Page 11 of Sons of Hellfire (Hellfire Society #1)

eleven

Cash

I t didn’t take me long to find one of the guys after Ali ran off.

A part of me wanted to chase after her just for fun.

Doesn’t she know running from a man like me is like giving catnip to a cat?

It’s an unexplainable high. Addictive, really, but my priority was finding the guys and making a plan.

With our fathers whispering in all our ears and hinting at betrayal from each other, now is the time to maintain a strong front.

I was minding my own business, slinking in the shadows, when I heard the telltale sign of Arsen nearby.

The soft clicks of a lighter opening and closing.

Sure enough, I round the corner to see the man himself standing above a body, a calculating tilt to his head.

I would say eyes, but the man went with a gas mask as his choice of costume.

Along with his mask, he wears his favorite black leather jacket and gray cargo pants and high-laced combat boots.

I know he notices me approach when I see his shoulders tense.

“A.” I call, and he relaxes, flicking on his lighter and letting it run.

I know what he is about to do, so I don’t even flinch when, after a minute, he slams the red-hot top into the skin of the dead man.

Branding him with his signature mark. From the looks of it, the man died from a broken neck.

The smell of burnt flesh makes my nose twitch, but it’s not the worst thing I’ve ever smelt.

“Where’s Riot?” Arsen asks after snapping his lighter closed and pocketing it. His voice is muffled, but I can still hear him.

I give him a shrug in response. “I’ve seen Ali.

” I say, and Arsen’s head snaps in my direction.

“She’s….” I think about the woman, the way she watched me, the way she told me to fuck off.

My lips tilt up in a smile at the thought.

I’m glad I’m wearing a mask right now, or Arsen would be able to read me loud and clear.

I’m interested. “Interesting.” I finally say.

“Watched her kill a clown. She can hold her own.” I add .

“Why didn’t you get her to stay with you?” he asks, accusing almost.

“Because she took off somewhere after she told me to fuck off. I’m not in the business of kidnapping women, unlike you and Riot.

” I say pointedly. Though it wouldn’t be a terrible idea, I’m just not as insane as Riot to actually go through with it.

No, I’m the charmer. When I’m ready for her attention, I’ll have it, but my way.

Arsen lets out a muffled snort. “That sounds like her. What is she wearing?” He asks, making me frown because he said he took her her outfit last night.

He must understand my confusion because he adds, “My father chose her outfit, and it was tucked away in a box. I wasn’t all that interested until I started talking to her.

” I smirk at that. Oh, he has no idea the sick fuck his father really is.

Actually, he does. l know he won’t be one bit surprised by his father’s outfit choice for her.

“It’s…” I have to think about my words again.

“Distracting.” I realize this woman has me so off-kilter.

Having to think about my words. Her outfit is not the only distracting thing.

My mind keeps drifting to the way she took and gave.

I knew she was crazy the moment I saw her fly out the back of the truck and attack Arsen’s dad’s men, but the games are a whole new experience for her.

At le ast I hope so, unless she gets kidnapped often to play in rich men’s twisted games.

This is life or death, and she didn’t hesitate to choose her life over the clown’s.

I’m actually proud of her for that. Most women want a man to protect them, but Ali, she said, fuck that, hold my drink while I take care of this.

“Distracting?” He asks, and I just hum. I’m sure we will cross paths with her again, and he can see for himself how distracting she really is.

We’re both quiet for a minute, and I can hear grunts and groans of pain echoing into the night.

I nod in the direction I was heading before I found Arsen.

“Let’s go find Riot. Who knows what that psycho is getting himself into.

” Arsen gives me a nod, and we head off.

We continue to keep to the outside of the ruins of shattered buildings.

Everyone will think to move into town, thinking of supplies or places to hide.

It will just be one big bloodbath, and I know for a fact most of the supplies won’t be delivered until tomorrow.

It’s all a ploy. Tell everyone where food, weapons, and possible safety are, and everyone will head in that direction.

Everyone will also realize you will need to fight for it all.

Limit the supplies, and war breaks out because everyone wants to survive and will fight or kill to have what someone else has. Survival of the fittest.

We only get ten minutes into our search for our psycho brother when we come across a newly planted graveyard.

There’s five freshly dead men lying around a small open area.

Glancing at each, I make sure none are Riot, not that I thought any could be, but it looks like some volunteers have grouped up already.

I spot a Ghostface, a Frankenstein, a plague doctor, a skeleton, and some sort of submissive sex pet.

“About fucking time.” I spin around at the words groaned out from behind me and see none other than Riot, sitting on the ground up against a crumbling wall.

I frown as I take him in. His faux mohawk is a mess.

He is splattered in blood, his tank ripped to shreds, sporting a black eye and… Is that a knife in his thigh?

“What the fuck happened to you?” I ask, heading for him. I lean down and inspect the actual knife sticking out from his thigh. “Why haven’t you pulled this out yet?” He shrugs.

“The Ghostface, plague doctor, and the kinky fuck attacked me first. Then the other two stepped in. I was able to take down Ghostface and plague guy but they tried to get the jump on me. Then my beastie came to my rescue. She attacked the freaky fuck, and I was able to take down the other two.” He sighs, all girly-like.

“Then I had the best sex of my life. Fuck, she was so tight and warm and wild. It was everything I wanted in a wife.” I roll my eyes at him, and once again I’m glad he can’t see my face because, honestly, I’m a bit jealous.

“That doesn’t explain how you got a knife in your thigh.” Arsen adds.

“Oh, yeah. She stabbed me.” He shrugs again, like that was obvious.

“She stabbed you,” I say. In all honesty, I shouldn’t have been surprised because she does give off a vibe of being a bit crazy.

“Yeah. Once we were done having the best sex ever, she grabbed the knife, said she was sorry, but had a really good time. She even said I was aaaamazing. Her words, not mine, then said she was better off alone before stabbing me. To be fair, she could have aimed for my chest or something.” I just stare at him.

Has he been knocked in the head one too many times?

How is he okay with his supposed wife stabbing him in the leg right after fucking?

Actually, it’s kind of kinky, though I think it’s supposed to go pain then pleasure, not pleasure then pain.

“Something is wrong with you, man.” Arsen says, shaking his head.

“Hold still.” Arsen grips the knife by the handle and yanks without giving Riot any time to prepare, not that he needed it.

Pretty sure the fuck gets off on the pain, hence the fact he is smiling like a madman behind his muzzle.

Blood starts to ooze out of the wound, but I notice it wasn’t as deep as I thought and missed all the important arteries.

Without asking, I rip off the rest of his tank and tie it around his thigh tightly.

He sends me a glare when I tighten it just a bit extra.

“So where did your supposed wife run off to?” I ask, sitting back on my ass for a while. Here is as good a place as any to rest and figure out our plan.

He nods to behind Arsen. “She headed in that direction, but I’ll find her. I always will.”

“If you say so, psycho.” I tell him before we all go quiet for a few.

I stare up at the dark night sky, watching as even darker clouds drift in front of the moon, hiding away the glow.

The silence finally becomes too much. “Okay, let’s get moving.

I’ve skimmed the outer edge, and the town is a decent size.

Everything on the outskirts seems more in ruin or is a pile of crumbled bricks and wood.

We should start scouting the inner part and see what we can find.

Weapons, supplies, a temporary shelter for the night.

We also need to keep track of who might be grouping up.

” I pause, looking at both of them, even though they can’t really see my face.

“ I’m guessing you both were woken up in a similar way as me.

Drugged like everyone else?”I ask, and both men give me a single nod.

“Then our fathers are playing a different game than we thought. I have a feeling something more is happening in this year’s game, so we need to have each other’s back and stay alert at all times until we know what we are working with.

” My tone tells them I’m serious. We might have joined this trial willingly because it is a rite of passage into the family business, but I’ve had a bad feeling since the train.

Something I’ve learned is that my intuition is usually never wrong.

“Alright, we’re with you, Cash. Can you move Ri?” Arsen asks, and Riot snorts before standing and stretching.

“Let’s go. I have a feral little wife to hunt. And maybe eat.” If I know Riot, he is licking his lips, salivating over the thought of what Ali might taste like.

My dick grows hard as I think about it myself.

Fuck. With my dick rubbing against my jeans and the three of us united again, we head off into the night.

We are going to need to speak about this because I have a feeling Ali is something more than just the flavor of the week.

I think she could be more for all of us .

Riot’s obsession. Arsen’s fascination. My distraction. Yes, this woman could be dangerous if she knew what we all were feeling for her. Let’s hope she never finds out.