Page 177 of Blackwood

“Sure thing, baby.” Laing presses a kiss to her forehead before pulling out his phone. He walks casually toward the front hall, speaking in soft Mandarin.

A few seconds later, another man enters. Early thirties, sharply dressed, sunglasses still on despite the dim lighting inside the mansion. He gives a curt nod.

“You five,” Bella calls to the girls. “Go with Kenji to the car. We’ll finish up here and be out soon.”

They follow him in a line, like cows to the slaughter.

“If they give you any lip Kenji,” Bella adds, all sugar and sadism. “Feel free to break them in.”

My gut twists. I know it’s an act. I know it’s part of the plan, but hearing her talk like that, watching her play this role, it hits somewhere deep and ugly. This is the world she had to learn to survive in. This is the darkness that she had to hide from every night.

Bella and Laing return to Krolek, calm and composed like they just stepped out of a boardroom instead of a trafficking transaction.

“Now, where were we?” Krolek says, licking his bottom lip like a goddamn predator.

“We’ll need at least fifteen girls per club,” Bella says, her voice low and authoritative. “Three clubs in New York, one in San Francisco. Let’s start there for now.”

Krolek grins. “That’s a lot of pussy, sweetheart. But for you?” He leans back with a sleazy chuckle. “Anything.”

“Girls are secured,”Kenji says through the comms.

“Bella,” Knox says into the mic. “The girls are safe. It’s showtime.”

“Showtime?” I whisper under my breath.

Bella doesn’t miss a beat. “So, Krolek,” she says, her tone warm but calculated, “I know it’s a strange question, but I’m always a little skeptical in my line of work. Comes with the territory, I guess.”

She tilts her glass, eyes on him. “I like to know who I’m doing business with. Personality type, behavioral patterns, how likely someone is to stab me in the back once the deal closes.”

Krolek chuckles politely, still trying to place her.

“So… what’s your sign?”

He blinks, confused. Bella just smiles. Not sweet. Not innocent. That razor-edged kind of smile that says she’s already won, and he just hasn’t realized it yet.

“I don’t actually believe in horoscopes,” she continues, idly twisting the diamond ring on her finger. “I just think it’s fascinating how people see themselves. What mask they choose to wear.”

She lets the silence stretch. Lets him squirm. “Go on,” she coaxes softly. “Indulge me.”

Next to me, Lex mutters under his breath, “Jesus Christ, she’s terrifying.”

He’s not wrong, but fuck, I’ve never loved her more.

Krolek finally laughs, forced and brittle. “Cancer,” he says, raising his glass. “Emotional. Loyal. Sensitive.” He smirks. “Or so they say.”

Bella tilts her head, eyes glittering. “Cancer,” she echoes. “So deep down, you’re just a soft little crab with a hard shell and mommy issues?”

His smile falters. “I prefer protective.”

“Mmhmm.” Her voice purrs like silk over a knife’s edge. “Cancers always do.”

He narrows his eyes, intrigued despite himself. “And you?” he asks. “What’s your sign?”

Bella leans back, gaze unflinching. A slow, knowing smile curves her lips.

“Scorpio.”

The word barely leaves her mouth before the shot cracks through the comms. Krolek stiffens—eyes wide, glass shattering from his hand—then drops face-first onto the marble floor.