“Maybe you need to rethink your situation. And watch how you speak to me.”
The nerve of this asshole. Wiping at my mouth, two other sets of boots stop in front of me. The owner of one of them leans down and helps me up.
I stand on wobbly legs.
Gosh, I shouldn’t have drunk so much.
“Did you really just let her fall on her face?” the one holding me asks.
“Yes, she annoyed me,” Kyson replies in an obvious tone. I hear a huff from the one holding me and turn to see he looks similar to Kyson, except his hair is a little longer, but the eyes are the same.
“Kyson,” another voice says from behind me. I turn to see a third man standing next to Kyson. He looks mad, or maybe that’s simply his normal facial expression. Glancing past the man in front of me to the man on the ground—the very same one Kyson kissed. He’s lying in a pool of blood that is soaking the pavement.
Aside from the dim headlights, visibility is poor, and no one is around.
I start to scream. And as I do, Kyson steps up to me.
“Shut up, or I’ll knock you the fuck out.” He lifts his hand, and I scream. “Fucking hell,” he mumbles as he covers my mouth. With his free hand, he lifts and removes me from the hold of the man who looks like him. He turns me so my back is pressed to his front. One of the men holds the car door open as Kyson pushes me in, his hand falling from my mouth as he does. I go to bite him, but he pulls back.
“Are you a rat?” he asks me.
“Fuck you. Let me go.”
“To where? Where were you off to?” Kyson questions as the other two climb into the car, and we take off. “You look like shit…and smell like shit too.” His nose crinkles up. “Do you have a shower?” I say nothing and scoot to the far end of the car, trying to climb out. It won’t work, as I’m locked in here with three strange men.
“How long have I been with you?” I ask.
“You passed out maybe two or three hours ago,” Kyson tells me. “You snore. It’s annoying.” He scrunches his nose again. I turn to the front and notice the one driving is not even paying me a lick of attention, but the other keeps glancing back at us.
“You live in a motel,” the one in the passenger seat says. He glances down at something in front of him before he looks back at me. “Why?”
“Yeah, smelly…why?” Kyson taunts.
I lean over and hit Kyson, and he pulls away at my touch. At first, I feel rejected. This man, who is genuinely attractive, doesn’t even want me to touch him, but then again, what do I care, right?
Fuck him.
I reach out again, only this time, I throw myself at him and manage to hit him on the cheek.
“Fuck, bitch! Slow down, you stink.”
“Pull over,” I yell. “Pull over!”
The driver does, and Kyson smirks.
“Where do you think you’re going, little bird?”
“Away from you,” I tell him.
“Kyson,” the driver says, in a tone that has me worried. Kyson cracks his neck, his gaze locked on me.
“I know where you’re staying, and I know who you are. You may not understand exactly who I am, but it’s best you don’t open your mouth about anything you heard or saw today.”
“I’m going to let you live. And trust me when I say that’s a privilege. But my brothers here…” he nods to the front, “will have no hesitation finding you, and whoever you love, and killing you if you talk. And believe me, the streets around here have ears, and they listen for us.” I stay still and silent at his words. “Tell me you understand,” he says, and I nod. “With your words,” he orders.
“I-I don’t want t-trouble. I hate the fact you even kn-know who I am,” I stutter. “I keep a low profile for a reason.”
I turn and reach for the handle and this time it’s unlocked. As soon as I’m out of the car, I hurry away, not looking back. I make it to the edge of the river before I hear footsteps behind me. When I turn, Kyson is there. He holds out his hand, and I see the bottle I stole—it only has dregs left, but I take it anyway. I need something in my system to keep me warm once I’m kicked out of the motel and have no place to live.
“Go and shower. I bet your pussy stinks like rotten eggs.”
What type of man even says that to a woman? I shake my head at him.
“You are such a pig. You know that?” I take a step back as he steps forward. He leans into me, and I can smell him. He smells fresh, clean, with something else I can’t quite put my finger on.
“And you do stink,” he whispers. He only pulls back slightly as his hand moves between us. He pushes me, and I miss a step on the ledge as I fall backward, landing in the water. The bottle drops from my hand, and I scream as I hear him chuckle.
“Someone needed to clean that pussy. Respect the pussy,” he calls as he walks off.
I manage to climb out of the water, and when I look in the direction where the car was, he and his brothers are gone.
What a dick.
Five
Kyson
“Care to tell us more about the girl and why she’s still breathing?” Kenzo asks as we pull up to Zuko’s.
We all remain in the car.
“Not particularly. I don’t even know her name.”
“Kalilah,” Kenzo tells me. “It was on her ID, and after some searching, that is her real name, but she is currently using a fake last name.” He pauses, waiting for me to speak. When I don’t, he asks, “What’s your fascination with her?”
“I don’t have one.”
Zuko huffs from the driver’s seat and then gets out. Kenzo stays seated as Zuko walks off.
“You seem to be hiding a lot of stuff from me lately,” Kenzo adds.
He’s not wrong. I’ve been thinking of getting out of this life. But I love it. It’s a double-edged sword. I’m not sure if I want to do this for the rest of my life, and that’s my main issue. I know my brothers do because they were born to do this, but I feel more reserved about it.
Not that I’m not as good at the job as they are or anything like that.
It’s more of…
It fucks up my life.
Out of the three of us, I always thought it would be me who would end up in a relationship, not Zuko. He’s the coldest of us all, and yet there he is, hating spending time apart from Alaska and walking away from us without even a goodbye. The killing part I have no issues with, and to be frank I don’t think I ever will. That’s the part I struggle with the most. I’m good, and we are the best at what we do. But I also feel that it’s not something I should be doing. If I want all the normal things in life, how could I chose to be a killer? It makes no sense—even in my brain.
“We aren’t the same.” And Kenzo knows it’s the truth. While we may be twins, we have grown apart in more ways than one. We lived together for many years, and even then, somehow things just changed, so it was natural to get our own places. But I didn’t realize with that also came less and less time when we would actually see each other. Not that I need to see my brother every day, but the only time lately I do see him is when we’re on the job. And that’s not the best time to talk. I think this is the most we’ve spoken to each other in months.