Page 45 of Hunt Me (The Skulls #1)

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Ruaridh

A nother dead end.

My molar cracks with the force I clench down.

I point down another corridor.

‘ We ’ re going in circles. Let ’ s stop for a sec—’

‘ I am not stopping. ’

We ’ ve cut through too many groups to slow down now. She must be here and she must be close.

Liam sighs but follows me into the next tunnel. This one lit with the glowing orange of a fire at the end of it.

I pick up my pace.

‘ Wait, ’ Liam whisper shouts at me as he pulls me into the wall before I can charge into yet another group. ‘ Listen, ’ he looks at me eyes imploring.

I strain my hearing, focusing on what other noises are around us.

Since the raging in my head began when Fauna was taken I ’ ve not allowed myself to hear much.

My fury is too loud, but also my undeniable fear of being able to hear her screams like I heard Isla ’ s has been my brain's way of protecting me from what may come.

Isla lives, and so will my little dear.

‘ Where ’ s this new bitch? ’ one voice asks, and my entire body goes cold.

Liam stiffens beside me.

No. They can ’ t be talking about what I think they are.

‘ Wha? ’

‘ Old bat was screaming about bringing a new hole. ’

‘ Bout time. That one is getting used up. She ’ s no fun now she ’ s stopped screamin. Like a good fight me. ’

‘ Aye, I like em broken—’

Neither Liam nor I wait to listen more; done with hearing their vulgar conversation, we step around the corner looking like the human carnation of the apocalypse. We do not allow abusers to live in this world. Their gift of surviving the virus is completely wasted on the lowlifes that they are.

‘ What did you just say? ’ I seethe with calm destruction in my voice.

Three men, all noticeably bigger than the ones we have come across so far, sit lounging on cushioned chairs far too extravagant to be found in such a vile place as the sewers beneath the city. Vermin sat on their perches.

None of them get up; they don ’ t even try to move.

Instead, they look both of us up and down.

Every single person in this city, no matter how vile they are, knows who we are.

Our masked faces are enough to identify what we represent, and to these rats, it is their end.

They are just too self-absorbed to care.

‘ You lost, Skull? ’ the piece of shit in the middle asks, his double chin wobbling as he half chuckles.

‘ What ’ s got the pretty boys down here, hmm? ’ another asks as he opens his arms wide. ‘ Want in on the new hole? ’

I try to control the urge to rip out every one of their throats. That is something I can do after I have the information I need to get Fauna. Men like these, not that they deserve for us to call them that, take satisfaction out of getting a reaction.

My grip tightens on my axe handles, drawing the more observant ones attention to my bloodied body.

The third one tuts as he shifts forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. ‘ She ’ s yours, isn ’ t she? ’ his grin is repulsive as his gaze takes me in.

‘ You ’ re the Skull that killed Pete. ’

The one in the middle whistles, ‘ his ol lady is on a war path. We told him not to get mixed up with er. She ’ s, ’ he twirls an engorged finger around his ear.

‘ Didn ’ think she ’ d manage it, ’ the one to the left speaks again. ‘ Crazy bitch actually took a Skull ’ s pussy. ’ He laughs, and it sends nails scratching through my stomach.

Liam steps towards me. A move that causes the three vermin to smirk, taking it as weakness and that they have gotten to me in a way others haven ’ t.

He nudges my hand ever so slightly, his tap signalling for me to look behind the three. A shadow creeps down the passage directly behind them. Not one but two shadows.

The three before us don ’ t notice our distraction as they continue their vulgar taunts. The shadows move behind them, and the familiar glint of soft brown hair almost buckles my knees.

Fauna ’ s big eyes look directly at me, and she gives a slight shake of her head as if she could sense that my next action would be one that would go to her.

She angles her head at the three pieces of shit, and I see an object in her hand.

Unfortunately for the rats, I ’ m wearing my mask, so they can ’ t get a glimpse of the wide grin on my face. My little deer sees it, though, recognising how my eyes shift with the movement.

She springs into action, and I throw an axe into the one on the right's chest. His body lurches backwards, pinning him to the back of the couch and instantly killing him.

I switch my second axe to my dominant hand, ready to help Fauna if she needs it, but the unrelenting hold she has on the one that figured out who I am to her is enough to show she does not need my help. I watch as she whispers something into his ear and slits his throat.

Another figure that I hadn ’ t bothered to pay attention to is the only one moving now.

Her bony hand grips a metal object that she uses to plunge straight into the middle one ’ s crotch.

He lets out an ear-piercing squeal, but that doesn ’ t stop her.

Her movements don ’ t even falter in the slightest as she repeatedly stabs the fucker ’ s dick.

‘ How does that feel, baby. ’ She shouts into his pain-stricken expression, ‘ Yes, that ’ s it. Scream for me, you disgusting fuck. ’

The girl climbs over his chair, and I avert my gaze as her covering parts open to show severely bruised skin. Liam must notice as well, him shifting his footing as if unsure whether to help the girl or not.

Neither of us moves, though. We watch as she takes her revenge the only way she can.

She grabs his wet face, his snot dripping into his open mouth. ‘ Look at me, you piece of shit. I promised you I ’ d kill you, and I want to enjoy watching as the life drains from your pathetic body. ’

Fauna moves to me, and I don ’ t wait a second longer before dropping my axe and lifting her into my arms.

‘ Are you ok? ’ I ask desperately, checking her over.

The little amount of clothing that she was wearing at the school is still intact and that alone has something inside of me crying with relief. I bring my hand up to her swollen forehead, stroking my thumb across a large bump that is there.

She winces, and I move to cradle the back of her head, pulling her further into my embrace. Fauna begins to melt into me, but as if realising something, she pushes back to search for the room.

The girl.

‘ She ’ s gone, ’ Liam says, knowing what Fauna is searching for.

Chapter Thirty-five

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Fauna

E mily ’ s gone.

I don ’ t blame her. It ’ s not like we had time to become friends whilst I was caving my abductor's face in and she was setting her rapist ’ s corpses on fire. Still, my chest hurts for her and how she ’ s all alone.

Ruaridh ’ s fingers grip my chin, bringing my gaze up to meet familiar forest-green eyes — eyes that feel like they are trying to look deep into my soul.

‘ They hurt you, ’ his words are so quiet I ’ m unsure if he realises he ’ s spoken out loud. It's more like he ’ s saying it in a way that processes it.

I tug at the stiff fabric of his mask in silent request, and he answers me immediately.

The blood-covered mask slips backwards, revealing the sharp features of Ruaridh ’ s face.

He doesn ’ t try to hide his anger, and it doesn ’ t look like he could even if he wanted to.

His jaw is sharp and defined with the way he is clenching it, and a worry line I ’ ve never seen before is between his eyebrows.

The concern radiating from him has me fully melting into his body, unable to hold myself up any longer.

I ’ m in pain, so much pain. Both physically and mentally.

I feel my body convulse with emotion, but I don ’ t allow a sound to escape me.

I will not let this place take anything from me.

It does not deserve the privilege of hearing me cry.

And over my dead body will I ever allow these assholes to be near me whilst I crumble, even if they are too dead to witness it.

Ruaridh threads an arm around my back whilst the other hooks beneath my legs, slotting behind my knees as he lifts me into a cradle.

‘ Come on, baby. Let ’ s go home. ’ He whispers into my hair, placing a soft kiss to my forehead.

Ruaridh explains that the other skull with him is his closest friend, Liam. Silently, they communicate with one another as we begin to move.

None of us say anything as Ruaridh guides us down the tunnels. How he knows where to go is a mystery to me but his steps are confident, never feeling like we are walking in circles or getting turned around.

I trust Ruaridh. He ’ s come after me twice now, and I see how different he is from the stories we ’ ve heard. He might have a reputation as a monster, but to me he is far from one. The creatures here are monsters; someone like Ruaridh who kills them is not.

I can ’ t shake the need to watch where we are going.

We don ’ t come across anyone else. No one alive anyway.

The first lot of bodies he walks us past look like quick kills, all with chest wounds and the occasional one to the head.

But the further through we go the more apparent it becomes that these ones were more calculated in how they killed them.

Hacked-off limbs lie near bloodless bodies, the expression of terror staining their faces for eternity.

Each room we pass through emphasises how serious Ruaridh ’ s words were when he said he would find me no matter what. Each life he has mercilessly cut through all to get to me.

It is clear that Ruaridh and Liam, in their search for me, had tortured these people. Then, for whatever reason, whether it be finding the information they needed or just giving up, they began hacking through people like they were nothing but objects in their way.

My skin prickles at the evidence of how far he will go to get me. And judging by the evidence of dead bodies he left in his wake, there are not many limits to it either.