Chapter 57 *
Scarlett's POV
His screaming was getting on my nerves.
I looked around. Spotted a dirty rag near the maintenance equipment. Oil-stained.
I grabbed it. Walked back over.
"Open up."
He tried to turn his head away.
I grabbed his jaw. Forced his mouth open. Shoved the rag in.
The screaming turned into muffled whimpering.
Much better.
I pulled the switchblade out of his hand.
He made a choked sound behind the gag.
"Here's how this works." My voice was calm. Conversational. "I ask questions. You nod or shake your head. Simple, right?"
He stared at me. Eyes streaming tears.
I positioned the blade over his thigh.
"If you lie to me..." I pressed the tip against his leg. Just enough to break skin. "Well. You'll find out."
He nodded frantically.
"Good boy."
I've done this too many times to count.
The first stab always gets the biggest reaction.
I drove the blade into his thigh. Quick and clean.
His whole body convulsed. The muffled screaming started again.
I pulled it out. Blood welled up immediately.
My breathing didn't even change.
I felt that sick kind of calm settling over me. The one I used to get on missions.
This is just information extraction. Standard procedure.
I stabbed him again. Different spot. Same thigh.
Another muffled scream.
Then again.
And again.
Four holes total. Blood pooling on the concrete.
My hair had fallen across half my face. The dim fluorescent light cast weird shadows.
I looked up at the other three.
They were pressed against the wall. Staring at me like I'd crawled out of hell.
Buzz-cut guy's face had gone completely white.
Skinny was shaking so hard his teeth were chattering.
The one with the broken nose looked like he might pass out.
I stood up. Wiped the blade on my jeans.
Turned to face them.
"Now." My voice was light. Pleasant. "You ready to tell me who hired you?"
Buzz-cut guy pissed himself.
Literally. I could see the dark stain spreading across his pants.
"R-Rocco!" The words tumbled out. Stammering. "Rocco Wolfe! He hired us!"
I tilted my head. Studied his face.
"You better not be lying to me, sweetheart." I walked toward him slowly. Dragged the blade across his cheek. Not cutting. Just touching. "I have a bit of a temper."
"I'm not lying! I swear!" His voice cracked. "He told us to follow you from the building. Told us to grab you."
I looked down at Scarred Guy.
He nodded frantically. Confirming the story.
"Show me proof."
"What?"
"Proof. Phone records. Text messages. Something."
Skinny pointed at Scarred Guy with a shaking hand. "His phone. He's got the call log."
I walked back over. Pulled Scarred Guy's phone from his pocket.
Unlocked it. He didn't even try to stop me.
There it was. Multiple calls from a number I recognized.
Rocco Wolfe.
And photos. Screenshots from Wolfe Corporation security cameras.
Me walking into Damon's office. Me leaving the building.
I almost laughed.
"So Rocco can't handle rejection and sends street trash to kidnap me. Typical spoiled rich boy bullshit."
I pocketed the phone.
Scarred Guy made a desperate sound behind the gag.
"We were just doing a job, man!" Buzz-cut was crying now. Actually crying. "We didn't know! He said you were nobody!"
"Out here on the streets, you gotta know who you're fucking with." My voice went cold. "Who gave you the balls to come after me? You know what happens to people who cross me?"
"We're sorry! We're so fucking sorry!"
"He said you were just some college girl!" Skinny was sobbing too. "Nobody said you were a fucking psycho!"
I blinked innocently.
"Psycho? That's hurtful."
"You think you can just walk away from this?" Buzz-cut's voice got desperate. Trying to sound threatening. "Rocco Wolfe is connected! When he finds out what you did to us, you're dead!"
I smiled.
"Oh, I'm counting on it. Please tell Rocco exactly what happened here."
From the very beginning, they thought they were hunting me.
They were wrong.
I was always the hunter.
Skinny's hand moved toward his pocket.
Trying to be subtle. Trying to be sneaky.
I saw him pull out his phone. Watched his thumb move across the screen.
He got two digits in.
My switchblade flew across the space between us.
The phone clattered to the ground.
Along with two of his fingers.
The screaming started immediately. High-pitched. Horrible.
I walked over. Picked up my blade. Wiped it clean on his shirt.
Tucked my hair behind my ear. My voice came out clear. Cold.
"Four on one and you need backup? That's embarrassing."
They were all crying now.
Buzz-cut and Broken Nose were on their knees. Sobbing like children.
"Jesus Christ, lady, we're sorry! We didn't know!"
"We won't call the cops, we swear! Just let us go!"
Skinny was cradling his mangled hand. Blood everywhere. Still whimpering.
Scarred Guy had the rag half out of his mouth. Wasn't even trying to escape anymore. Just lying there.
I looked at them.
Small-time street thugs like this? A beating and a scare is enough.
Killing them would just be a waste of my time and get blood on my shoes.
"Well what are you waiting for?" I gestured toward the elevator. "Want me to pay your fucking hospital bills?"
They stared at me. Not understanding.
I sighed.
"Get out of here."
They scrambled to their feet. Dragging Scarred Guy with them.
Stumbling over each other in their hurry to escape.
I watched them go. Limping toward the elevator. A trail of blood droplets following them.
The elevator doors opened. They practically fell inside.
Gone.
I turned around slowly.
Looked at the cold concrete pillar about twenty feet away.
Let my voice carry across the empty garage.
"Show's over, gentlemen." I kept my tone pleasant. Conversational. "You two planning to come out, or should I come find you?"
Silence.
Then. Movement in the shadows.
Two figures stepped into the light.