Not long later, Goldie came tearing out of his cabin, gun in hand. His long hair was everywhere. He was so busy staring at the fire that Keaton was easily able to grab him without doing any sneaking at all.
Unfortunately, Goldie fought worse than a rabid badger, trying to bite and flail and punch. He lost his gun in the process, but Keaton almost tripped into the fire.
“Boy, knock him out!” I hissed. I’d been trying to get close enough to help, but Goldie’s flying feet were a menace.
Keaton snapped out of whatever shock he’d been in and must’ve realized he was triple or more Goldie’s size because he simply held him with one hand and brought his other massive fist down on top of Goldie’s head. The second our drug dealer was on the ground, I was on him, using superglue to seal his eyelids shut. He must not have been as knocked out as I’d thought because he grabbed his face, screaming and shaking his head.
Keaton yanked him to his feet by the arms, and I winced because there was a sickpopthat had Goldie shouting again and clutching his left shoulder.
“Walk or you die now,” I said.
“You can’t do this to me!” he shouted.
Keaton slapped him and that stunned him quiet. Goldie didn’t walk. Instead, Keaton hauled him like a sack of potatoes away from his cabin. We both dragged Goldie until the burningcabin was in the far distance and we had to turn on our headlamps again. There was shouting that might be coming from the direction of the spa.
The sound of other people’s voices seemed to spur Goldie into a new reckless round of trying to tug away from Keaton, even though it got him nowhere. Keaton shook him.
“Who the fuck are you! I’m not holding!” He sobbed.
“That’s a lie,” I said smoothly. “Well, perhaps now it isn’t.”
There was a loudcrack, as if something had exploded, from the direction of Goldie’s cabin. He started to imitate a tornado siren.
“You will be quiet or I will cut out your tongue.”
Goldie only increased the volume, so I grabbed his ear and pulled. Hard. It takes less pressure than most people realize to detach an ear, and I tossed it aside as blood gushed down his neck to paint his stained white T-shirt red. Pleasure curled through me.
“We’re going to play a game. I’m going to ask for the name of your supplier, and every time you tell me no or don’t answer or any other bullshit, I’m going to rip something else off. I’ve never managed to pull off a nose, but I’m game to try if you are. What do you think, boy? You ever pull off a nose?”
Keaton stared at me as he kept moving. “Nope.”
His eyes glinted, demonic in the headlamp with the vengeance that lit him up from within. I flung myself at him and went on tiptoe to press my lips to his. No one had ever stared at me like that, as if I was God and a monster all at the same time. Although, who was to say how different those two things were—if at all.
His lips were soft and everything I wanted forever.
“Fuck you, fucker! My ear!” Goldie sobbed.
“Now, that isn’t nice. Not nice at all.” I felt truly fucking evil as I grabbed his other ear, but I didn’t care. Perhaps I wasn’t a god, but I was sure as shit handing out some karma tonight.
And my boy looked as if he wanted to ride my cock the second we were done.
I could live with this.
23
KEATON
“Tie him to that tree over there.” Zayn pointed at a massive oak in the middle of the forest, and I did as he’d instructed, my dick hard the entire time. I’d never seen anything hotter in my life and it made me question my sanity. He was something you saw in murder documentaries, sinister and cruel but in all the right ways.
Once Goldie was tied with ropes, Zayn stepped up and gave him a slow once-over. In the darkness, it was difficult to see his expressions, especially while a big shiny light was bright on the headband he wore. My heart hammered, waiting for whatever he was looking for.
Goldie’s yells filled the forest, but they were nothing compared to thebangsand fire that took hold of his cabin. Everyone was more focused on the damage, and they’d never be able to hear him here. We were too far away.
Zayn poked Goldie’s chest. “Tell me the name of your supplier.”
Goldie struggled harder and I liked that he couldn’t open his eyes. He couldn’t see us, but I wondered if our voices sounded familiar. “Fuck you.”
I clenched my hands into fists and gritted my teeth. This man killed my mother. He might not have done it with his hands, but his product was the reason she was dead, the reason Ginny didn’t have her mommy anymore. He didn’t care who he hurt or about the children left behind because of his drugs.
