girl. Oftentimes, I wish they brought these assholes to me alive.
“Have you spoken to Legion lately?” he asks, quickly changing the subject. The amusement on his face relaxes, settling his features into a more serious expression .
“I did earlier. Why?” I toss the teeth into the grinder and flip it on, the loud noise doing little to cut the building tension in the air.
“Did he mention anything about some brotherhood?”
My brows furrow as I remove the man's clothes. “Brotherhood?” I echo with confusion. “Doesn't sound familiar.”
“Yeah, they're dubbed the Basilisk Brotherhood. Apparently, Z knows them now, and they're interested in your job in particular.”
My hands freeze, and my muscles grow dense with tension. “What do they want with my job?” I ask, my voice hardening.
If they try to replace me… I'm going to throw a colossal fit. I get paid substantially to do what I do, and it doesn't require me to get any more involved in Legion's work than I want to.
I live a simple life, and I'm happy with that.
“They want the organs. Evidently, they think feeding them to pigs is a waste of money.”
Now, my brows shoot up my forehead. When I meet Eli's stare, he explains, “They're organ traffickers. And I think they want to work with you and Legion.”
I blink, having no idea what to think or feel.
“How come Legion told you about this and not me?”
“He asked me to meet with them first, get a feel for them before Legion entertains their offer. I'm sure he won't approach you about it until he's confident they're good people.”
‘Good people’ is a loose term when it comes to this corner of the world. However, there’s a surprising number of people like me. What we do wouldn't exactly grant us access to the pearly gates up above, even though we do it for good reasons. The ones we kill—even the devil wouldn't want them.
“If Z’s working with them, then they must not be too bad,” I comment, resuming my work and switching on the Sawzall.
Eli shrugs. “My thoughts as well, but you can never be too sure. I'd expect some type of contact regarding this soon. You might be making new friends.”
I sigh, cutting off the man's head. Eli takes a step back when the blood splatters too close for comfort.
“Great. Just when I was getting used to you.”
Eli gasps. “I resent that. Who else is going to tell you how sexy you are on a weekly basis?”
I raise a brow, unimpressed. “Somehow, I think I'll survive.”
Cage
Two Weeks Later
2022
I call her a little ghost, yet for some reason, I never considered that the brat would actually ghost me.
My blood simmers as I watch her from the depths of the woods surrounding her barn. As usual, the double doors are wide open, allowing the barn to air out. It's beginning to rain, the cold droplets doing little to cool my temper.
She’s cleaning up after feeding her pigs, having just hung up the phone with the lady who confirms the corpses are disposed of.
She’s meticulous. Has a routine that she doesn't stray from. And everything has a place.
Except for me, apparently.
A couple of weeks ago, Legion called to inform me Eli was back on the job, but immediately, I knew something was off when h e
Chapter Nineteen （SPLIT）
not-so-kindly told me to forget where Molly lives and stay away unless she contacts me herself.
That was all I needed to hear to recognize that she was running.
It shouldn't have surprised me. Yet, it did.
More than that, it fucking hurt.
And it absolutely enraged me.
I have no doubts that Molly returns my feelings, except she’s completely fucking clueless when it comes to being able to handle those emotions.
She may not have ever been in love, but she also has never met another like me.
And what she seems to forget is that I will never give up on her.
I’ve left her alone for two weeks, sticking to the shadows nearly every night since I got that call. Just observing her go through the motions of life as if I'm not the one who gives it to her. Waiting to see if she’d crack and reach out to me.