Page 44 of Smoke

He grabs my pussy hard and squeezes. “Or what? What the fuck are you gonna do? We are fated, baby. The only way you’re getting rid of me is when I’m dead. And that’s not gonna be for a long fucking time.”

“I’m gonna respectfully disagree,” Omen growls.

I gasp.

The Zipper drops its cages.

The single pop is lost in a cacophony of screams and cranking metal.

Kane’s eyes widen before they dim. A trickle of blood oozes down his temple.

“Oh, fuck,” I whisper.

He tips over and slams into the ground hard, his head bursting like a water balloon.

Omen glares at me. “I brought the truck around, but you were gone.”

My stomach twists, grumbling. I lurch forward and dry heave a few times before spewing bile all over the ground. Some of it splatters on my shoes.

He sighs as he stalks over. “This is why Scarrow installed that tracker on your phone.” He cuts my wrists free with a machete then hands me a handkerchief. “Hawk fucking knew you would do some stupid shit like this.”

“He was going to take me… and hurt me…” I buckle over and let out another steady stream of puke.

Omen holds my hair back. “That was never gonna happen. It’s okay, mama. I got you. You’re safe now.”

“Why am I like this?” I scream before bursting into tears.

Omen gathers me into his arms. “You’re fine, sweetheart. Nothing’s wrong with you. But I need you to lean back against the fence for me while I clean this up.”

I nod. “Fuck, what are we going to do? Someone could see us.” I finally remember that we are out in the open. It might be desolate, but there’s still an entire fair going on behind us.

“Don’t worry about that.” He stalks over to the fence and grabs a hold of it at the bottom. It only takes him a few yanks and he’s got it up and separated from the dirt. “Hold this up for me. I’m gonna roll him under to the other side, okay?”

I nod and do as he says, all while keeping a trained eye on the path behind the Gravitron. “I’m sorry, Om. Fuck. Please don’t be mad at me.”

He doesn’t look at me as he moves Kane’s body effortlessly as if he weighs nothing, rolling him over the dirt-covered ground until he’s all the way on the other side of the fence.

I’m dizzy, and my head aches. I cling to the cold metal as he makes a few phone calls, one that sounds like it’s to Hawk. Within fifteen minutes, an unmarked van pulls up. Three hooded guys I’ve never seen before get out and load Kane’s body into the back.

Omen has a word with them before turning to me. “Now we’re going to walk back to your booth like normal, finish packing up, and load everything into Scarrow’s truck. Okay? Can you walk normal for me?”

I nod and take a deep breath. “Yeah. I’ve done this before, remember?”

He nods. “Let’s go, mama.”

A double shot of whiskey and a hot shower are the only reasons why I’m not hyperventilating into a paper bag. Every time I close my eyes, even for a second, I see Kane’s malicious sneer and then his dark eyes widening in surprise right before the lights go out in his head. But what makes my stomach turn the most is the memory of his blood and brain matter oozing into the dirt.

I shiver and down my drink. “Fuck,” I whisper.

The three of them eye me like I’m a live grenade with the pin halfway out. Despite Kane obviously being dead and no longer a threat, they still insisted on bringing me to their house. Maybe they feel more in control here. All I want is my own bed but after what Kane did to my apartment, I feel violated. Maybe Hawk’s right to bring me here instead.

While Omen does his usual pacing behind the couch, Scarrow perches on the end of it. Hawk has now crossed the room to use the coffee table as a seat. He leans forward and smooths a strand of wet hair behind my ear.

“It’s over. No one is coming for you ever again. Okay?” he murmurs. He always knows how to comfort me. Ever since we were kids. Once I had a nightmare and woke up screaming. He came flying into my room with a bat thinking someone was hurting me. Once he realized what was really happening, he crawled into my bed and spoke in this exact tone, soothing me back to sleep.

I nod and force a smile. “Thank you for taking care of me like you always do. I don’t know what I’d do without any of you.”

Scarrow sighs. “Now if we could somehow get you to follow orders… you almost gave me a heart attack, sweetheart. He could’ve really hurt you.”