Perversion (Perversion Trilogy #1)(23)

Marco uses the hand that isn’t holding me to backhand Gabby across the face. She stammers back, stunned, holding her hand to her face. He’d never hit her before. Not that I’d seen.

“Now, it’s double, and if you have a problem with that, I’ll put you both to good use in other, more profitable ways.”

“I’m your sister,” she reminds him on a shaky breath.

“Which is why I expect more from you,” Marco says, glaring back at her with every bit of seriousness in his hatred-filled eyes.

This man isn’t her brother. He is a ruthless gangster, high on power. Control.

Blood is thicker than water.

But money and power are all that matters to Marco.

I stare at him without blinking, waiting for this moment to be over. Suddenly, he grips my jaw tightly and leans in close.

“Don’t cross me, EJ. You think I don’t see the defiance in your eyes, but I do. I see you trying to put up your front, but I’ll break you. Show me your loyalty. Earn your place here. And if you so much as think about crossing me, I’ll do more than put a price on your pussy. I’ll gut you and decorate the ‘welcome to Lacking’ sign with your fucking insides.” He grips me tighter. My jaw stings as his nails bite into my flesh. “You feel me?”

“Yes,” I answer with false confidence. Marco growls at my continued defiance.

“If you play your cards right, who knows, I might even make you my queen someday.” Marco releases me with a rough push. I stagger back but quickly compose myself, straightening my shoulders and my spine.

“Get the fuck out,” he barks.

Gabby’s shoulders are shaking with silent sobs as we head for the door.

“I’ll break you yet, Emma Jean,” he calls out to me with a menacing laugh.

I make sure we are out of the building in the false safety of the night, well out of earshot, before I respond under my breath.

“No. No, you fucking won’t.”

I’m not going to let Marco’s bullshit affect me tonight because I’ve got other plans that require my attention.

As stupid as those plans might be.





Nine





“I talked to Mona today,” Gabby says, standing in the doorway of our room. “She sounds great. She graduated early. Top of her class. Got a full ride to some fancy college on the West Coast. She wanted to come visit…” Gaby trails off.

I know she feels bad about having to tell Mona that she can’t come here. Marco said that she could come visit, but I understand why Gabby wants to keep her as far away as possible from all of this. I’d do the same.

Gabby’s been quieter lately. Distant. And when I ask her about it she just waves it off as paranoia, but I realize now that it’s because she misses her sister.

“We’ll figure out a way for you to see her again,” I try to reassure her.

“I don’t see how.” She sniffles. “And I hate telling her I can’t see her. She takes it personally. She thinks I hate her because I’ve used every excuse I can think of, and now I’m all out. I just tell her no and hope through the phone she’ll somehow understand, but she doesn’t.”

I pull her in for a hug, but she releases me when she sees my backpack open on the bed. “Where are you going?”

“To get my locket back. Leo gave me intel on where he lives. I’m going to sneak in, grab it, and sneak out.”

“You’re insane, you know that?” Gabby throws her hands in the air and blows out a long, frustrated sigh.

“Yeah, I kinda figured that out a while back,” I reply, packing my backpack. “Thought you caught on to that by now.”

“You should have clued me in to your mental status. I didn’t figure it out until four seconds ago when you told me you were going to sneak into a house in Bedlam and steal from the man they call The Executioner!”

“I’m not stealing,” I reason. “He took my locket. I’m just taking it back.”

“It’s a cheap piece of metal that you stole. Is that really worth sacrificing your own life? We have other shit to worry about, EJ. Like who the fuck are we going to rob with money around this town if we can’t go to the casino and everyone else doesn’t have shit left to steal!”

“We’ll come up with something. We always do. And it’s more to me than just a locket. You know that,” I remind her. I remember something I wanted to ask her earlier. “Do you think Marco was being serious when he said he wanted to make me his queen?”

“Have you ever known Marco NOT to be serious about anything?”

“But what does that even mean?”

“Maybe, it means you won’t have to earn for him anymore,” she suggests.

I know she’s trying to find a positive in all of this, but I can’t see it. Same as with magic, just because I can’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not there.

“No, but I would have to fuck him,” I say bitterly, gagging on my own words. “And I’d rather die.”

Gabby’s eyes grow watery. “That’s the other option.”

“It’s also the truth,” I mutter. “One horrible life decision at a time, right?” I try to plant a smile on my face. Not for me. For Gabby. I know she’s always felt guilty about Marco bringing me here, but I refuse to let her feel worse than Marco already makes her feel.