a run for it. We’ve purposely been giving him basic rations, enough to keep him alive, but not enough to keep his strength up.
Void and I make our way over to Ivy and Eva. “You ready, ladies?” I ask.
“As we’ll ever be,” Eva replies.
I take Eva’s hand, and Void and Ivy follow as we walk down to the lower bunker. Eva’s stern-faced like she’s ready to take this on.
Ivy and Void keep eyeing each other like they’re trying to avoid the obvious chemistry between them.
As we reach the Brick Cell, I pull open the door. Andrés is sitting on the floor by the toilet, pale as fuck. I walk in, yanking Andrés up by his collar.
“It’s been a while since you came to see me. Does this mean my time’s up? You’re finally going to kill me?”
I don’t reply. He doesn’t deserve my words. Grabbing the key to the cuffs, I uncuff him. His eyes widen, a flicker of hope crosses his features as his eyes dart to the stairs, but as quickly as it came, it’s gone. He knows he won’t make it. I drag him out and over to a spare gap in the wall.
“Void, the supplies,” I call out.
Void steps over to the mortar bucket, grabbing it and the trowel.
“I knew it,” Ivy calls out.
Eva tilts her head in curiosity.
“I’m showing you the way we handle assholes who have wronged us. If, at any time, you want to leave, tell us, and Void will take you out. But you must understand the club you’re getting involved with, and you have to know how we work.”
“I need to see who you really are,” Eva clarifies.
Andrés clears his throat. “While this is lovely and all watching you two bonding and whatnot, are you going to fill me in on what the hell you’re going to do to me?”
I pull out the cable ties from my back pocket while Void grabs Andrés’ hands, yanking them behind him. His eyes bug out of his head as I tie them together so tightly, they cut into his flesh. By no means is this meant to be a comfortable experience.
“Fuck, that hurts.”
I snort out a laugh. “It’s meant to.”
I grab Andrés, pushing him back against the bricks as Eva and Ivy stand back watching and not saying a word. I need to do this. I can’t claim Eva as my Ol’ Lady if she can’t accept this part of me.
Void mixes the mortar as Andrés widens his eyes. “What the fuck are you gonna do, Nycto? I give you your income. You can’t survive without me.”
“We’ll survive without you, Andrés. We’re making more money since we stopped doing business with you bastards. Running girls is risky, we don’t need the fucking risk. We have moved on to better things. You believed we needed you? I think it was you who needed us!”
Void steps up with the mortar, and that wave of adrenaline pumps through my veins. Knowing Eva’s here is only heightening the sensations. I turn to her, and she nods, giving me the go-ahead. Void holds Andrés in place while I bend down and thread a set of cable ties around his ankles yanking them together. He tries to kick his feet apart, but he’s no match for me.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“Shut your fucking mouth,” I spit at him as I grab a hook.
Void pulls him away from the wall slightly as I hammer the hook into the base of the wall. I feel Eva’s eyes on me, but I don’t let it stop me. Standing, I signal to Void, and he slams Andrés into place. He yelps as the hook digs into his Achilles on each side. I grin loving that I’m causing him pain. He deserves it. He deserves everything coming his way. Asshole. I make sure to loop the cable tie over the hooks so his feet can’t go anywhere.
“I don’t know what sick fucking game you’re playing at right now, Nycto—”
My fist lands into his stomach. He lets out an almighty gasp, then he shuts his stupid fucking mouth. I pick up a brick and start the process of building the enclosure around him.
“Jesus Christ, are you kidding me right now?” Andrés blurts out as I lay the first layer all the way around, up to the wall behind him. I’m real fucking serious. He begins to pant and starts thrashing about. That’s why when we normally do this, the victims are out cold when we