“Stop here,” I mutter, zipping up my leather jacket. Before I got here, I slicked my hair back in a tight ponytail and threw on tight black jeans and leather jacket. I’m well aware how stealth I appear, but I don’t care. I’m feeling dark today, and haven’t said a single word, or even looked in Frost’s direction since our sexcapade earlier. Even my lips are a dark enough to suck the soul out of some poor person, with the burgundy shade they’re rocking right now. I turn to face Chase who is in the back seat of the van with me, wearing similar clothes, black leather jacket, and jeans. His hair is roused on his head and his eyes are etched in worry.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I snap at him, reaching for the door handle. Frost jumps out of the driver’s seat and walks around the van.

“You okay? You seem edgier than usual,” Chase answers smoothly, ignoring my obvious outburst.

I exhale, just as Frost slides the door open. He’s wearing his usual, too. Loose, yet tight fitting jeans, biker boots, and a casual white shirt.

“I’m fine.” I finally lock eye contact with Frost. “Just filled with regret.”

Frost scoffs, then glares at Chase. “Hurry up.”

Chase gets out of the car and reaches into his pocket. “Here.” He hands me a small iPod shuffle with little wireless ear pods.

I take them from him, smiling. “Thank you.”

He shrugs. “No problem.”

I put the pods in my ears. “But how do you know?”

Chase searches my features. “There’s a lot I know.”

I divert my attention to Frost, catching him glaring at Chase. “It’s one of my rituals. I do my numbers with music. Helps me relax and focus.”

Frost brings his attention to me and then saunters forward. “Let’s get this over with.”

I grin, flicking through the iPod. Chase follows my line of sight then mutters, “’Savage’ by Whethan?”

“What can I say.” I wink at him. “Blood turns me on.” I don’t see Frost stop until I bang into a massive wall of muscle, just as I’m putting the other ear pod in.

Frost snatches the iPod off me.

“What the—”

He shoots me a glare, shutting me up instantly, then keeps scrolling, before handing it back to me. “Necromancer” by Gnarls Barkley is now up in the queue.

“Seriously?” I’m a little bit impressed with his wit.

Frost laughs. “Think you know the answer to that.”

We break through the front doors just as Chase pulls out his gun.

“You know, I was kinda hoping to go with a softer effect, cut the collateral damage in half?” I whisper loudly, but my eyes fly around the area to stay on high alert.

Chase shrugs. “Why, these fuckers don’t care.”

I cock my head. “These ‘fuckers’ are good people. Well, some of them. I know them, have known some of them all my life.”

Chase drops his arm. “Ok, fine, sorry.”

Frost shakes his head, pulling out his knife. “Fucking pussy.”

Chase’s face drops to a bored expression. “Well, this should be fun.”

“Romance story in the making,” I murmur, clicking my knuckles and shoving on my grappling gloves. We’re walking down the dusty dark corridor, heading for the door at the end when a woman walks through. She starts to scream, and just as I’m about to charge at her, Frost flicks his knife and it flies through the air, shanking her right between the eyes.

“Hate screamers.”

“Really?” I cock a brow in disbelief. “Coulda fooled me.”

He yanks the knife out of her head, dark blood spilling out of the deep incision. “Actually, you should know. Seen as you were the one gagged last night while getting severely fucked. How’s the girls this morning? Still bleeding?”

Chase sucks in a breath beside me. “Got to be fucking kidding.”

I shoulder barge past Frost to go ahead of him. Might be able to save a few people if I see them first since Mr. Jekyll back there can’t contain his killing. Shoving open the door, two bodyguards are standing outside of a couple rooms. They see us, and the one closest to me reaches for his gun, but I elbow him in the face, spin around and roundhouse kick him to the side of the head. Reaching into his pocket, I pull out his gun and shove it into the back of my pants. I turn to see Frost cleaning off his knife on his white shirt, so I lean to the side to look around him, catching the other bodyguard slouched over, clutching his throat with blood seeping through his fingertips, literally choking on death.

“Really?” I deadpan. “You can’t give them a flesh wound? You have to off them?”

“That’s what I’m here for.”

I ignore him as we carry on, opening each door to sleeping babies tucked in their cribs.

Frost comes in from behind me, his breath falling over the nape of my neck. “Let’s go.”

“You still want six kids, Lala?” Chase laughs, falling into step behind us.

Frost snides, looking through each door. “Fuck that, and Lala? Really?”

Chase shrugs.

I carry on, but answer, “No. I don’t want any now.”

Reaching another door at the end of the corridor, I push it open to find it empty. “I know where she is. She’ll be in the auditorium. It’s where their officers are. Try not to kill anyone you don’t need to kill.” Then I push play on my iPod, as Savage starts playing. Everything is zoned out now, reality, the boys. They don’t exist. It’s just me, my music, and my red zones. I stay focused and pick up my speed, heading the back way to get to the auditorium. I don’t know what Frost and Chase are doing behind me, and I no longer care. I’ve come for one thing and one thing only, to kill. I boost to a jog once we hit the back boiler room and come to an emergency fire exit to the auditorium. Pulling out the gun from the back of my waist, I aim it toward the lock and shoot a few times until the heavy unlink of it falls, then I kick the door open, shoving the gun back into my pants. The auditorium is filled with people, and it’s obvious the majority of them scattered when they heard the gunshots, but it only took me a second to find nun Nancy, and fuck me if I hadn’t been waiting for this day. She’s the reason so much shit happened to Beast, and to many others. She’s as heartless as I am soulless, and when her eyes lock onto mine, I see understanding flash through her aged specs.

I grin and saunter straight toward her, ignoring everything else that was going on behind me. Someone came at me from the right, but I caught their shadow on the corner of my eye, before remaining focused on Nun Nancy. “Necromancer” from Gnarls Barkley starts playing and my heart rate thuds in my chest. Every fiber of my being is on an astronomical level of alert, but every inch of my body is hungry for Frost. I really need to get him out of my head, then maybe I can make the first semester of NYU. I twist my body and hook the intruder straight in the head, but again, my eyes remain on Nancy.

She stands, her shoulders back and firm. She mouths off something, but I can’t hear her, so I just smirk, grip her head once I finally reach her, and twist until the crack of her neck breaking vibrates over the palm of my hand. I toss her lifeless body to the ground and then spin around. Target eliminated.

Pulling the ear pods out of my ears, I whisper, “Jesus fucking Christ!” There’re bodies lying spread out everywhere and Frost’s white shirt is now smeared with blood and brain matter. “I thought we agreed that less was more.”

“No,” Frost answers, his eyes going dark and stepping toward me. “You suggested it, I didn’t comply.”

“A lot of people got away,” Chase interrupts, but I don’t chance a glance at him because I’m too busy shooting daggers into Frost, who is shooting them right back at me. He’s still slowly stalking toward me when Chase clears his throat. “Ah, I’m going to go back to the van and call it in.” Then he leaves, but neither Frost nor I pay attention.

“Nice song choice.” I cross my arms in front of myself.

He takes another step, the sound of the blood soaked into the carpet mushing under the sole of his heavy boot. “Yeah, thought it was fitting.”

“How so?” Before I knew it, he was directly in front of me, his chest hard up against my breasts.

“Think you know why.” He grips the back of my thighs and drops me back onto the wooden table. His mouth finds mine and like the out of control human that I am, I open for him, giving his tongue complete access to mine. I wrap my legs around his waist as he steps between them, still standing at the edge of the table. He unzips my jacket and his hand goes up my shirt, under my bra before grazing my nipple. The pain still stings a little, but it only intensifies my pleasure. I lay back on the table, my eyes closing as I relish in the feeling of warmth from Frost’s mouth while it presses around my nipple.

My back arches off the table. “Frost. Now, I need you. Now.”

“I know.” He flicks the button off my pants and yanks them down. The smell of metallic lingers in the air, but I don’t care. I don’t care that there are around ten or so bloody bodies slaughtered and laying at my feet. In this very moment, all I see and want is Frost. It’s destructive and hypnotic, but I’m addicted to him, and I’m so screwed. He presses his finger into my entrance and I moan my response, grinding my hips against his touch. His mouth covers my clit as he circles again, his finger still massaging my insides.

“Frost,” I groan, trying to meet his touch.

He growls against my clit, stands to his full height and yanks at his belt buckle. Pulling his dick out, he grips onto my thighs and jerks me toward his cock, slamming inside of me. He fills me with perfect intrusion as I rub against him. He pulls back, then sinks in deeper. Leaning down, his mouth catches the side of my neck before he bites down roughly. My moans are getting louder, and the sweat is starting to drip faster.

Thrusting into me again and again, he grates out, “I hate you.”

“Yeah, I hate you too.”

He continues to pound into me, then pulls back to take in my body while glaring down at me. His eyes turn dark, demonic, and fill with… hate. I feel my core clench and my thighs start to cramp, just as I think I’m about to come, his hand flies to my throat, then he squeezes so tightly it feels as though my eyes are going to pop out of their sockets, before picking up the pace to deep thrusts, while never giving me air to breath. I think I’m going to die. He continues to annihilate me, with any and every expectation I ever had about rough sex. He fucks me ruthlessly until I can no longer feel my neck, or breathe air. I’m completely at his disposal. While never loosening his grip, my orgasm ripples through my body and my muscles pulse with its release, but it’s too late, I can already feel myself slowly coming in and out of consciousness. His face is coming in and out of my vision, between blurs and smudged colors. His cock jerking inside of me is the last thing I remember before darkness seeps in and completely takes hold.

“Seriously! What the fuck did you do?” I can hear Chase yelling at Frost. My stomach feels weird, heavy, and my eyes slowly start to open. I’m upside down, gazing right at Frost’s perfect ass.

“Shut the fuck up.” I hear a van door slide open.

“Shut up?” Chase retorts sarcastically.

“As much as I’d like to listen to you two argue, I’m kinda enjoying the view so do you mind shutting the fuck up.”

Frost freezes and slowly puts me down on my feet. He searches my eyes, a smile on his lips, but beneath that smile, his eyes are saying something else. It’s nothing big, and nothing major, and before I can over analyze it, it’s gone, and Frost is back full force.

“You literally fucked my brains out.” I shove his arm.

He laughs, jumping into the back with me. “Gotta learn to keep up, angel. I might get bored.”

I shoot him a glare that says he better shut the fuck up. I quirk my eyebrow at my clothes. “You dress me?”

“Yeah.” He peers out the window. “Would you rather I bring you out naked?”

“Good point.” We drive the way back and it’s then that my phone starts going crazy in my back pocket.

I pull it out and see Raze’s name flashing over my screen. “Shit.”

Frost gazes lazily down to the screen and then snickers. “You need to handle that.”

“It’s Raze. No one can handle that.”

I answer the call anyway because I’m well experienced in my over the top big brother. “Yes?” I’m opting for cute. Big, fluffy, long batting eyelashes, and everything—cute. Even if he can’t see.

“Don’t try to act cute with me, Ella. Why the fuck have I just been told that you were leading an operation at Replica this afternoon?” Except he can see because he’s Raze.

“Um, because I was.”

Long pause. “Come again?” he says that when he’s giving me a second chance to think very clearly about my next choice of words. This is an olive branch he only gives out to people he gives a shit about.

“Ok, look, here’s the thing.” I need to be honest because I’m so sick of hiding. “You are not having fun without me. You took my numbers away months ago for God knows what, you and Miles are in the middle of a war, people I care about are at the base of that war, and you want me to tuck my tail between my legs and call bitch? When have I ever called bitch, Raze?”

Another pause. I can basically feel the heat radiating from him through this phone. I’m sure Millie will thank me, she loves angry Raze.

“The reason why I took your numbers off you, Ella, was because I didn’t want this life for you. I wanted you out, at least one of us to have a normal life. Millie doesn’t know about you or what you do, I want to keep it that way.”

“Why!” Now I’m angry. “Why the fuck can Millie not know about me? And also, thanks for the offer, but that’s like saying, ‘oh hey, Raze, why don’t you go work in construction, huh? I want better for you.’ How useful would that be for you? Not useful at all, because this is my life, Raze. Whether you wanted best for me or not, I don’t get to choose, but I’m happy with it this way. I will go to NYU after I’ve helped with this mess.”

He sighs, and I know I’ve got him. “Ella. Fuck’s sake. Be careful and stay near Frost.”

“And Chase, who by the way is here too, and Ikea’s son.”

Another long pause. Understanding slowly seeps in. “No way!” I yell, enraged at the possibility that my brothers knew about Chase.

“Ella...”

“You knew?”

He sighs again, and I hear Miles’ voice in the background. “Oh, for the love of God give me the fucking phone, Raze.”

“He’s right. Give him the phone.” I can’t speak to Raze right now.

“Devil face…”

I smile sadly. “He’s not being fair.”

The van pulls into the Beehive underground parking. “He cares. That’s something.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not giving in, and Miles, he knew about Chase!”

“Why the fuck did you think we didn’t like him?”

Frost chuckles, so he must have heard Miles.

I shove him with my arm anyway.

“Miles…”

“I know,” he answers. “Do your thing, but Raze does want an update from both you and Frost tomorrow. Together.”

“We have one more person on our team.”

“The fuck we do!” Frost spits out, glaring down at me.

“Shut up!” I snap at him before going back to Miles. “So we will all see you tomorrow night.” I’m surrounded by too many males. I need girlfriends, stat!

“So that’s why they didn’t like me?” Chase laughs, getting out of the driver’s side, just as we slip out of the back. “And here I was thinking it was because of my hair.”

“Let me punch him,” Frost pleads.

“No!” I snap at him before taking my attention back to Chase. “Look, you’re going to need to be completely honest with Raze, and especially with Miles around. Miles can pick up any inch of a lie.”

“Yeah, yeah, human lie detector and all that shit. I’ve heard all about him.”

“It’s no joke, Chase. Please do me a solid and be honest. I don’t feel like seeing you die this week.”

Frost grins, slapping my ass and shooting Chase a glare. “Maybe ask her next week.”

I spin around and shove Frost with my finger. “You. Just because we have this…” I pause, failing to find the right words. “Whatever the fuck it is that’s going on here, does not mean jack shit. And it won’t happen again.”

“That’s what you said last night,” Frost shoots back, his smirk deepening.

“Actually,” I murmur, hitting buttons on the elevator, “you said that last night, so you might need to check yourself.” They both get into the elevator and seeing as Chase has seen enough fuckery since we got here, I turn to Frost, obviously on a roll with my banter. “Is she that shit in bed that you have to come to me?”

Chase freezes, probably hoping the elevator moves faster so he can get the fuck away from Frost and I’s toxicity.

Frost’s jaw clenches a few times.

“Oh, don’t tell me you’re a gentleman now. You just fucked me until I passed out—you’re no gentleman.”

The doors ping, sliding open, and I step out, then turn to face him. He tilts his head, and my eyebrows quirk up in challenge.

The doors begin to close between us, and I can’t help the smile on my face. I totally won this one, but then his eyes turn dark and his mouth curves in a Cheshire simper. “I haven’t fucked her. Yet.”

The elevator continues up and I bang my head against the glass wall. Pulling my phone out from my pocket, I open a text message to Raze.

Four days

A few seconds later, I get a reply.

Little sister getting to you, huh

I snicker just as the door slides open onto Ikea’s penthouse.

She got to me.

I push my phone away and head straight for the shower. Fucking hate being here. Every night I’m in the gym working out until Ikea is asleep. Fuck that. I’ve been fighting off putting my dick in her, but I know that that’s the final thing I’d need to do to make her trust me completely. Aside from that, I also know that the original plan was to catch her when she’s weak, but I ain’t with it. It’s taking too long, and I fucking miss my bike. I want out of this bullshit. After my shower, I throw on some sweatpant shorts and leave my shirt off, running the towel through my hair.

Ikea walks into the bedroom, removing her watch. “Oh, you’re here for once.” Her eyes run over my body. She tilts her head. “What do your tattoos mean?” And there it is. She leans on the dresser, so I stride toward her. I know that Raze wants her head, and I know that Ella probably does too, but I’m not pussyfooting around anymore. I need to speed things up, kick them up a notch.

“Take your clothes off.”

She straightens, and she flicks off her first button. “Really was beginning to think what we were doing here, what with you staying with me.” Her blouse drops to the ground and she stands there in nothing but a bra and her slacks.

“Continue,” I flick my wrist at her, then simper, walking to the whiskey cabinet and pouring a glass. The ice clinks around against the crystal, but I keep my eyes locked on her, shooting back the strong drink. She complies, eventually standing there in nothing. Her clothes a pool at her feet, so I take this moment to run my eyes down her body, taking in every single inch of flesh she has on display. Not bad, but not my type. A little too skinny for my taste, I’d break her. I nudge my head over my shoulder, toward the bathroom again.

“Come here.”

Scooping up my empty glass and taking it with me into the bathroom, she follows, stepping inside. I come up toward her, my chest brushing hers until she steps back, hard enough for the door to slam shut. My hands come up to either side of her head, and I lean down bringing my lips to hers. Running my nose down her temple, the glass slips from my hand and smashes on the ground.

“Shit.” I step back, bending down to pick up a few pieces.

She chews on her lip. “It’s fine, just leave it we’ll clean it later.” She steps over the glass and toward the bathtub, taking a seat on the edge.

“True,” I follow her, a sharp shard of glass hanging between my fingers. Her knees brush with mine, as she looks up at me, closing her eyes. I slowly run the edge of my knuckles down her cheek, then with my jaw clenched, I swing my hand up and slash the sharp-edged glass across the flesh of her neck.

One hand flies out to me, both her eyes popping open in shock as her other hand reaches for the deep wound. Blood pours out between her fingers and I tilt my head, watching her choke on her own blood. The curdling of bubbles filling the silent, pristine bathroom.

Blood pulses out between her fingers as she falls backward into the bathtub, her body jolting, trying to hold on to the last bits of life it has. I wait a few seconds until she stops moving and then look down, Ikea’s lifeless eyes now staring at the empty bath wall, her mouth wide and rimmed purple and her other hand flung over the back of her head. Pulling a smoke out of my pocket, I chuckle, putting it into my mouth and blazing it up, her blood smearing over my lip in the movement.

“That wasn’t fucking satisfying at all.” I feel numb. That kill didn’t excite me because it was straightforward. I didn’t get to play with her before killing her, and that’s always where the excitement is. Knowing I will have to get rid of the body, I reach for my phone and punch Raze’s number in. Her blood now turned to a sticky residue.

“Frost.”

“Yeah, ah…”

“What?”

I chuckle, inhaling the harsh smoke. “Turns out, we don’t need to wait any longer.”

“Oh really, and why’s that?”

“Because I killed her.”