Cursing, he paces my room, and I quirk an eyebrow in his direction. This seems to be a slight overreaction to me partaking in my hobby. When he suddenly stops, I’m surprised at the tension in his body, the way his forearms bulge with his fists clenched… Hot. So hot. Also, distracting. I need to get out of here because the lines keep shifting between me and these fuckers.
“Fine. I’ll go with you,” he grits out, and my eyes widen in shock.
Clearing my throat, I clarify, “You realize I’m going out to hunt, right? That’s generally a solo activity.”
“Someone needs to have your back. Right now, you’re the one thing holding together the sanity of several of my lovers.”
Rolling my eyes, I shake my head. “Whatever. If you wanted to bond, you didn’t need to come up with an excuse. Let’s go though, because if I timed it correctly, I should be able to get my new prey without having to deal with the screaming in public part.”
I open my phone to send a text to Ely, letting her know that I’m upholding our agreement. Gesturing for Tennant to follow, I head out, impatient to start. The need to kill is strong, it’s burning in my veins. It’s been too long, and if I’m going to be under this level of stress, I’ll have to step up my hunting, or find something else to add to my rotation. Fuckers have no idea just how much I do for them…
When we get into my car, I make sure to turn it to my favorite classical station, letting the music soothe that itch. I just need to get by until I have my prey, and then I can relax. From the looks Tennant keeps shooting me, it’s obvious he’s caught on that I’m on edge. At least, he’s quiet.
As we draw closer, I hum under my breath, excitement flooding my system. I’ve had this one marked for a while. He falls perfectly within my parameters. I wouldn’t say I have ethics per se… I’m not a vigilante, but Ely and I had a discussion when we noticed my need. For her, I keep my hunting primarily within certain constraints. No kids (we both agreed to that). And it’s someone who needs to die (a specific Ely addition). The particulars of that have evolved over the years, but I owe her enough that I do listen. Usually. I’m allowed one freebie a year.
This one…is not a freebie. In fact, it’s a special request from Ely. I barely hold back a shiver at the idea of spilling this man’s blood. It does worry me to have Tennant around though. When I engage in my need, the bonds of society snap. I’m not held back by expectations and societal niceties anymore. With him throwing off fucking pheromones like nothing else, well, this could get a little more interesting.
I pull into a park and grab the space at the end of the row, despite all the openings. However, there’s no cameras that pan this far over, and it’s perfectly camouflaged by the trees. Slipping out, I ignore Tennant, focused solely on finding my prey. I grab the baseball hat I keep in the backseat and shove it on my head. From Tennant’s snort, it doesn’t do much to hide my features, but he’d be surprised. Eyewitnesses tend not to see shit. And when they do, a simple ball cap trips them up.
I walk the trail a bit, with Tennant following behind me. Then I duck into the trees, leaning against one and waiting. Glancing at my watch, I’m satisfied I got here in time, although I’m cutting it a little close. This man is like clockwork. It’s fairly boring, in fact, but I have permission to play, so it’ll make up for this part.
I edge deeper into the trees as the clock ticks closer to go time, my senses on full alert. And then…I hear him. The huff of his breath, worn out from jogging. It’ll make this far easier. When he comes into my line of sight, I lean forward, disgust rolling off me when I realize he’s so involved in whatever music is pumping through his headphones that he isn’t paying attention to his surroundings. It makes it way too easy.
Slipping out of my spot just as he passes, I strike hard and fast. I slap my hand over his mouth, letting him struggle for a moment, so he can feel the way my muscles bulge and fight his weak body. Only when I’m satisfied stage one is complete, and the fear is running through him, do I take out a needle and jab itinto him, stealing his ability to fight—not that he had a chance, but this will keep him quiet.
I shuffle him toward the car, watching the surroundings carefully. Tennant points at the trunk, but I shake my head. “Back seat.”
His lips purse in judgment, but he opens the door and I shove my prey in there. He can’t scream. Hell, he can’t move a fucking muscle by now. The medication isn’t quite a sedative—it’s more for paralysis. I want him awake. I want him thinking about what’s going to happen. I need that moment to savor all of his emotions.
Hopping into the front seat, I buckle in before turning toward Tennant, who with a sigh also uses his seatbelt. I don’t give a shit about the guy in the back, he’s not sitting up anyway. His body is too rigid for that.
Whistling, I pull out of the park, merging into traffic like there’s nothing to see. Tennant clears his throat, and I’m pulled away from my dreams of torture. Glancing over, I ask, “Is there something you need?”
“More that I was going to offer you a spot to take him, if you don’t have one of your own.”
“Aww, that’s so sweet.” I smile at him, feeling warmth and acceptance spread through me. It’s rare. Only Ely has ever truly cared for my comfort. I’m almost tempted to take him up on it, but I shake my head. “I have specific instructions on this one. It’s important that I send a message.”
He doesn’t ask any questions, which I appreciate. There will be time to talk, but not right now. I prefer to let the silence build for my choice. It sweetens the pleasure.
I open the center console as we draw closer to the correct location. Thankfully, the house is set far enough back, with no neighbors around. It makes sense with an asshole like him.Having a place he can take his mask off. And now, I’m going to reap the benefits of it.
Grabbing the garage door opener, I hit the button to open it, pulling in without hesitation. It’s easy enough to copy garage door openers, and my cousin has an excellent tech person on hand who, since this was a request, did the work for me. Shutting off the car, I climb out of the front seat. Going around to the trunk, I open it and withdraw gloves and a case. I wave an extra set of gloves toward Tennant, and he accepts them easily. Then I grab my present from the backseat, fighting to take him out. Fucker is heavy. He really should have increased his exercise routine.
Since the guy is an idiot, I don’t need to unlock the door leading in from the garage. He obviously felt safe with only a fucking garage door standing guard. I’d lecture him for being an idiot, but this works to my advantage—so I may as well save my breath.
Tennant scoops up the man's back legs, and I sigh in relief. It’ll make it easier as I try to juggle my case and the front of the fucker. Thankfully, I have the blueprints memorized, and it’s not far to his office. I gesture for Tennant to help me set him down, posing him so he’s sitting in his ostentatious desk chair. It looks like it was modeled after a goddamn throne. I mean, hell, what the Council gave me was boring as fuck, but this room gives me chills. It’s all gold-plated shit, and two bookcases with books that are way too pristine. I doubt he’s read a single one.
Spinning him around, I let him enjoy the dizzying sensation before stopping the chair abruptly. He’s got an excellent green tinge to him, though he can't actually throw up at the moment. I set my case down on the overstuffed and way too pricey loveseat. When Tennant takes a seat there, I’ll admit, he looks fucking delicious, especially in comparison to the shit taste this guy has. It’s like a diamond amongst a bunch of fool’s gold. And that’sway too distracting of a thought when I have something to fix—permanently.
Clapping my hands, I go up onto my toes, excitement flowing through me so much that I can’t contain my joy. “Now, you may be wondering what’s going on. I really do hate the whole villain monologue shit, but I’ve accepted a special request for your punishment, which, unfortunately, means I have to tell you why you’re going to die. In case that of course wasn’t obvious. Don’t worry! Just because you can’t move, it doesn’t mean you won’t be able to feel. I wouldn’t take that joy away from you. After all, this is a dance together.”
Tennant laughs and I shrug. My prey never seems as thrilled as I am, even though I’m doing them the honor of selecting them when there are so many other options out there. It’s a prize, but if they’re not struck mute for cases like this, they’re usually crying and begging. Ridiculous.
“Now, since you can’t talk, I’ll answer the boring question of why. Truthfully? Why not? For me, I don’t give a shit. I’m happy to kill you no matter what. But…you see, you’re actually a special request, Professor. You pissed off my cousin. She takes her role seriously as one of the board members for a fun organization, and you happened to fuck with one of the kids. Not. Smart.
“Sure, Bradley is in college now, but he’s a good kid—most likely. And threatening him to get him on his knees for you? Not the best look. Especially, when we know he didn’t do anything to deserve that—and trust me, I did investigate this. However, you have quite the reputation. You like to go after the jocks, the straight guys. I’d clap if it wasn’t so fucking cliché.
“The problem, of course, is that you fucked Bradley up bad enough that he tried to kill himself, since you kept pictures and threatened to release them if he didn’t continue to comply. This is where I come in. You, in exchange for almost killing someone my cousin cares about, get to die. And then, I’m going to makesure your secret gets out, while I protect the identity of those I can. Now…let’s have some fun.”
