“P-please don’t kill me,” he whimpers like a little bitch. “I’ll give you anything you want…everything! Name your price!”
“You can’t possibly pay enough money for the wrongs that have been done by you and every other cocksucker out there who steals lives,” I hiss, my breath hitching. Every time I stare one of these bastards in the face, I see him.
The man who destroyed so many lives and turned me into the killer I am today.
It was so long ago, but the chilling memory is so clear in my mind.
I had one job to do, to watch over my cousin, Emilia, and keep her safe.
But I lost my focus and she ended up dead at the hand of a guy just like Miguel.
I couldn’t stop him and failed my family and myself.
My pulse throbs against my throat as I clutch my gun.
So, as my own form of self-soothing, I take as much pleasure as I can in eradicating the planet of the others who are just as despicable, just as deadly, and just as evil.
“Burn in hell, cocksucker,” I mutter.
“Not so fast, ese,” another slimy voice from behind me says. “Drop the gun and back away from him.” I hear his gun cock and Miguel yells to him.
“Don’t shoot, you idiot! If you miss, I’m fucking dead!”
My lips curl upward as I slowly turn to look at the person stupid enough to interrupt my hit. “So, you work for Miguel,” I say to the peon with the gun. “You know what he does and you’re okay with that?”
The guy shrugs. “Pay’s good.”
“Yeah, I bet. You got a daughter or a sister?”
“I have both,” he says.
“You love ’em?”
“Yeah,” he says.
“That’s real nice,” I say. “You wanna know something that really irks the shit outta me, ese?” I ask.
He shrugs again.
“People who get in my fucking way!”
I fire off two shots at ese and then point the gun back at Miguel as he crumbles to the floor. A dry chuckle escapes my lips. “See? I told you. Your security sucks.” I bring the gun back toward Miguel, and with a jerk of my wrist, I pop a cap in his balls. He screams, clutching himself and tumbling off of the chair.
I snicker and then stomp on his bloody groin for good measure.
“I told you I didn’t have time to skin you, but I made time to shoot off your diseased cock.” I look down at my watch. “Shit, Miguel. I’ve gotta go. I wanted you to feel just a little bit of the hell all of the women you’ve snatched have experienced. And even though it will never come close, I want you to remember this pain for the rest of your life.” I point the gun at his temple and squeeze the trigger.
“All two seconds of it,” I grunt, kicking him in the head and shooting him three more times in the head and chest for good measure.
I stare at him, feeling the familiar flood of emotion ravage me. My heart thumps hard against my chest, beads of perspiration popping up along the back of my neck.
“Rest in hell, bitches,” I mutter as I step over the jackass sprawled across the doorframe as I walk out of the building.
I take a few deep breaths as I step outside, feeling a sudden surge of purpose. My fingers still tingle from firing my gun. The adrenaline high has my heart racing and my temples throbbing.
I’m back to my murderous self, even if it’s just for a fleeting moment.
I really do need to shoot shit more often.
Best damn therapy ever.
Chapter Nine
Anya
I slide the key card into the door and the lock clicks, opening to a modest type of room. I frown as I walk around the smallish space. It’s not bad, I just expected more glitz and glam considering what the rest of the place looks like.
Dante’s words come back to me.
It isn’t quite a shithole, but it’s definitely not the lap of luxury.
I guess the Bellagio reserves its best for the whales.
And I’m not about to be caught in their net.
I have enough of my own mazes to navigate.
I drop my bag and collapse onto the bed, kicking off my sneakers. I close my eyes for what feels like half a second before my ringtone blares in my ear. I let the phone drop next to my head and it feels like clashing cymbals are being smashed between my ears.
I flip onto my stomach, stifling a yawn as I click to accept the call. Uncle Boris’s face flashes on the screen. He’s always got a pinched look, and the creases in his forehead are deeper than usual.
“Anya, any trouble at the hotel?”
He’s not one for small talk. He’s the guy who gets right to the point.
My mind trips back to my one-way conversation with Dottie.
Yeah, sometimes a little small talk would be nice. Make me feel like I’m more than just an employee.
“No,” I say. “All is good. So tell me about this job, Uncle. You didn’t give me much to go on last night when we spoke.”
“Your interview is in an hour,” he says in his thick accent. “At the Excelsior Hotel and Casino.”
I snicker. “What’s the job? Blackjack dealer?”
“Au pair,” he says, his brows knitted together.
I sit straight up on the mattress. “Au what?”
“Au pair. You’re interviewing to be the caretaker of a child.”
“What?” I shriek. “A caretaker? For a real live child? Whose kid is it? And why?” This is truly horrifying news. Besides the fact that I have zero experience with kids, I avoid them like the plague. You know how some girls just flock to them because they’re so cute and cuddly and whatever else gets their ovaries pumping?
I’m not that girl!
I’m the one who runs because they’re noisy and sticky and whiny.
How in the hell could he possibly think I could even get this job?
I have zero maternal instincts!
“I realize it’s a little different than the types of jobs that you’re used to, but you’re the only one who can do it. And the Villani family is the client — the ones who were involved with Maks’s murder. This is the big one, Anya. This is the job that will put me on top again. Without Vigo blocking my path, I will finally be in control again. I will finally be respected. And we will finally get the revenge we seek!”
My skin prickles at his words. I vowed to eliminate anyone who had a hand in that fateful night.
I clench my fists tight. Yeah, I’m ready to do whatever he asks.
Except, there’s the whole kid thing to figure out…
“How old is the kid?” I say, sudden panic gripping me. I press a hand to my forehead, my stomach clenching.
I’m a fucking assassin, not Mary Poppins!
What the hell is he thinking?
“Five months old,” he says, peering at a paper. “It’s a girl.”
“Five months?” I cry out, falling back onto the mattress. “That’s not a kid, it’s a baby! Do you realize I have never even changed a diaper? How am I going to even get this job, Uncle?”
“Anya,” he says abruptly. “You are the only one who can do this.”
“Except I really can’t! Whoever is interviewing me will see it in a hot fucking second!”
“Then you’ll have to be extra convincing,” he says. “I’m sure you can find out everything you need to know on YouTube.”
“Great,” I huff. “That’s just perfect.” I shake my head at the screen.
He levels me with a sharp glare. “You will do this, Anya. It’s because of the Villani family that Ivan Volkov was damn close to driving a dagger into my skull. This job will set us up for life. They took from me, now it’s my turn to take from them for our gain.”
“Can you please give me a little bit more than that, Uncle?” I ask, expelling a sigh of exasperation. “I mean, you never even told me about this Villani family before that day at Tatiana! I need more details about this amazing scheme of yours.”