Broken Bastard (Killer of Kings 2)

Killian exhaled into the phone. “You know I can’t tell you that, but I’ll do what I can to try and keep Boss from hurting her. That’s all I can do.”

“Why do you give a shit?”

“I don’t, but she’s innocent. If anyone should be flogged, it’s you, not her.” There was silence on the other line. “Less than ten minutes away? Not smart. You should stay the fuck away if you want your girl to live. If you show up, Boss’ll go apeshit, and you know what that means.”

“Tracking us, you little fuck? Watch your back.” Bain hung up the phone.

“You should go back to your wife, Viper. You wanted out of this life, and I don’t want to drag you back in.”

“You’re the only other person I care about besides Pepper. Like I’ve said before, I’ll always be there for you.”

“Shit’s about to get ugly. You’re probably rusty, and this is too important for me to babysit.”

Viper frowned, shaking his head. “It’s like riding a fucking bike. You never forget.” Car brakes screeched on the road next to them and the doors opened, disturbing the early morning hush. “Duck,” said Viper.

The shot rang out, and the first body of the day hit the ground with a thud. Bain looked up a Viper, but his friend was already aiming at the next guy.

A second car stopped, the hitmen hiding on the opposite side of their vehicle. Bain and Viper took shelter in the archway of the church. “Just like the good ol’ days,” said Bain.

“I’ve missed this. Don’t tell Pepper.”

They had a laugh together, and Bain wasn’t sure if he was closer to crying. If Boss had sent these assholes to kill them, maybe Scarlett was already dead.

Chapter Twelve

“You want me to work for you?” Scarlett asked.

Boss nodded. “I’ve done a lot of digging on you. You were going to be cut from your job, and that little prick really thought he could do things without you.” He was talking about her boss. “Did you know in recent weeks that paper has had a massive decline in sales?”

“It has?”

“Yes. You haven’t been around to guide the stories, and now people are going to start realizing the truth, that they lost their best asset.”

“But I’m not even a reporter. Why would you want me to work for you?” None of this made any sense.

“Reporters are like parasites. The moment they scent a story, they just can’t help themselves. They smell something bad even before a damn dog does, and reporters are rarely swayed. You’re not a reporter, you never were. You’re a researcher, the real brains behind the stories. What kept you interested in Bain in the beginning was understanding his story, am I right?”

She licked her lips and averted her gaze.

“Don’t worry, Scarlett. None of us have secrets here. You were intrigued by Bain, and then you fell in love with him. You learned secrets that I probably don’t even know about.”

“You said you know everything.”

“I’m talking about the personal shit. I know what that boy went through, from a child up to when he was a man. I get it, and I get his pain, Scarlett.”

Boss leaned against the console, staying perfectly still. She had never seen anyone so poised before. He emanated confidence and strength.

“You see, the thing about reporters is they’re always there. No matter how much you try to fight them off. They can get past security, and often sweet talk people into getting their way, or just blend into a crowd. I don’t want you to go back to your life of reporting. I want you to work for me, but to do what you do best, get the information I need, and get out. You’re damn good at finding shit out, and that information is always valuable in my line of work.”

Scarlett hated that she savored his praise about her work. She never actually got it at work, but knowing someone saw what she had value was so damn nice.

“If I do this—”

“We’ll have our eye for an eye,” Boss said, interrupting. “I got shot, so now I want something in return. Recruiting you, having you under my control, that will deal with possible rumors that I’m weakening. I don’t need to be dealing with that shit.”

“You must have access to the top of information already.”

“Sometimes I need ground stuff, and as you can see from my men, they don’t exactly blend in well. Half of the women want to fuck them.”