Page 50 of Merciless Angel
I hadn’t asked to be their fuck doll. I didn’t deserve to be put in a position to choose between death and servitude. However, I didn’t expect Raina or anyone else to fight my battles for me. I had to take initiative to get myself out of this somehow.
“Did you grow up in the city?”
It took a moment for me to realize that Cash spoke to me. He turned in his seat to face me. Why was he trying so hard to be nice?
“Uh, yeah. My family moved here from Vancouver when I was seven. Been here ever since.” I fidgeted with my seatbelt. What was the point of friendly chitchat now after everything they’d done to me?
“Do you have any siblings?” Blaze asked, hands folded behind his head as he leaned back against the seat.
“One older brother,” I said. “He’s married and living on the other side of the country now.”
I’d always felt like more of an only child. The almost ten year age difference between my brother and me had made it hard to relate to him. I’d always secretly wanted a sister, which is why having Raina and Lyra in my life now was so special. They were the sisters I’d never had.
“What about you guys?” I asked, turning the line of questioning back on them. “I don’t know anything about any of you.”
Aside from what Blaze had told me about himself, I didn’t know much about the men who’d claimed me as their own. Kind of weird if you asked me.
“Older sister, younger brother.” Daire’s tone was bored, like it took effort for him to talk about himself. “Parents divorced when I was nine. I guess I’m the classic fucked up middle child.”
“That explains everything then, doesn’t it?” I quipped, smirking to myself.
Cash laughed, holding up an arm to block when Daire tried to punch him. “I have a sister. She’s a few years older than me. We’ve never really gotten along well. I guess spending my childhood doing all I could to torment her probably played a role in that.”
“I’m an only child. Make all the jokes you want. I’ve heard them all.” Holding out both hands in invitation, Blaze quirked a brow and smiled.
They could almost pass for normal in that moment. Just your everyday guys with families and backstories. Except they weren’t. They were like every other screwed up person who grew up to be a criminal.
Part of the river ran along the edge of the city. There was a park nearby with a treelined area that included a few walking paths. At this time of night it was almost empty. An older couple sat on a bench together near the water. Otherwise, the places was all ours.
As soon as I got out of the car, the freshness of the air greeted me. Okay, maybe Daire had been right. This was nice.
I expected them to sit in the park area or on one of the benches. Instead, they guided me into the trees. Surely they wouldn’t kill me with two people sitting nearby. Right? I wasn’t entirely sure about that.
Blaze slid an arm around my shoulders as we walked. Did he think I might bolt and run for it? The thought had crossed my mind. I’d abandoned it, suspecting that I couldn’t outrun all three of them.
“We have the best spot right over here,” he explained.
Tiny rocks crunched under foot as we followed a dirt path through the trees. The sound of the river flowing on the other side of the trees accompanied us as we walked. We didn’t go far before Daire turned off the path, shoving through the thick trees. My stomach flip flopped.
When we emerged from the trees into a small clearing next to the river, my jaw dropped in wonder. A rocky patch gave way to sand that stretched right to the river’s edge. The half-moon hung over the water, reflecting off the surface. The water flowed with ease, beckoning me closer.
“Careful, Angel,” Daire warned. “The current is stronger than it looks. We wouldn’t want you falling in now.”
I drew closer to the water’s edge, ignoring his warning. I didn’t need him to tell me how the river worked. Crouching down, I ran my fingers through the water, savoring the cold sensation.
Daire sidled up close to me. “Are you a good swimmer?”
I frowned, not liking the way he’d asked. “Good enough. Planning to throw me in?”
He inclined his head to one side, like he considered it. “No. You’ll float right past that couple. Maybe another time.”
His wicked grin implied he was joking. I wasn’t sure Daire ever really joked about anything.
“What’s your story, Daire?” I asked, taking a bold approach. “What got you into this vigilante lifestyle? What made you so brutal?”
He stared out over the water so long I thought he refused to answer. With a shrug, I sat down on the sand, sifting it through my fingers. While Blaze and Cash skipped small rocks across the water, Daire sat next to me.
“Like I said, I was the messed up middle child.” He drew my gaze his way. “I’ve always had violent urges. I remember busting my brother’s nose open when I was only seven. He didn’t do anything to provoke it. He was playing a video game. I smashed him in the face with a vase. It only got worse from there.”