Playette

“Do you know how they died?” I ask.

“Yes. You somehow gave them Hemlock. Well, so I’ve been told.”

“I did.”

Gabe looks at me, surprised, like he can’t believe I’ve just admitted it to him.

“Where is it?”

My eyes absently look toward the bathroom, and his eyes follow my movement before they come back to me. “Smart girl. You aren’t just a stripper or hooker are you?”

I shake my head.

“Who are you?”

I wave my hand around. “You don’t know me, Gabe, but I know you and what you people do. How you take lives that aren’t yours to take.”

Gabe chuckles at my words. “Are you an Avenger? Come to stop us from killing the good?” He steps back from me.

“No Gabe, I’ve come to kill you. So, no more Moretti Mafia live.”

His eyes go wide in surprise but also glimmer with humor. “Girl… that will never happen. We own this town. You can’t honestly think you could kill us all. Granted you did a great job with the first two, but honestly, they aren’t a great loss, but you did it none the less.”

“And you, Gabe, sadly… you are next.”

He raises an eyebrow in surprise. “You think you can take me?”

I cross my hands over my chest. “Yes,” I state categorically.

Gabe leans in close, so close I can feel his breath in my ear. “I would like to see you try, girl.”

“Easy.” I smile as he pulls back and then kick his shin, hard. He stumbles back and I take the gun from his hand knocking it to the floor, my knee comes up quickly as I reach for his shoulders, and knee him as hard and fast as I can in the balls. He drops.

When he’s on the floor, I reach for the gun that he had pointed at me, then raise it until it touches the base of his skull.

He freezes, his movements stop but his hands stay on his balls because he cannot straighten due to the pain. “You wouldn’t,” Gabe says through gritted teeth.

“I would.” I take the safety off and watch as the muscles in his neck tense.

“He’ll chase you down, for the rest of his life for betraying him.”

I lean down to whisper in his ear, “I hope he does,” I say with a smile.

“Why?”

My finger’s pressing on the trigger ever so slightly, after I clicked off the safety. “You all killed my family. So, it’s simple, I want to take yours.”

He gasps and in one moment the gun fires, even with a silencer on it, it’s not completely quiet, and the sound that it does make rings through my ears.

Quickly reaching for my stuff, I run to the door and without looking up I slam into another hard body.

“Woah there, pink. Where’s the damn fire?”

Oh fuck! It’s Ace.

He’s going to be harder to kill.

The door clicks behind me and I shove my bag up on my shoulder.

“No fire. Just have to take these clothes into work for the girls.” The lie rolls off of my tongue so easily, so smoothly, even I believe myself.

“Okay, pink. But slow down a bit. Let me walk you.”

I shake my head. “No,” I yell and he squishes his eyebrows together in a frown. “Sorry, I’ve been stressing about shifts I need to pick up. I have to get in their good books again, since all the time I’ve been taking off.”

Ace steps up to me, touches my shoulder. “You aren’t meant to lose money, pink. I’ll fix it. You’re not meant to be working.”

I pat his hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Ace. I have to go, though. I need to find my own way, make ends meet. Maybe next time we can hang out?”

Ace removes his hand and slides it into his pockets. “We can’t. Jasper has laid claim to you. I shouldn’t even be here right now, but I needed to speak to Gabe.” He looks around. “Do you know where he is?”

I shrug as an answer, it’s all I can do.

“Okay, he probably went and got something to eat.”

I offer him a small smile before I start taking steps to the club which is within walking distance. Passing my car, I cringe knowing I can’t get into it straight away because Ace is not far behind me. Walking quickly to the club, I push on the door and I’m glad when it opens and Benny’s at the entrance when I arrive. He looks up, shakes his head, and goes back to what he was doing. “What are you doing here, and dressed like that?”

I check the small glass panel through the door and see Ace walking to his car. Without answering Benny’s question I state, “I need your car keys, Benny. I have to go. Now.” My car is not an option right now.

“Fuck no! Are you crazy?”