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One drops his machete on the floor, and I trap it under my boot and tap his chin with my sword.

When he jerks back, I turn and slice, opening up his chest. He screams, and the other four converge on me.

Laughing, I spin and slash. I block with both swords as one brings down a hammer, trapping it between my blades before I headbutt him.

I knock him back, and his hammer falls to the floor, so I leap into the air and kick him backwards, spotting the spikes behind him from another forklift.

I kick again, and he stumbles back, impaling himself on the spikes.

He screams and gapes down at them as I duck an oncoming assault.

I manage to disembowel one, and then the two others circle me. Holding my swords ready, I grin at them. “Not so strong without the fire, are you, pussies?” I spit .

“Fucking slut!” one of them hollers as he pants, holding a butcher knife in his meaty grasp.

“Original. I wonder if your boss knows you are getting your ass kicked by a girl.” I flutter my lashes and then rush them as they try to think of a comeback.

I stab both swords out, and they are standing so close together, the blades spear through both chests.

I kick out the legs of the one on the left.

He falls to the floor and slides off my blade, coughing and sputtering as he dies.

I turn to the other, yank my sword out, and kick him over.

Looking around, I grin wider before a groan sounds, then I glance up and spot the man impaled on the forklift.

He’s sweating, grunting, and screaming, but also slowly pulling himself off the spikes.

What a determined bastard, you have to give it to him.

I watch in curiosity, wondering if he will actually manage it.

The others join me, and we all stare. “Knife says he doesn’t make it,” Lochlan bets.

“You’re on,” I mutter. “He’s a determined little fucker, isn’t he?”

“Sure is. I bet that hurts like a bitch.” He laughs.

So, in the middle of a raid, we stand there watching this man slowly struggling to pull himself off the machine.

He gets so close to the edge and then starts to sob.

“Ah, dude, what are you doing? I bet on you, and now you’re going to sit and cry?

Pathetic,” I snap as I stride over. Grabbing a fistful of his greasy hair, I yank it back and slice his throat open.

His blood sprays across me as I hand the knife to Lochlan.

“Yours. What a disappointment. I see why you left.”

Just as I am turning to head to the door, I hear a yell. “Heads-up!” Jax calls, and I step back just as a body hits the cement in front of me and splatters.

Looking up, I throw him a thumbs-up and step over the man with a laugh before heading down the ramp, the others following after me. When we reach the old rusted steel door, I look to Lochlan, who grabs the handle. I’m always first through the door. It’s my responsibility. “Anything I should know?”

“He has a flamethrower,” he tells me.

I blink and look at the door again. “Fucking great.”

Sucking in a breath, I nod at him, and he yanks open the door. I have a split second to take in the scene before I throw myself forward, rolling across the floor to hide behind a wire fence as Inferno takes aim and, with a roar, fires.

He was waiting for us. Standing in front of a melting forge, which is still burning, six men wait with him.

He has his flamethrower in hand, and his bald head is glistening with sweat from the heat in the room.

His body is huge and scarred, and one of his legs is bent weird, probably broken before.

He is a big fucker, and as the flames flow past me in a stream, I know this isn’t going to be easy.

He’s got reach, so all it would take is for him to aim true, and it would be barbecued Worth.

The ramp leads down to the forge where he is, and to the right and left where I stand are wire fences surrounding what looks like inclines leading up to stairs. I crane my neck to see they go up to the platform above the forge. Great. So no real hiding spaces.

The others are trapped at the door. I narrow my eyes on them as they try to get in the room, warning them to stay back.

Surely he will run out of fuel soon? But he’s walking now, and the flames increase as he draws closer.

The heat makes me slide farther to the side.

His men laugh and shout encouragements, and he’s shouting too, but over the roar of the flames, I can’t hear much.

Any minute, he will turn the corner and I will be crispy. Looking to the ramp on the left, I growl, knowing I have no choice. I rush up it, keeping low, and stop at the top of the stairs, which is right over where he is searching for me.

I have an idea, a terrible idea, but as the others spot me and start to take aim, I know I have no choice. Sheathing my swords, I climb up on the railing.

Really, this is a shitty idea.

Sands below, don’t let me become dinner.

Leaping from the railing, I land on him. He stumbles and drops the flamethrower, falling near the forge. The others rush in and start to handle the other men, and I trust them to take care of it as I face Inferno.

He turns with a yell, his eyes wild and narrowed, his mouth open to show his toothless orifice.

Lovely. His muscles bulge, glistening from the fire behind us.

Sweat pours from me, it’s hotter in here than out in The Wastes.

“Traitor!” he roars when he spots Lochlan behind me. I step in his way and draw his gaze.

“Eyes on me, you big bastard.” I grab my sword and wait. He lumbers towards me, all swinging fists and slow movements. Without his little flame toy, he is no match for me. Smirking, I punch before slipping under his arm and gliding behind him, tapping him on his back.

He whirls with a yell, swinging wildly, and I duck before stepping away and bending backwards to avoid another meaty fist, but I don’t see the one coming from the right.

He might be slow, but he’s got a lot of power, and it sends me flying towards the forge.

I roll over the floor and almost right into the fire until I grab the edge, singeing my fingers to stop my momentum.

With a hiss, I yank my fingers back, ignoring the ache in my jaw from his punch.

I can feel blood where he has cut my cheek as well, but I leap to my feet to meet him as he stomps my way .

I manage to circle him until his back is to the forge, that is how cocky he is. I hear the others fighting, but I focus fully on the bastard in front of me. No one makes me bleed but Dray. This fucker is going down.

“You punch like a little bitch,” I taunt, spitting blood on the floor. “Now I know why you have such a big flamethrower, it’s to compensate.” I look down at his cock to make sure he understands. After all, he doesn’t seem like the sharpest tool in the shed.

“You’ll die like all those other cunts!”

“Yeah, that won’t happen, but thanks for trying. Say hello to all the others who have.” I grin as I take a running start as another crazy idea forms in my head. I can’t get hit again, he’s too strong, so the element of surprise is my only option, as is my speed.

With a spin, I leap and roundhouse kick him, pushing him back.

I do it again and again, landing kick after kick until, on the fifth kick, he falls.

He tries to grab my foot, but I fall backward to avoid it as he falls into the forge.

He roars as he tumbles into the flames. Standing, I head over and wince as I watch his body become encased in the blaze, melting him as he is slowly devoured by the flames until I can’t see him anymore.

“Guess you lived up to your name.” I laugh as I turn to see the others watching me with a grin. “What? Too cheesy?”

Lochlan chuckles just as my men come through the door. They look around with raised eyebrows. “Late to the party, as always.” I wink. “Don’t worry, I cleaned up, now let’s check the whole building. I don’t want any of these insects left alive.”

I look to Lochlan then. “What about any women?”

He shakes his head. “I wouldn’t say so, but honestly, I don’t know.”

“Then we check.” I nod and grab my sword. “Let’s go.”

The main room is a bloodbath. There are bodies everywhere.

Some of my men go high to double-check everything, while I head through another door at the back which leads to an office.

There are two overturned desks with old papers everywhere, a broken mug, and even a fucking globe.

There is a white board with a bloody handprint on it and the wall has scorch marks.

In the corner of the room is a bed on the floor.

“Inferno slept there,” Lochlan explains.

“Nice digs,” I scoff.

There is a door at the back with two chains crisscrossing it that catches my eye. “What’s that?” I ask, jerking my head in that direction.

“I don’t know, I was never allowed in here,” Lochlan replies.

Heading over, I tug on the chains, but they are locked.

I look around for a key, but I don’t see one, so I grab the axe at Lochlan’s hip, heft it up, and bring it down on the chain.

It jangles but doesn’t break, so I do it again and again until it snaps with a resounding clatter and falls to the floor.

Turning, I grin at him as I pass the axe back. “Well, it’s open now.”

Yanking the door open, the first thing that hits me is the smell. I turn away and cover my mouth. I’ve smelled some shit as a slave, but holy fuck. I almost gag before grabbing my bandana and covering my mouth. The others cover themselves as well as I peer into the dark.

It’s pitch-black and seems to lead down, but I have no way of knowing. “Get me a light,” I demand as a bad feeling starts to build in my stomach.

The more the trapped odour escapes and fades into something manageable, I know what I am smelling.

Rot. Decay. Death.