On Your Knees, Stepsister

She's at a bar

My rule had always been: never harm the innocent. I know I'm not innocent, but I have never hurt the harmless ones. I had only gotten rid of those who needed to be wiped from the face of the Earth, those who had innocent blood on their palms, men who shouldn't be allowed to see the light..

I might not be innocent, but I had rules.

Even if the man had been ordered to hurt a harmless person who wasn't Lylah, I would have gotten my men to deal with him. I wouldn't have let him off the hook.

I grabbed my black gloves and wore them, a preventive measure of mine. Wouldn't want to get infected.

"I... I didn't know!" He shook his head, still pleading for his life. "He... George told me she stole from him! He made me believe she needed —"

"That wasn't what I heard." I picked up a pair of pliers from my stash after checking for my best weapon.

"Your men must have heard wrong. I didn't —"

"Are you calling them liars?" I gestured for Jack to come closer, still inspecting the selected weapon. Knowing what I wanted, he walked around and stood behind the man, holding his head as he tilted it back.

"No! I'm not!" The man trashed, trying to fight off Jack's hands as I advanced closer, but he couldn't do more than wriggle. "I didn't know, I swear! I did —"

Jack's hands reached for his jaw and held his mouth open.

With the plier in hand, I went for his canines first. The man thrashed in pain, gurgling his blood as I removed his teeth, until he had none left.

Purple veins sprouted up on his forehead and his iris turned red, the little veins appearing in full force.

Jack let go of him, and he leaned over, retching. He couldn't speak, but the pained sounds he made soothed me.

"These will make nice trinkets," I said to him, throwing the bloody teeth on the table as I dropped the pliers and grabbed my axe.

The man, whose focus was once more drawn to the weapon in my hands, begged me, crying with a bloody mouth. He screamed when I brought down the axe, separating his wrist from his palm. I waited for the initial pain to subside before I did it to the second one.

Jack watched, his face expressionless, like this was a normal occurrence. Okay, it was. My men had seen worse. This man had it light because his sin, to me, wasn't much. He didn't kill an innocent, just attempted it.

As the man howled in pain, staring at the blood seeping from his hands, I dropped the axe and got rid of the gloves.

"Hang him upside down," I instructed Jack before I turned and left the place, ignoring the man's plea for forgiveness. I slammed the door shut behind me, stepping out into the light..

My men watched me as I strode towards my car, some of them looking at me in awe, while most watched me with fear, probably imagining themselves in the same position as the unfortunate man..

I got into my car, started it, and drove off. I had no destination in mind, no prior engagement that needed my attention..

I drove in circles, to clear my mind, and to think of what to do, one that didn't include seeking Lylah out.

When I couldn't fight off the urge, I drove to her house, just like I had done countless times. Whenever I wasn't working or needed to clear my mind, visiting Lylah always helped. Though it wasn't much of a visit, as I spent the time in my car, either looking up at her apartment, or watching her through the window in her second office.

It was almost 8, but the light in her apartment wasn't on. She couldn't be asleep, right? It was still early for that. Frowning, I fished for my phone and sent a text to her..

Kaelin: Are you at home?

I couldn't tell what I was expecting, but I knew, deep down, that she wouldn't respond to the message. If she did, it would only be to insult me, nothing else. I waited for ten minutes before I called her. Just like the text, I got ignored. At the seventh ring, I called the man I placed on duty to keep an eye on her.

Most would call it stalking, but I call it keeping her safe. With my men tailing her movements, no one would try anything funny with her without my knowledge..

"Good evening, boss," John greeted, having answered on the first ring. My men knew how fickle my patience was and always avoided anything that would stoke my anger.

"Where's she?"

"She..." He hesitated. "She's..."

"Where the f**k is she?!" I yelled, barely holding back my irritation. "Is she at home?" I asked, looking around for their vehicle, but saw none. Okay, she isn't at home..

"She's at Phoenix."

I froze.

"Phoenix? What's she doing there?" I dreaded to know the answer to that, knowing what the f**k happens in Phoenix. To others, it was just a bar, but it was more than that. It was a front for a s*x club. Only the VIPs and the workers know about that. Though Lylah might not know about the second business, it would only take meeting the wrong person to break through her innocence.

I started my car without waiting for his response, my blood boiling at the thought of other men touching what was mine.

"She —"

"Keep an eye on her. I will meet you there." I disconnected, pressing down hard on the gas, going above the speed limit. I didn't care about anything else. All I could think of was getting to my stepsister in time to stop her from doing what both of us would regret. I wouldn't mind unleashing my dark side in her presence if that would keep her from doing something like this again.