St-Malo, France — A Few Months Later

Staring out the the window onto the warm, lamplit street, I sip the rough whiskey that’s in my tumbler. I can see the cobblestones, can make out the letters on the sign on the building opposite me, so it is not too late. It is maybe eight-thirty, no later.

I take another swig. It is rotgut stuff, making me wince as it burns its way down my throat. But it keeps the dreams of Arsen at bay late at night, and makes the days pass more quickly.

Unbidden, the image of my brother swims up to me. Arsen, just as he realizes that I have stabbed him. When he looks into my eyes for the last time.

When he knows that he will never see his slave girl again, or his child be born.

Shaking my head to clear the vision, I slam the rest of the whiskey down.

Since I killed my brother last year, I have tried to refocus my energies. He was right about one thing; revenge has been in my heart ever since Aurelia died, bleeding to death alone in the street.

No longer will revenge be in my heart… no after I find the men responsible and slit their throats. Just for fun, I may drink their blood, too.

Bloodshed is my closest friend, these days.

I turn to the door of the little one-room apartment when I hear it begin to open. A man pokes his head in.

Thin and weasely, he darts a furtive look around around before his gaze settle on me. “Monsieur.”

“Please tell me you’ve finally got him,” I say, setting my cup aside on the mantle place. “Otherwise, you’re not going to be paid for this little adventure all around the coast of France.”

The man blanches. His English is very heavily accented, not unlike mine. “Oui, monsieur. We have got him in the very next room.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Are you sure? I don’t want this one to end up not being the right man, after all. Remember, I only want to talk to the man who was dispatched to kill the girl.”

The man bows. “Oui, yes. This is the men that says he worked for La Fraternité. The Brotherhood, I mean to say.”

“And Father Derrik?” I ask, arching a brow.

“The man claims he worked directly for him. He says they worked… how do you say? Hand and hand? Into the hand?”

“Shut up,” I tell him. “Let me get my tools, then I’ll be right there.”

“Monsieur,” he says, disappearing.

I go over to my suitcase, opening it and grabbing the small black toolbox inside. I crack the lid, checking that it’s all still there.

A blowtorch. A brand. Several knives of varying lengths. A length of piano wire. And overlooking all of it, a portrait of Aurelia was taped inside the lid, where she was blonde and beautiful and remote.

I smile at the picture and then close the lid, heading out of the room to get some answers about Birgit’s death and The Brotherhood’s involvement.

And if it so happened that there would be a little bloodshed? I wouldn’t mind that at all.

If you liked this book, we suggest trying Addiction by Vivian Wood! It’s FREE right now with Kindle Unlimited. Read on for an excerpt.

It started innocently enough. Beautiful Harper gave Sean those eyes… those eyes that meant, yes, take me. But Harper didn’t know Sean’s secrets… She didn’t know that he liked it rough.

More than rough. He liked to dominate. To punish. To degrade. It was the only way that the black hole in his soul wouldn’t swallow him up.

He would push her a little too far, and she would run. They all ran, eventually.

But that’s not what happened... when he put his hands around her throat and squeezed, Harper moaned. When he told her to stay away, she didn’t listen, misbehaving until she got spanked. When he took out the handcuffs, there was excitement in her eyes, mixed with a little fear.

The doe-eyed redhead liked it. More than that, she wanted it. She said so, time and again.

That’s the thing about sexy strangers, though… you never know what they’re hiding. And Harper is carrying a burden so heavy that even Sean’s secrets pale in comparison.

An excerpt:

On impulse, Harper leaned over and kissed him. He didn’t seem surprised, but instead of responding there was a shift. Sean grabbed her thigh and pulled her on top of him with ease. She straddled him, yet he was in control. With his hands on her hips, she felt safe even so many feet above the ground.

Sean leaned back slightly. Their combined weight tipped the cage dangerously to one side. But she didn’t want to stop. His tongue flicked against hers and his fingers bore into her thighs.

“Hey!” the carnie called. “You two at the top! Get on opposite sides.” Harper shivered and tried to pull away, but Sean wouldn’t let her. It was like being in trouble with a teacher. “Hey!” the carnie yelled again.

She knew everyone must be staring at them, and that made her heart beat even faster. Sean clenched her tighter. There’s something dark in him, she thought. Soemthing more than the obvious.

And it’s in me, too, she realized. Eating at me, bit by bit.

Sean bit her lip, sharp. It was almost enough to draw blood. Almost.

He released her mouth and trailed his tongue along her jaw to her neck. Instinctively, she tossed her head back to give him better access. He sucked hard. With the knowledge that he marked her, she started to pant.

“Hey, I said knock it the fuck off!” the carnie yelled. Suddenly the wheel began to turn again.

Sean’s hand slid up from her thigh across her torso to her breast. He pinched her nipple, hard, through the tank top and thin bra. Harper cried out. He kissed her again, softly, on the mouth. The pain was gone, and she was suddenly desperate for more.

The carnie’s face was red as he tore open their gate, but he didn’t say anything.

“Be a good girl now, sweetheart,” Sean whispered into her ear. When she stood up to exit, she realized her jeans were soaked with wetness.

Harper looked around, but nobody seemed to realize they were the ones who put on a show in the night sky.

“I better get going,” Sean said. “I’m opening the shop tomorrow.”

“Oh.” Harper nodded. That was it? What happened to the dominant guy on the wheel? You’re not even going to try to take me home?

“But I want to see you again. Soon,” he said.

“Okay,” she said. She sounded so much cooler, calmer than she felt. As if she didn’t really care one way or another whether he called her or not.

Inside, Harper knew she’d do anything, whatever it took, to peer into his darkness again. It had just been a glimpse, but it was intoxicating.