The Skull Crusher (Skull 2)

I watched my men ready the vehicles with all the weapons we would need. We prepared for a full-scale war even though it was just a friendly checkup. I hoped I wouldn’t have to execute Hunter tonight. The man made me a lot of money. It would be a shame to break his skull because he was too greedy to pay his share.

My phone started to ring.

Cassini hadn’t called me again, probably because she’d figured out she wouldn’t be getting her way. I glanced at the scream and hoped to see her name, but it was a number I didn’t recognize.

It could be anyone.

I stepped away from the men and moved to the opposite side of the underground garage. I held the phone to my ear. “Balto.” I stared at the wall with my arm resting by my side, knowing these phone calls could be declarations of war or just bullshit. At a moment’s notice, my life could completely change. In my line of business, the fighting was never really over. One enemy was subdued, and then another popped up.

There was a long pause before his obnoxious voice came over the line. He didn’t have a man’s voice, a deep baritone that oozed with masculinity. He sounded like a slimy weasel coated with oil. “My maid went through Cassini’s things…and discovered she had two phones.”

I knew where this was going before he even provided a thorough explanation. My smile was impossible to fight as I imagined his horror when he realized what had transpired right underneath his nose. He was pissed I took his wife and fucked her, but how pissed would he be when he realized I’d been fucking her for much longer? “Maybe she needed a bigger data plan.”

Lucian’s attitude was still icy. “How long?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes. It fucking matters.”

“When you thought her pussy was wet for you, it was actually wet for me. I’ll leave it at that.” Torturing this man was almost boring because it was so easy, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. He’d made the biggest mistake of his life when he crossed me. Now I would torture him for as long as possible until it stopped entertaining me. Once I had everything I wanted, including his balls in my hand, I’d finally execute him. Men assumed death was the worst punishment, but that was false. Death was a beautiful, merciful thing. When the body was broken beyond repair and the pain was unbearable, death was the ultimate painkiller. Only healthy people feared death. The broken worshiped it.

Lucian was quiet for a long time, probably because I’d just slapped him with my words.

“Give me what I want, and I might give her back to you.”

“I’m not giving you a damn thing. But I will get her back anyway.”

“Good luck with that.” I’d like to see him try. It would be impossible to break through my power and defenses, but it would be comical to see him make the attempt. “The longer you draw this out, the more fun it is for me.”

“The fun is about to stop.”

“I don’t know about that. Every night I’m having the time of my life—deep inside your wife. By the way, she’s got the tightest pussy. You must really miss her.” I wanted to taunt him as much as possible, to torture him in every way I could.

There was no rebuttal he could make to a crass comment like that, so he did the only thing he could.

He hung up.

When we were a mile away, I made the call.

It rang a few times before Hunter answered. Judging by his bubbly tone, he had no idea I was about to arrive at his property with a dozen Hummers and sixty armed men. “Balto, what a nice surprise.”

“Yes, I hope it is a nice surprise. I’ve decided to stop by for a visit. I’ll arrive at your gates in less than a minute. The doors better be open by the time I arrive. Understood?” I wasn’t stopping by for a chat over a glass of scotch. I had strong reason to believe this man crossed me, betrayed the Skull Kings so he could stuff more cash into his pockets. That was something I couldn’t allow.

Hunter’s enthusiasm dialed way down. “And the purpose of this surprise visit?”

“Irrelevant.” We arrived at the driveway, and I was pleased to see the gates had just been opened. I hung up and stared out the window as we drove farther up the long driveway. Men were posted everywhere, working to load a gray van near the fountain.

I spotted Hunter in front of his house, clearly unnerved by my formidable arrival. Hummer after Hummer pulled into the roundabout, full of armed men with enough ammunition to tear this entire place apart.

If Hunter were smart, he would assume I knew about his little ploy.