And in that moment, my fears come true.
I knew all along what happened to Fiona, but it’s not the same as having it confirmed. My arms wrap around her. “We’re going to get him. He won’t hurt any more women.”
“Can we just get things moving? Other people want to go home and hug their wives, but there’s killing to be done first.” Vex doesn’t do patience very well.
Fiona tucks her head into my chest and takes a deep breath. “I can do this.”
She’s wrong. We can do this. But now isn’t the time to remind her of that.
Odd Man
Fiona
Ten minutes later, we’re all in Maddox’s office. Thankfully, the curtains are closed. I didn't need all those snakes adding to the reality of today.
Though, why do I care? I’ll probably be dead in a few days. I need to find time to write a letter to Daria before I do this. She already knows it’s going to be dangerous. She only agreed to leave for Gemma.
She’s going to be so mad at me. But I can’t come back this time without my friend.
Being in this room with a bunch of scary men staring at me isn’t a new experience. Though this group is a tiny bit more intimidating than it normally is.
Telling them about what happened to me…that’s the scary part.
“Is someone going to tell me where The Spider is so I can kill him?” How Vex isn’t jangling as he walks with that much metal on him, I have no idea.
“The Spider was dead.”
My words bring a hush to the room.
“Or so I thought when my best friend stabbed him.” They don’t need to know all the details, but maybe I need say it all out loud.
“There has never been a day in my life when I didn’t know The Spider. Where I didn’t fear him. I was born as hisproperty, because he owned my mother and wanted to use me to control her. It worked. She did whatever he said until she died. Then I took her place.”
This is harder than I thought. Harder than I ever thought it would be.
Strong arms engulf me.
He whispers in my ear, “You don’t have to do this.”
“She can’t be forgotten.”
Max kisses my hair. “Then tell her story.”
He probably thinks I’m talking about my mother, but I’m not. I nod, stepping out of his arms. “Every day The Spider owned me was filled with pain, degradation, and hunger. I thought about killing myself over and over again. But I never could quite build up the strength to do it.”
“The day I stopped thinking about it was the day my best friend arrived. She was everything I wasn’t—fearless, brave, and strong, not just mentally but physically. The Spider didn’t buy her to sell. He bought her to keep for himself. But it didn’t matter how he tortured her, or how much he starved her, she would fight him with every ounce of strength she had.”
“He loved that as much as he hated her for it. I think he was obsessed with her. All I knew was I wanted to be her. But I settled for being her friend instead. His men never saw me as a threat. I was always the one who did what I was told. So, no one noticed when I started giving her some of my food. No one thought anything of it when I would go treat her wounds. I was so docile next to the untamable beast that they never bothered me.”
“She told me once that he was either going to kill her or she was going to kill him. Just the thought of someone killing him seemed impossible. But she believed she would do it, or die trying. That was until he found her mother and sister. He bought them from a private collector. The mother was half deadand already lost to the world of the living. So, The Spider killed her in front of her daughters as a warning. Daria was so small, I don’t know how she survived. But from that day on, Sweetums did whatever he said.”
“Sweetums.” Vex’s voice echoes through the room.
One minute, he’s by the bar. The next, he’s two inches from my face. “WHAT WAS HER NAME?”
“Back off.” Max pushes his way between us.
“Move or die.”
