Page 77 of Ruin

Out of every kill, this one I regret the least.

I threw his body across the boulders and onto the dirt above, hearing the crack of his skull as it slammed into the rocks that surrounded the fire pit. I pulled myself up the final few feet of rock as I heard footsteps approaching quickly. As my feet dug into the earth, my men approached Antonio’s mangled body, their faces expressionless. They had seen many dead bodies in their service to me—this one was no different. His lifeless open eyes were still frozen with the fearful expression from when his neck was ripped open, bloodied tissue bursting at the seams.

The men laid out a black tarp next to Antonio’s body and used their heavy boots to kick him onto the sheet before wrapping him. They took turns tying thick rope around the stiff tarp until all that was left was a tight cocoon. I heard them count to three, lifting his body and proceeding to carry it to the empty SUV. I walked behind them, watching in satisfaction as a smile crept across my face. I continued to walk past as they hoisted the body into the trunk.

“Almost done,” Sam stated as he caught my dark figure approaching out of the corner of his eye.

The light of the trunk illuminated Claire as she sat, her face in her hands, breathing through the pain. I approached her and set my hand on her thigh until it glided down to feel the cuts that dug into her knee.

I should have kept him alive and tortured him until his heart gave out.

Claire’s hand reached for mine as Sam gave her head wound a final rinse, dabbing it with a white cotton cloth that was now stained with her blood like a morbid tie-dye.

“Now, for the knees…” Sam sighed as he jumped from the trunk onto the ground next to me.

“I’ve got that,” I said, my tone low as Claire’s eyes looked up at me. Her eyes were filled with fear and shame. By now it was easy to read her and know exactly what she was thinking.

“I’m not mad that you snuck out,” I said as I picked up the saline bottle and sprayed the liquid onto her knees as my hand held the fresh white cotton cloth below to soak up the excess.

“I’m more upset with myself that I made you feel like you needed to.”

Claire’s eyes shot up to me, she looked exhausted. Beautifully broken—and I wanted to repair her.

“I was just trying to do my job,” she replied as her gaze turned to her knees.

My gloved fingers glided thick antibacterial ointment across the cuts as I replied, “I understand…completely.”

Claire nodded at me and smiled gently. “Why did you lie to me?”

“What exactly did I lie about?” I questioned, my brow lowering with curiosity.

“You own the winery…. He said you own it.” She looked into my eyes, hurt flowing through her expression.

“I did not lie. I just did not tell you,” I replied stoically as I wound fabric bandages across her knees.

“Omission is a lie,” she muttered as her eyes lowered.

“It was not worth mentioning…”

I paused to let out a deep exhale as I scanned her arms for injuries. Only plum-colored bruises scattered across her cold arms. “I didn’t want more information to overwhelm our…situation.”

“So…you were behind Antonio not coming to dinner?” she asked, her eyes focused on mine as she investigated me deeply, looking for the truth.

“Yes…I told him not to go,” I replied, the slighting twinge of regret coming through in my voice.

“You staged everything. For days I felt like I failed. I fixated on my failure, and the whole time…” she said as anger seeped into her voice.

My eyes closed as I pressed my hand to my brow, feeling both regret and irritation. “I fucked up, Claire. Is that what you want to hear?”

Claire’s wide eyes stared up at me as she struggled to respond. “And the road? The note on my account? The suite? Was that your handy work?”

“Yes. It was,” I said calmly as I extended my hand to her.

She stared at my open hand blankly before pushing herself off the trunk, wincing as her feet hit the ground. She grasped the side of the SUV and hobbled to the door. I ran around her to grab the door handle only to feel her hand slap against mine.

“Get. The fuck. Away from me,” she said, her voice was low and certain.

I stepped back, feeling my heart shatter like glass rolling through my chest. I struggled to find the words, knowing that I could possibly make the situation worse.