Personally, my favorite part comes much later.
“Whether you’re going byHugo Perezthese days orMisha... not everyone is fooled.”
Finally, I see it. Fear. His face goes sheet-white against the red spattering, a swallow sticks in his throat. His eyes dart to the car door.
The man has no idea what real fear tastes like. Yet.
“Y-you were locked away,” he stammers, scooting back in his seat. “Besides, you were just a kid. You don’t know what you heard or saw while you were there.”
I nod and resume wiping down my knife. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right. I could be mistaken.”
Griff grunts, then digs his elbow into Hugo’s stomach when the man tries to unbuckle his seatbelt. “Fuck,” Hugo groans, doubling over. He doesn’t seem to have a high pain tolerance. My lips quirk.
“Maybe I should call Katerina,” I suggest. “You know, double-check and everything.”
“Katerina—she’s been ...”
“Dead?”
His gaze narrows. “You. You had something to do with what happened the night of her death. Didn’t you?” He pauses and eyes the door once more, fidgets with the strap of his seatbelt. “I heard some people started disappearing again.”
“Did you now? You’ve been paying attention.” I cock my head to the side. “How many kids in total lost their lives at your hands, do you think? How many innocents filled yours and Katerina’s pockets?”
I gently drag the edge of my knife against my palm, teetering on the edge of breaking skin. Beads of sweat are dripping down Hugo’s forehead when I look back up.
And, yet, he glares and clenches his fist. “How much do you want?”
I raise an eyebrow.
“I said, how much? That’s what this is really about, isn’t it? Kidnap the millionaire and use your leverage to get a payday?” He actually sounds hopeful as he glances between me and Griff.
I could almost laugh if his words didn’t make my blood boil. “I think you’re missing the point, Hugo. Your money is already ours.” Felix accesses the accounts of everyone on our list—offshore included—well before we get to this point. It’s my job to get the final signatures, but that’s child’s play once they’re in my basement. “What we want is the same thing you want.”
He barks a hysterical laugh. “To gouge your fucking eyes out?”
My eyes dance at the coincidence. “We’ll get to that. I’m talking about art. That’s what you and Katerina attempted to create throughMisha, wasn’t it? That’s what you marketed it as, anyway; true and awakened art.”
He snorts, though his fear makes it sound like he’s choking. “I couldn’t give three fucks about herwork. I didn’t even see it half the time, so if you’re looking for some kind of payback, you’ve got the wrong guy. I dealt with the transactions, the money, and that’s it. I’m hardly the guilty one here.” When I continue silently toying with my knife, testing the pressure of the blade against my skin, he shifts in his seat. “Besides, didn’t you hear? I’m the high-profile CEO of a million dollar porn company, not some unclaimed foster kid like you guys. People would notice if I went missing.”
I lift one corner of my lips and lean forward, close enough to glide the point of my blade across the bridge of his nose. A familiar jolt of adrenaline courses through me. “Do you ever think about them? The countless kids whose lives you stole?”
Silence stretches between the three of us, the low hum of the vehicle the only sound in the air. A vein in Griff’s neck spasms. He’s just as impatient as I am.
“Not a single day.” Hugo’s voice is uneven and breathy, but he manages to smile. My arms flex with the restraint it takes to keep from making him scream. I have a fucking fantastic room for that at home. “They were hardly innocent. The lot of you. Running from the system and wreaking havoc. And by the time Katerina used them for her work, they were practically adults anyway.”
My pulse thrums wildly.
Hugo doesn’t stop, his voice grating on my ears until they’re raw. “You know it, I know it. If she didn’t get to them, they would have gone off to become criminals, thieves, even killers.” His lips twist, and he eyes me up and down. “So really, we were doing society a favor. I was just smart enough to earn a little—”
The knife, still pressed against the tip of his nose, slides through his skin like butter, only jerking at the cartilage. His piercing scream is delightful, even through the bloody cloth I shove in his mouth as Griff holds his hands down.
“A little early,” Griff mutters, giving me a sideways look.
I shrug. So I could stand to work on my restraint.
The fresh flow of blood streams down Hugo’s lips, his chin, and my thumping pulse relaxes. When his head lolls forward, I frown. Usually takes more than this before they faint. He was right about one thing—you really can’t tell how small someone’s balls are beneath their suit.
Raking my eyes along his face, I contemplate exactly what I want to do next with Hugo Perez. Which body part I want to move on to.
