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He looks at her. “I don’t keep a goddamn diary of who dies, but I know who does.” He stares me dead in the eyes. “Every last victim, every last kidnapping. He holds a record like the organized son of a bitch that he is.” He smirks again.
He. Victor continues to say ‘he.’ What does he mean?
While I’m lost in my confusion, Jax stumbles back, a thump along with a thud sounds from behind me. Shit, that’s not good news for him. ButnowI’m interested in thepersonhe speaks of. I know every idiot has a boss.
However, I did think it ended with Victor. All of it, anyone connected to our kidnapping and Carter’s death. Intrigued by this news, I kicked at his wounded knee.
“Who’s this person? And why did they want the blueprints?” Victor groans, ignoring me. “You’re already going to die, so no need to keep it in”
“I’ll take it to my grave,” Victor snarls. “You’re all a bunch of pussies coming in here—”
Mal hops over the desk with a mini rope she pulls from her vest and wraps it around Victor's neck, choking him before he can finish his sentence.
I watch in glory as Victor writhes and squirm under the hold. I should take a picture just for Anita to see. “Don't kill him, Mal.” I have something greater planned for him.
“Who do you work for, ass wipe?” Mal shouts in his ear as if he’s deaf and not being a fucking idiot.
Before his eyes roll to the back, Mal releases with a mush to his head. Her legs dangle beside him like a creepy doll.
He wheezes, falling to the side, gasping for oxygen to fill his lungs. I blink with a breathy laugh. “That’s comical.”
He takes a deep gulp, tossing a menacing gaze at me. “Yeah, laugh.” He heaves. “I wish I could see the look on your face when you find out who’s really behind it all.” He lets out a hearty laugh. “You know what they say, ignorance is a poison that kills love, friendship and all the good ole feelings,” he says through his chuckles. “How fucking ironic,Poison.”
Unease creeps up my chest, the unknown setting in once again. What the fuck? I peer at Boone, who is rubbing his knuckles, glancing at the floor.
“And for you. Traitor.” Victor looks over my seat to wherever Jax went. “Many of them don’t make it past six months, let alone three years. Her chances of survival are slim to zero. This is only a teaching lesson. Here’s my advice, Next daughter you have, keep a watchful eye on her why don’t you.” He smirks carelessly.
I itch to pull the trigger and shoot him in the dick, but I recoil. Mal has another idea, hopping off the desk and slamming her boot right on his knee. His scream is piercing, raw enough to make your ears ring and bring a flutter to your stomach. She doesn't end there, she casually twists her foot while searching on his desk. She grabs his phone. “The person he was referring to, could this be his number?”
Boone finally comes over, taking the phone from her. “It’s not a Long Island area code.”
Mal removes her foot, and he gasps from the recovery. His voice trembles. “Once you find out.” He wheezes. “You’re going to wish I had killed you that night.” Now it’s his turn to find amusement in my confusion. A ripple of nausea swirls in the pits of my belly that I can’t stop.
I shake away the dire clench below. “We’ll have Bedford trace the number to its source. Maybe it's something in there that could help us find out who this person is.”
I head to the desk, searching for other answers, anything. Two things stand out. A pendant, like the others. The ugly centipede. A crisp white calendar lies perfectly under the scattered mess on the table. It’s marked with one thing. A name, location, time, and date.
Monthly meet
Centipede
8:00pm
Casino La Vay
December 20th, 2023
––––––––
“That’s two weeks fromnow.” I slid my gaze back to Victor. “Who are you meeting with?” I know he probably won’t give me a real answer, but it’s worth a try.
He looks over his shoulder at me with a lazy grin on his face and his body withering. “Why don’t you go see for yourself?” His voice is weak as he gives up holding his wounds and falls on his shoulder.
I roll my eyes to the ceiling, then back at Boone. I wave my pointer and middle finger to Mal to come full circle. I look over my shoulder, only to still find Jax in the dark corner, knees to his chest and arms hanging off them. Damn, that’s fucking brutal. I slowly turn back around, facing my team.
“Thoughts?” I look at them.
“This mystery person is the one behind it all,” Boone grumbles, rolling his shoulders.