Penelope
The tang of blood fills my mouth, and I glare murder up at Kylie. Sothat’s where my brass knuckles went. I hadn't found them in my jacket pocket and assumed Calamity still had them. I'm fortunate that she's such a little thing and not trained to fight, or I'd be hurt a lot worse. Brass knuckles increase the pressure per punch and protect the knuckles from damage, which is why they're so handy to have. If one of the men wore them and hit me, my jaw would probably be broken. Instead, I think it's just a tooth.
I swallow the molar she knocked loose along with a mouthful of blood. It scrapes painfully down my throat before landing sickeningly in the pit of my stomach.
Kylie draws her hand back for another strike but is stopped by the redhead. Her name is Avis, I think. Or Ava? Evie? Something like that. She doesn't look like much, but her grip has to be iron, because Kylie can't bring her hand down, even with the advantage of her momentum. An undignified whine escapes Kylie's rouged mouth.
"Avis! You said I could hurt her. You promised that I'd get to when we had her."
"I said hurt her," Avis said with steely disapproval, yanking the brass knuckles off of Kylie's fingers. "Not kill her. One wrong punch with these bad boys and you can kill someone. You want to hit her? Use your own fists. But be careful. She's no use to us as bait if she's dead."
I swallow another mouthful of blood and my flippant retort. What the fuck is it with these people and dangling me like a lure? If my brothers weren't stupid enough to go rushing across the line to kill Calamity—whom they have more reason to hate—then they're sure as hell not rushing to end these chuckleheads.
Kylie doesn't make another move toward me, probably scared of breaking her hand on my face. A wise financial decision. Hard to make a living when you can't give hand jobs, amongst other things. I give her a taunting little smile and blood oozes between my teeth. She takes another step toward me. Avis tightens her grip on Kylie's arm until she yelps.
"Control, woman," she snaps. "Learn some. You can wail on her later. Right now, the boss wants to have a little chat with our guest."
My ears perk up a little at that. Boss? Am I about to meet the mysterious "friend" that Kylie referred to? Because I can't think of anyone in the Hellions I might consider a friend. Not even Damon, my informant before this whole business went down, could be considered my friend.
Avis inclines her head to one of the men surrounding us, and he stoops, grabs me under the arms, and hauls me upward. The sudden jerking motion jars my broken tooth. The agony is so pointed that I choke on vomit. I swallow it back before I can spew it all over his shoes. I'm not giving Kylie the satisfaction. He doesn't handle me with care, dragging me forward in that same jerky fashion. It takes every ounce of self-control I have not to scream. The exposed nerve throbs in time with the beat of my heart, sending spikes of agony slamming through me.
Don't scream, don't scream, don't scream.
I don't even note where I'm being dragged, too consumed with pain. It's not until the rusty metal door of the shack is slid open that I reach the very obvious conclusion. The boss is waiting in the only building for miles around.
He's silhouetted against a dingy window, and his face is hard to make out.
"She's here," Avis informs the shadowy figure. "And we thought you should know that Trevor thought he spotted a bike on the way over. Couldn't tell you what type, just that we had a tail."
My heart beats unevenly for a second as my mind conjures up a wildly optimistic daydream. A tail? Could Calamity have come after me?
I decide not to dwell on it. It's only a maybe, and if it wasn't Calamity, I don't think I can take that. I squint ahead, focusing on the danger ahead instead of the possibility of salvation that lingers behind me.
The figure is tall and broad but seems comparatively shrimpy after my month of being ravished by Calamity. Anything short of a bodybuilder will look small compared to him. He hadn't been my type, initially. But now I understand the appeal of having a mountain of capable muscle and unrestrained passion focused solely on you. It's a heady thing.
When he steps into the gray, misty midday air, I almost lunge for him, a strangled cry of pain and disbelief escaping my mangled mouth.
"You traitorous little motherfucker!" I scream at him. "You cock-sucking, shit-eating, little worm! I'm going to kill you."
My ex-boyfriend Marcus only smiles patiently, as though he's weathering the tantrum of a spirited two-year-old. The condescension is familiar and as rage-inducing as it ever was. It was the main reason—besides the lack of spark in bed—that I ended things with him. Nobody gets to act like they're better than me without earning the right. Marcus is an accountant, and I met him through Leo, the club's unofficial bookie and a worker at the Black Spade Casino. He helps with our businesses' financial matters. Orhadwas probably a better word. When did he defect to the Hellions?
"As eloquent as always, Penny," he says with a smirk, watching me squirm like a fish on a line.
"Fuck you!" I snarl. "You fucking traitor!"
He reaches out and palms one breast lightly, squeezing it to the point of pain. "Oh, I plan to fuck you. Once your brothers have been taken care of, and the King's side of town belongs to us. We've been patient with them for long enough, I think."
Poor Calamity. This is the second time the Kings have come under attack in recent months. And this time, he'll have less backup than ever. The image of Calamity collapsing dead in a back alley somewhere haunts me. It's clear there are traitors in the ranks of the Kings. Kylie seems the cowardly sort. She wouldn't support this if she was alone.
Marcus smears his thumb across my bottom lip in a parody of a loving gesture, blood from my split lip smearing his finger. He examines it for a second before popping it into his mouth.
"I hear Calamity's tasted you too, huh? We never went there, did we? I think we'll try that before you die. Must taste fucking spectacular if your sworn enemy hasn't killed you yet."
"I will twist your head off with my thighs," I swear.
He just laughs. "We'll see."
And with that, he strides away, resuming a conversation he'd apparently been having with another of the Hellions before I arrived.
