Page 9 of Marked for Execution

I scowled. He was such a rude asshole.What if I was really a boy? Who says that kind of shit out loud?

His eyes roamed downward and landed on my chest, making me feel insecure.

“Can you not?” I snapped in reaction. I’d been in hiding for so long, it was weird to have someone stareright there.

His eyes snapped to mine and now he was the one flushing, scrambling to get off me and stand up. I rolled the aches out of my body with a groan and stood up as well, dusting my clothes and turning around. I couldn’t face him, especially now that he knew my truth.

“You’ve ruined my shirt even more, you jerk. You owe me a new one.”Fuck, I was so pissed. Why couldn’t he just leave things be? Why couldn’t he just let me go home?

“Look, if I knew you were a girl, I wouldn’t have…” he started, and I gave him a sharp look over my shoulder.

“Wouldn’t what?” I challenged. Dammit, I’m not normally like this. I’m good at keeping calm, keeping quiet, just living my life.

He frowned and barked back, emphasizing each word from his mouth with a flailing arm. “What thefuckhappened back there? That’s the whole damn reason why I needed to talk to you. If you had just stood there instead of running off, we wouldn’t be in this fucking mess right now!”

Was he serious?

I turned to him, and my fist moved before my mind could tell it to stop. The sound of the crunch came before the pain that shot up my arm. His face snapped and twisted to the side, but nothing was said.Fuck, I shouldn’t have done that.

Backing up, my eyes darted again for escape routes. I chose a random direction and turned, only to have him grab me by the scruff of my neck. He backed me up until I hit the wall of the next house; his hands slowly crawled up to my neck and squeezed. There was a fire in his eyes, and a red mark bloomed on his tanned face.

I needed to learn how to control my strength.

He licked his lips as he stared a hole into my head. “I would be more pissed if not for the fact that you definitely donothit like a girl. Now, tell me what the fuck happened back there.”

Something flickered in his eyes, and I didn’t know how to interpret it. It made me nervous. I tried to choke out words, but his grip on my neck was so tight, I could barely get air out.

He noticed and loosened his grip, placing both of his large hands on my shoulders to hold me in place. His presence was intimidating. He was so much bigger than me, towering in the shadows behind this house. The short spurt of courage I had earlier dissipated in his proximity, now that my fight or flight was fading.

I physically shrank as I turned my head to break his gaze.

I took a deep breath before answering. “I did what I was supposed to do. No man left behind. The perfect opportunity opened up and I took it.”

I left out all the other details, like my fear of the bloodsucker exposing me to the people of this community. I was so tired of running. I just wanted a peaceful existence for once.

“I see.” He slowly removed his hands from me but continued to stand there.

I swiftly twisted my body to escape, but he slammed a hand on the side of the house with athud, stopping me with the barricade of his veiny arm. I shouldn’t stare but I couldn’t take my eyes away. He had a tattoo that wrapped around his forearm and trailed up into his sleeve.

“I don’t think we’re finished just yet. What’s your name, kid?” he asked, as if we didn’t just go a few rounds of fighting and grappling.

“What does it matter?” I shot back, unwilling to look him in the eyes.

He chuckled, and goosebumps pebbled my skin.

“I like your tenacity.” He leaned in, and I could feel the warmth of his breath on my neck. “Just wanted to know whom I’ll be keeping close to my groups. I don’t like incompetent people, and you impressed me today.”

The tension I didn’t know I was holding in my body relaxed a few fractions. A new emotion ran through me…pride. I didn’t think I'd ever felt this before. It was a nice feeling.

Shoving his arm off the wall, I told him, “Fitri,” and started to walk away.

“Eliseo,” he said after a few moments. His voice was clear, confident.

What the hell did that mean?

Grabbing my hat off the grass, I put it back on my head and looked over my shoulder. “What?”

“The name’s Eliseo. Remember it, because you’re stuck with my team.” He smirked and turned, throwing a hand up in the air as a goodbye.What was wrong with this guy? Did he really mean what he said?