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By the time he blinks I’ve already pulled the gun from inside my leather jacket, released the safety, and pointed the pistol right between his eyes.
“Do you really think if I just fucked some whore I’d go anywhere on her behalf for emergency contraceptives? It’s her fucking body, therefore her fucking responsibility and not my problem. Understood?”
“Y-yes.”
“Call my girl a whore again and you’re dead. I wouldn’t let anyone set foot in that cesspit, let alone send them to see you directly, so write the damn script so I can get out of here and leave you to your whores.”
The doctor blusters at my blatant insinuation but we both know his rebuttal is bullshit. He glowers at me but writes the damn prescription out and signs it. I retrieve my knife and pocket my gun while he does.
“Pleasure doing business with you, doc,” I say with a grin.
“What about my payment?” he cries as I turn to leave.
“Not blowing your face off or cutting your dick off is payment enough, wouldn’t you agree?”
“A-absolutely.” He swallows hard, beads of sweat rolling down his greasy face faster than butter melts on hot toast. “P-pleasure doing business with you.”
I shake my head as I look around the waiting room on my way out. I really can’t believe that anyone could be that desperate. I have to make sure Odi knows it isn’t safe here. She can’t ever set foot in this place, under any circumstances. If I find out that Axel used this doctor for Odi’s shot, I’ll kill him.
I almost wish we could put the doc in the Hunting Grounds, to teach him a lesson and send a message to all of the wannabe predators on campus that the women of Trinity College are not easy pickings, but the thought of him having to interact with Odile in the process makes me shudder. I’d rather die than let him anywhere near her – even for a minute.
Which makes me realise I really do care about this stupid contest and who is going to be in Odile’s life for the next few months.
Checking my watch, I realise I have to get home so that I can have that input. I pull out my phone and rattle off a quick text to the group chat. I’m on my way but I need another hour.
Next, I head to the pharmacy to file the prescription. The pharmacist behind the counter looks rushed off their feet and they give me an apologetic smile.
“It’ll be a whi—” I place the gun on the counter and she pales. “I think we can get this done pretty quickly. It’ll be right with you.”
“Much appreciated, thank you, ma’am,” I say with an easy smile.
Less than two minutes later I’m pocketing my gun and my medication. I scrawl a quick note to Odi on the paper bag and hurry back to her room.
By some small miracle, her bedroom window is still open a crack, and I’m infinitely grateful that she’s in a ground floor flat so I can easily climb through and drop the prescription on the bed for her. I can hear the shower running from her small en suite so I don’t hang around. The note, better safe than sorry, is clearly visible so I take off.
I have just enough time to grab a breakfast bagel to go from the campus cafeteria before racing back to our penthouse.
* * *
“You took your sweet time.”
I shake my head at Axel’s sniping attitude and decide to rise above it. “Let’s get this done.”
I join him and Zie in the lounge where a ton of manila folders are heaped in piles all over the coffee table. It’s way more than I was expecting and I raise a brow at how much work we’re facing.
“We got started already,” Zie tells me. “The two biggest piles are the ones we already rejected, so don’t worry. We won’t be here all day.”
“Let’s go over the non-negotiables first,” Axel says, pointing to the pile closest to him. It seems pointless to me but I’m just looking to get through today without a fight. Every time I think of the doc and those women waiting to see him, the patient who was crying, Odi’s fear when she learnt that Axel had given her a birth control shot while she was unconscious…yeah my blood is boiling through my veins and I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to keep the peace today.
“What’s got your knickers in a twist?” Axel sniggers.
I don’t reply. I want to tell him that the doc has pissed me off, but I don’t want to explain what the hell I was doing at the campus medical centre. Better to let him think I’m still sulking over our fight.
“Come on then, who’re the legacies and other non-negotiables, besides us?”
The Hunting Grounds has been around for generations and it isn’t exclusive to Trinity College. It probably dates back to Roman or ancient Greek times or some such shit and it’s been run under many different names. It’s a stupid bullshit contest created by the likes of Axel’s power-hungry ancestors where they compete for power and dominance over their empires – whether they be political, criminal, business, or royal. For the winning individual or team that comes out on top, their power in their chosen sector becomes absolute, giving them advantages in their world that are unparalleled.
There are some rules that have to be adhered to, but the most important one is that the heads of the criminal empire can’t compete for political, business or royal power and vice versa, though alliances can and have been made in the past.
