plunging through the darkness, searching for a shadow in an endless void.
eight
“FUCK!” KIRK SLAPPED THE BUTTON TO PAUSE HIS VIDEO game as the doorbell sounded. He jumped to his feet and the handheld controller bounced on the carpeted floor. Whoever was interrupting his playtime was going to get their asses kicked.
The bell chimed again before he reached the foyer, intensifying his anger.
“What?” he demanded, wrenching open the door.
Piper and a tall blond girl both jumped back in surprise. Nearly incoherent words tumbled out of Piper’s mouth, her tone rising so it sounded like she was asking a question rather than making a statement. “Hey, Amber Lynn is—I mean, she and I wanted to—You asked me to bring Amber Lynn by.”
Kirk glanced from Piper to Amber Lynn, one of his newest bunny recruits. He leaned against the doorjamb. “What are you rambling on about?”
Piper laughed nervously and cut her eyes over at the other girl. “You told me about that thing this morning and asked me to bring Amber Lynn by to talk to you about it.”
The thing she rambled about finally clicked into place and he smiled. “Oh, right.” He shifted his attention to Amber Lynn, a pretty blond with pale brown eyes. “Come in,” he said, moving aside as he gestured for her to enter.
Amber Lynn ducked into the foyer, her long hair brushing against his bare chest as she passed.
Piper moved to follow, and Kirk stopped her by placing his hand in the center of her chest. “Make yourself at home,” he called to the other girl and stepped outside. “I’ll be right in.”
“Kirk, what about—”
He whipped Piper around and led her toward her car. “You need to leave now.”
“What? Why?”
“Amber Lynn and I need to have a private conversation, and you still need to find me a replacement redhead.”
“But how will Amber Lynn get home?”
He opened the driver’s door of Piper’s white Nissan Sentra and encouraged her to sit. “Don’t worry.” He gave her a quick kiss on the lips and then smiled. “I’ll take care of her.”
Piper seemed on the verge of protesting but then sighed and cranked the car.
Kirk closed the door and waved to her as she backed out of the driveway. Once she was headed down the street, he dropped the caring-boyfriend façade and returned to the house. He entered and found soft music issuing from the living room. Suspecting what he’d find, he strolled through the foyer, down the short hallway, and into the spacious living room.
“Is she gone?” Amber Lynn asked. The cardigan sweater she’d been wearing lay draped over the back of the sofa and her shoes were tucked under the coffee table.
He nodded and sauntered over to the sofa, positioning himself behind her.
She pushed off from the sofa, drifted to him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Good, because I’ve been dying for an excuse to see you again.”
He pulled back from her attempt to kiss him. “Before we get down to business, Amber Lynn, you and I need to have a little chat.”
Unfazed by his rejection, she giggled and slipped her hand over the front of his jeans. “You mean the thing Piper was talking about?”
“I have a problem.”
“Oh, I can help you with it.”
“I’m sure you can.” He smiled and stroked her cheek. “Someone’s been talking about my little business. Someone with a big mouth.” His hand cupped her jaw and tightened until she cried out and her eyes widened in fear. “Who’ve you been talking to, Amber Lynn?”
“I-I don’t know what you mean,” she whimpered.
Kirk shoved her, watching as she tumbled over the sofa and onto the floor. The back of her head banged against the corner of the coffee table. A crimson ribbon soaked into her pale hair.
“First, you blab around campus about my business, and now you’re bleeding on my carpet.” He grabbed her hair and dragged her across the floor to the tiled eating area separating the living room from the kitchen. “Do you have any idea how long it takes to get blood out of carpet?”
She screamed and slapped at his hand. Her fingernails sliced his flesh.
His temper exploded. He released her, ripping strands of hair loose, and grabbed the front of her shirt. Shoving her against the kitchen island cabinet, Kirk straddled her, his face inches from hers. “Who did you talk to, bitch?”
Amber Lynn wailed as he slammed her head against the hardwood cabinet. “I-I didn’t say anything!”
“Liar!”
Blood and mucus trickled from her nose. “Please, Kirk—”