Cruz (Dark and Dirty Sinners' MC #5) - Serena Akeroyd Page 0,78

that how Martin makes you feel?"

She twisted her head to the side, her mouth pursed into a flat line, and I knew I'd lost her.

I didn't say another word, just strode over to the phone, picked it up and placed it to my ear.

"Who are you calling?" she demanded, her voice morphing into a squeak.

"Your mom. So she can come and pick you up. I have an appointment soon."

"Y-You said you'd take me home. That's why Ma-Martin let me leave."

Well, wasn't that an interesting turn of phrase?

Why Martin let her leave.

I turned it over in my head, then said, "Well, I need to tell her how upset you are. She needs to know so she can make things better."

"I-It's okay. She doesn't need to know. You're right. She's working hard to make sure I have self-respect—”

“What does he do with you, Cyan?" I asked, sliding the question in with all the finesse of a batter sliding into base feet first.

"Nothing," she rasped. "Nothing." And just when I thought she wasn't going to tell me anything, she tacked on, “I mean, not yet, anyway.”

And my heart both soared and sank.

Nyx

My blood lust was high.

What with helping Cruz dissemble a corpse in my sister’s workstation, then watch as he shoved it into a vat of goo where another corpse was already being broken down into gunk, the monster in my soul was beyond ready to party.

I wasn’t made to be the VP.

It wasn’t a role that was natural to me. Leadership wasn’t something I could ever be comfortable with, but I’d only just killed a sick fuck and usually, with Giulia riding me harder than the monster in my soul, things stayed calm for a mite longer than this.

But knowing there was a pedophile working in the town neighboring mine?

Knowing that he’d targeted my brother’s kid?

I was more than jonesing for this kill.

It was only by chance that I overheard. Cruz and I had just finished our final clean-up of her shop, when she’d gone storming out before storming back in again.

When I’d tried to go after her, Cruz had held me back. I didn’t appreciate that, and I’d showed him my lack of appreciation with a punch to the gut, but he’d still stopped me from going after her. Just in time too. He’d shoved me back into the studio when the door had slammed open yet again, but she was no longer alone.

I didn’t know Cyan that well. It wasn’t like I was interested in kids, even my brother’s, but she’d been hanging around the place with Katina, the two of them getting into all kinds of shit on the compound, so I’d recognized her voice.

I’d also recognized what she was saying, what Indy was drawing out of her with girl talk… Cyan was being groomed.

Right under my fucking nose.

A hand slapped me on the shoulder, jerking me from my thoughts. I flinched, not expecting it, which told me how deep inside my head I was.

Twisting to look at Cruz, I rumbled, "Best not to touch me when I'm in this mood."

He shrugged. "The only person who's under fire right now is that sick fuck." His mouth tightened. "I want in."

My brows rose. "Huh?"

"You heard me. I want in. When you catch him, I want to be there."

My lips snagged up in a snarl. "You think you can handle—"

"Bro, I melt corpses down for the club. I think I can handle the shit that goes down beforehand." I knew he thought he believed that, but I eyed him skeptically. "You ever killed someone before?"

He snorted. "Think I'm little orphan, Annie? Yeah, Nyx, I've killed someone before."

"Who?" I jeered, watching his scowl make a swift appearance. “And I’m not talking a long-distance kill either.”

“Because that takes away from the act?” he snapped, glowering at me. The glower, however, made me let up. Not because I was frightened of the fucker, but because I got it.

I saw it.

Death changed a person, and if you killed enough people, it left a stain on your soul. The eyes were the windows to that, after all, so, deep within that glower, a frown that was burrowed into his eyes, I saw the truth.

"You never told Rex," I remarked.

"Some shit you don't share."

I shrugged. "You'd probably be doing more than pouring tequila if he knew."

"Doubt it. Not with my mom around."

"True." I winced. "Think you've proven yourself by now though."

"It's okay. I never asked to be on the council, and I'm not asking for anything more