Charming Asshole (Killer of Kings 3)

“Wouldn’t that be nice, the assholes killing themselves off before we show up.”

“It’s never that simple,” said Killian.

The front door burst open, and a teenage girl ran out. Killian holstered his weapons and grabbed her around the waist, pulling her to the shadowed side of the building. When she attempted to scream, he slapped his free hand over her mouth. “Hush,” he said.

One of the bikers came out a few seconds later, looking around for the girl. Shadow came up behind him, a gun pressed to his neck. “Don’t move, motherfucker.”

Once they were all safely hidden from the entrance, Shadow pistol whipped the biker.

“I want to know who put a hit on my woman and kid,” said Killian. “Be smart and answer if you want to live.”

“I know who you are. You won’t let me live anyway, so I’m not saying shit.”

Killian sighed, scratching his head with the barrel of his gun. “Wrong answer.”

He turned his attention to the girl for now. “What happened in there?”

“They said we had to work for them, to sell our bodies. If we refused, they’d kill us.” She started crying. “She’s crazy. You have to help my friends.”

Killian looked over at Shadow, his eyes narrowed as he tried to piece this together. He wasn’t expecting to hear about a woman being involved. As far as he knew there were no women in positions of power in the Dead Angels, so this didn’t make sense.

“Keep them here,” said Killian. “I’m going in.”

****

June left the kitchen after lunch. Her son was still eating and watching cartoons on the flat screen television on the wall. She could hear Bain and Scarlett in the small office off the hallway. They were talking about Killian and not being able to find out what they needed. She even heard Bain say that Boss was probably right about using June to lure out whoever wanted them dead.

No matter what he thought, Killian couldn’t fix this on his own. June was no shrinking violet in need of sheltering. She’d fought every day of her life as a single mom. Assholes hit on her every shift at work, but she dealt with it. June didn’t need saving. Now she had a son to think about, one with a hit on his head, and a man she loved that seemed to have a death wish.

She went upstairs to her bedroom and called Boss.

“Hello, June.”

“I need to take you up on that offer,” she said. “Can you get me out of this house without Bain trying to stop me?”

Boss chuckled. “I sent Chains with no such luck. Bain’s taken your safety personally, so there’s no way I’ll be able to get you out without his consent. Besides, Killian doesn’t want you involved.”

She exhaled, feeling cornered and frustrated.

“There’s something I have in mind. I’ll be in touch.” The call ended.

Not ten minutes passed, when there was a knock on her bedroom door.

“Come in,” she said.

Scarlett slipped inside, closing the door behind her. She had some clothing in her arms. “We look about the same size. I thought you could use something different to wear.”

“Thank you.”

She sat on the bed beside June, resting a hand on her back. “Bain wanted me to talk to you,” she said. “We know you want to help Killian, and that’s fine. I totally understand that. Bain didn’t want you doing anything that could get you hurt, but if you still want to help—”

“God, yes! Please let me help him if I can.”

“The only way Bain agreed to let you go was if Boss took you personally. That says a lot because he rarely gets involved himself. He knows who put the hit on you, and he’ll end it. Boss is a hard ass, but I trust him. I even work for him.”

“And my son?”

“We’ll keep him here. Keep him safe,” said Scarlett. “And don’t worry, Boss won’t let anything happen to you. I know that much.”