“Hands on the desk,” I tell her, watching as she walks over, obeying me at once. She bends over, and I get a good look at that pussy of hers. It’s glistening wet, and her sweet scent is driving me wild. I move around the desk, sitting down and switching on my laptop. I’ve got work to do.
I type for a while, every now and then glancing at her. She’s staring back at me. I only have to stand up, and I could fuck her, but I resist doing it. She needs to know how much self-discipline I have and how much shit she’s in.
Why am I punishing her so much?
It’s because she was mouthing off at me, isn’t it? Or maybe it’s because she was telling me the truth. I didn’t tell her which parking lot to go to. It didn’t occur to me that she’d get a flat. I was so pissed at Alicia being at risk that I’m taking it out on her. That’s not fair, but I can’t back down now. That would look worse than seeing this through. Make me look weak. I cannot have that.
Maybe I’m doing this because I nearly died today. I need to show I’m still in control of things even as they feel like they’re falling apart.
If the commission doesn’t listen, if the guy doesn’t talk, if Ernesto gets Julia pregnant, all of this will be for nothing.
My cellphone rings. I dig it out and put it to my ear, staring at Bex the entire time. “He’s awake,” Toby says down the line.
“Is he talking?”
“Bitching about killing me when he gets loose but not much else. You want to come see him?”
“I’ll be there shortly. Anything else?”
“Word is that Brody went off with Ernesto and Julia. I get the feeling they’re up to something. Be on your guard.”
“Noted.”
I get to my feet and move around the desk, kneeling down behind Bex. “You obey me,” I say, stroking the tops of her thighs. “You stay in this position until I get back, and I will reward you.”
I walk out of the study without saying anything else. If I stayed any longer, I’d be inside her, and now is not the time.
I saw how she looked at me while I worked. I saw the same hatred in her eyes that I used to see in Sofia’s.
I might have thought this could work, but this is all the proof I need. Love isn’t real. She’s using me for money. I’m using her for the same reason. All I can ever inspire in her will be hatred, fear, or lust.
It might as well be lust.
40
Hunter
* * *
My hand stings, but his face feels it more. He looks up at me, spitting blood my way. “That’s two suits you’ve ruined in a day,” I tell him as I hit him again. “You’re not exactly helping your cause here.”
“You might as well kill me. I’m not talking.”
“I disagree. I see it in your eyes. You want to live, but you’re afraid of what will happen if you do.” I raise his face, slapping him to keep him awake. “You’re losing blood. It’s making you sleepy. Stay with me.”
“Fuck you.”
“If you talk, I can protect you. I can make you vanish anywhere you want in the world, new passport, new life, no one will know a thing. Give you enough cash to make sure you never have to work again. All you have to do is tell the commission that my brother hired you to kill me.”
He laughs, the sound echoing around the sawmill. “You think you can get me to fold just like that? Go to hell, Hunter.”
“I’ll see you there,” I say, raising my fist and slamming it into his face. “Last chance. You either agree to talk to the commission, or I use that conveyor belt to send you through that saw. You come out in slices a bit like ham. I’ve seen people stay alive until the saw reaches their pelvis. I swear to God, one time, this guy was still screaming when it reached his stomach. I had to give him credit for that. Still ended up being nothing more than pig feed, the same as the rest. Now, will you talk, or will you become swill?”
“You can’t frighten me.”
“Suit yourself. Toby, help me get him up.”
We lift him off the hook holding his ropes in place. He squirms like a caught fish, but his bonds will not loosen. We lift him onto the conveyor belt. “Go start the saw,” I tell Toby.