A knock on the door sounded,before Ricci and two large men in black suits walked into the room. My heartstarted racing, pounding against the walls of my chest. Bile filled my throat.
I glanced back at Kade, panic in my eyes.
Kade let out a sardonic laugh. “A butcher cares about his craft. So, I'll let the pro take care of you.”
Ricci got into my face and grabbed my jaw. “I am going to have so much fun with you, my darling daughter.” His piercing blue eyes looked like the ice that surely pumped through his veins.
I tried to move my head from his grasp, to no avail. When I couldn’t get out of my restraints or away from the grasp, I spit in Ricci’s face.
Ricci raised his other hand back to strike at me. Before it could come down, Kade grabbed his forearm and handed him a tissue. “I’ll get her ready for you.”
Ricci let out a frustrated growl before moving away from me. Kade glanced down at me while placing the knife at my clavicle. “Tsk, tsk, Evelyn. You wanted to hunt a ghost and the big bad Butcher… Well, now the hunter will become the hunted.” He removed the knife before taking a syringe off the cart.
I began to thrash. I didn’t want to die.
“I’ll be sure to see you in Hell, Phantom.” He handed Ricci the syringe.
“Please! Kade! Don’t do this!” My breath began to pick up as panic took over me.
Kade turned away. “Get her out of my sight.”
The two men that accompanied Ricci came over to the chair and released my restraints before one of them threw me over their shoulder. I thrashed in the man’s hold and met Kade’s eyes.
Betrayal, hurt, remorse, pain, and mourning all radiated from his being.
“Oh, Evelyn, you soon will learn,” I heard Ricci say before I felt a pinch in my neck. Before I could respond, I was met with darkness.
THIRTY-EIGHT
EVELYN
As my heavy eyelids began to open, my surroundings came into focus. My entire body ached, and my head throbbed in pain. I attempted to rub my temples and realized that I was bound to a chain-link fence and couldn’t move.
“What the fuck?” I mumbled to myself, as I tried to take in my surroundings. I was in a warehouse of some kind, that was almost empty. Three large cages were on the far side of the warehouse. My memories flashed to when my team found all of the dead children and women in cages identical to the ones in the room with me. As I tried to move my legs, I found that they too, were bound.
“Ah, sleeping beauty is awake.” A voice echoed in the warehouse.
My blood turned to ice as I recognized it and I looked up to meet the cold, glacial eyes of Anthony Ricci, the devil himself.
He stalked toward me with his hands behind his back, like a predator hunting its prey.
“Well, Evelyn, you really did it this time.”He smirked. Stopping only a couple of feet in front of me. “What do you have to say for yourself?”
“Let me go, Anthony! What the fuck is this?” I yelled, desperately attempting to get out of my restraints.
Anthony laughed and began to pace back and forth. “You know, I will say, you working for an undercover special ops team was not something I would have expected. Then again, you were always sneaky like your father, Evelyn. Or should I call you Phantom?” I glared at him while hot rage began to burn through me.
“Just like no one would have expected you to be a sex trafficker, a murderer, and an assassin?” I scoffed.
Ricci chuckled. “Touché. But answer me this, Evelyn… how did you see this ending? Please tell me you're not naive enough to think you could beat me?” he sneered as he pinched my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes.
When I didn't answer, His hand cracked across my cheek, leaving a wave of searing hot pain in its wake. “I asked you a question, I expect an answer!” he boomed.
“I don’tthinkI can beat you… IknowI can!” My voice held as much venom as I could muster.
Ricci tipped his head back and cackled as if I just told him the funniest joke. Wiping under his eye, he looked at me. “Oh, thank you Evelyn, I needed that laugh. You are dumber than I thought! Just like your mother.” I knew then that he was trying to bait me.
“Your father thought he could beat me too. Thought he was being sneaky, and see where that got him? Shot in the head execution-style. Want to know the best part?” He didn't wait for an answer. “He thought he was setting a trap for me, but in reality, he was setting it for himself. I have the chief of police on my payroll. Dumbass thought he could pull one over on me and intercept one of my shipments.”
