Ruin & Rule
I stormed forward, lost in my need to know, consumed by the urge to look into his eyes when I asked him.
Standing over him, I snarled, “Tell me one thing, and then I’ll decide what to do with you. Save your life or kill you.”
He smirked. “Oh, better make it a good one, then, seeing as my life hangs in the balance.”
Leveling the gun at his forehead, I whispered, “I know you. I know it deeper and stronger than I know myself. Tell me the truth. How do we know each other?”
Something flickered in his emerald gaze. Something I would’ve given my life to decipher, then the ground swooped from beneath me and painful tile crashed against my spine.
The boom of the gun ricocheted around us as it spat its deadly bullet into the wall. The black weapon skittered away, hiding beneath the desk and out of reach.
Kill wedged me beneath his blood-soaked body, breathing hard and reeking of copper.
In my need to understand I’d gone too close.
Now I was trapped.
Now I was doomed.
Kill bared his teeth, looking wild, unpredictable, and almost insane. “I’ll tell you how we know each other.” His head bent, pressing his lips against my ear. “I’m your worst fucking nightmare and now I’ve got all the power.”
I gasped.
I knew it.
My nightmare.
He said it so himself.
Chapter Four
Who was this woman? This trickster and fraud? I wanted to wring her neck for making me hurt this way, but at the same time, I wanted to tear through her lies and see. See the impossible. Believe in the improbable.
She made me want things I’d sworn never to want.
She made me weak.
She made me hate.
—Kill
“Let me up.”
“What, so you can threaten me with the gun again? You almost spread my brains all over my home.” His grip moved from my hip to my throat. “No fucking chance.”
I glared into his eyes. There was no hint of whatever he’d thought before he tackled me to the ground.
His body was unmovable, his touch warming me as well as searing my skin with proximity.
My heart deflated. It wouldn’t be possible to keep such knowledge from his eyes. There was no way he could hide what he felt when we first met—not when we were glued together. Not when our hearts thundered against each other.
Sadness crippled me.
“You’re bleeding all over me,” I muttered, shoving unsuccessfully against his large, strong chest.
He chuckled. “Gonna do a lot more than that before this is over.”
My heart lodged itself in my throat. “Excuse me?”
He ducked his head, nuzzling into my neck. “I haven’t met anyone like you before. You had the chance to run, but you didn’t. You ask the weirdest fucking questions, and I can’t deny you turn me the hell on.”
Haven’t met anyone like you before…
He was either a brilliant con artist or a master at deception.
He reared back. “Why should I sell you when I want to sample you myself? After all, the order was for five girls, not six.” A cold grin spread his lips. “It’s almost like you were destined to be mine. It must be right—it’s my birthday in a few weeks—you’re my present for dealing with all the shit in my life.”
My world screeched to a stop.
“Your birthday?”
He smirked. “The first of October.”
The world began to spin—only this time in the wrong direction. “You’re a Libra?” I barely breathed.
He froze.
Every muscle in his body locked down. His eyes became weapons as he dove past my gaze and into my very soul. I felt him—deep inside—searching, tearing through my unremembered memories—laying havoc to my existence.
“You’re a Libra. I looked up what that means—it was rather interesting.” I smiled over at the boy who held my heart.
He grinned. “Let me guess. I’m a badass, have a raging temper, and intelligent as fuck.”
I giggled, my red hair glinting in the moonlight. “No, you’re diplomatic.”
“Yeah… sure.” He chuckled. “You sure about that with my track record?”
I rolled to face him, tracing his face with my fingers. “You’re graceful.”
He huffed. “On my bike, maybe, but nowhere else.”
“Peaceful.”
He laughed. “Um, biggest lie yet.”
I shook my head, seriousness layering my voice. “You are peaceful. You fight for what you believe in. You fight to protect what’s yours, but in your heart… you’re kind and gentle and not a part of this world.” My voice dropped to a whisper. “Same as me.”
He stiffened. The words “I love you” danced in his eyes. We hadn’t said it yet. But I wanted to. Shit, how I wanted to.
My lips twisted into a smile. “You’re also an idealist.”
He nodded, pulling himself back from love and unspoken truths. “Okay, kind of agree with that one.” He nuzzled my neck. “Those all sound pretty good. Any bad traits I should watch out for?”
I sighed, my eyes latching onto his lips. I wanted him to kiss me. So much. “Superficial and vain.”
He huffed dramatically. “Ah, so the perfection ends.” Pressing his body against mine, he murmured, “Pity I agree with them the most.”
The flashback ended, hurling me against the cold tile floor below and the furious man above. I couldn’t see the boy from my past. He’d been obscured—like a hazy lens or faulty photograph.