Page 11 of Heartless Enemy
“What if we attacked and just killed the whole parliament instead?”
Shock pulsed through me. Twisting my head, I stared at Eve with eyebrows raised. She turned to meet my gaze and just shrugged.
“Then you wouldn’t need to make them sign anything,” she said casually. “All of Malgrave would be yours.”
For a few seconds, all I could do was to stare at her.
A week ago, she had walked out on me when I had asked her to stay because she had said that she still believed in the justice system and the constables’ mission to protect people. And now, she was casually proposing that we should slaughter the entire democratically elected parliament so that we could take control of the city.
I had always known that there was darkness lurking inside Eve’s soul, because it called to the blackness in my own. But it still shocked me how ruthless she had become in such a short amount of time.
It also turned me on so fucking much that I couldn’t stop a wicked grin from sliding across my lips as I looked back at her.
“While I do approve of the method in general,” I replied with that grin still on my face before turning serious again. “It wouldn’t help me get what I actually want.”
She didn’t look the slightest bit put out that I had shot down her suggestion. Instead, she cocked her head with genuine curiosity. “Why not?”
“Because I don’t want the north side. I only want the south.”
She raised her eyebrows in surprise.
I shrugged. “The north side is useless to me. People here are too used to living upstanding and proper lives, which will make them difficult to rule. And there are no economic benefits to gain from controlling this side either. Everyone on the south side already bends the knee to me, which has taken years of bloody work to accomplish. People here would fight my authority every step of the way, so this side would simply be too hard to control. And since I gain nothing from it, apart from some added landmass, it would just be a nuisance rather than an asset.”
“Huh.” She studied my face with a considering look on her features for a while before a glint of mischief sparkled in her eyes. “You know, you’re not as dumb as you look.”
Locking my hand around her jaw, I narrowed my eyes at her. “Watch it.”
She just let out a villainous laugh.
I leaned forward and stole that laugh from her wicked lips with a possessive kiss. She bit my lip before pulling back and winking at me.
“Well then,” she said as she climbed to her feet again. “Let’s see if we can find a way to get you full control of the south side then.”
Chapter6
“You’re… back?”
I looked up from my desk to find Jamila and Frank and the rest of my colleagues standing frozen on the floor just inside the door and staring at me with wide eyes.
“Yeah.” I flashed them a smile before giving them a mildly questioning look. “Surprise, I guess.”
They all shook off their stupor and began moving into our shared office again.
Frank clapped me on the shoulder as he walked past towards his own desk. “Good to have you back.”
“Thanks,” I replied. “It’s—”
“How?” Jamila interrupted before I could finish the sentence. Her dark eyes were still swirling with bewilderment as she stared at me. “How? How can you possibly be back? We heard that Captain Wright had demoted you. Permanently.”
“Ulric talked some sense into him,” I lied effortlessly. “He convinced him that it wasn’t really my fault that things turned out the way they did and that a temporary punishment was more than enough.”
Behind me, Frank finished shrugging off his jacket. There was a light drizzle outside, and tiny drops of water slid down the white leather as he draped the jacket over the back of his chair.
“Ulric, huh?” he said while raking a hand through his blond hair.
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “He has always known how to get the things he wanted.”
“True.” Wood creaked as he dropped down on his chair and heaved a deep sigh. “Now, we just need to gethimback too.”