Page 3 of Thorns of Deceit

I paused my stride and my sixth sense flared, but I ignored it. This was a strip club; someone was always groaning and moaning. I sighed and steeled myself for what was probably to come—an erotic scene that would make me want to claw my eyes out—then turned the corner.

And froze.

Four men hovered over a badly beaten man on the ground, blood and urine pooling around him, judging by the stench.

“Tell me where the shipment is, Mayor, and you might live to see another day.” I recognized Jack Callahan’s voice, and I knew this was the last place I should be.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, willing myself to move, but my body just refused to obey.

“Very well,” Jack continued, giving a curt nod to the others. I recognized the twins, but it was the fourth man who moved. “Aiden is an expert at making people talk.” His lips curled into a cruel smirk. “I just hope you’re not too…attachedto your limbs.”

A sharp gasp tore from my throat before I could stop it, and I instinctively stumbled backward. In an instant, every pair of eyes snapped to me.

“S-sorry,” I stammered, voice barely above a whisper. “I… I didn’t mean to?—”

“Fuck,” Aiden snarled, his eyes burning into mine. “I thought you said the club was locked up, Kyran.”

He didn’t look away when he spoke, the entirety of his attention onme, and selfishly I wished he would turn it back to the barely recognizable mayor.

My legs started shaking before my mind caught up, then pure instinct surged through my veins. I kicked off my heels, not bothering to check where they landed, and then I bolted.

I was out of the club and into the afternoon light, the door slamming against the brick wall, with no intention of everlooking back. It wasn’t until I was on the next street that the sound of boots pounding against pavement registered.

I didn’t stop. Instead, I sprinted faster, taking the next turn, then another. My bare feet slapped against the concrete, stinging with the force of each impact. I cleared a low iron fence and took a sharp left, hurdling over a toppled trash bin and managing to land on my feet.

“She went this way!” someone shouted behind me.

My breath hitched, but I didn’t dare look over my shoulder. I tore through the streets, zigzagging through alleyways and side roads, taking random turns until I was certain I’d lost them.

I roamed the streets for hours, sticking to the shadows as I tried to calm my heart rate. It wasn’t until my legs ached and the sun had fully set that I finally decided to head home.

Knowing my mom, she’d still be passed out, blissfully drunk and oblivious to the world, and for once, I envied her.

TWO

AIDEN

The moment the woman bolted, I knew she’d be trouble. Yet, who could blame her after what she’d witnessed?

My brothers and I returned to the club where we now crowded around the mayor’s corpse, the stench of bodily fluids clinging to the air.

“I’m guessing you didn’t find the girl,” my uncle hissed, visibly irritated as he paced the hallway.

“No.”

“She works here,” he gritted. “Check the employee records, find her, and then kill her.”

My jaw clenched. “So quick to add her to the death toll, Uncle?”

“She’s a witness.” He flung an arm wide. “Do you know what the state’s attorney would offer her to get to us?”

“Sure, because killing her won’t raise any flags.” Kyran snickered while Tyran popped a bubble with his chewing gum, punctuating our brother’s statement.

“Or Aiden can just marry the girl,” Kyran added. “Spousal privilege and all that.”

I scoffed.

“Why don’tyoumarry her?” My brothers always had the worst ideas. “The girl looked younger than Margaret.”