Betrayed (The Worshipped Series Book 2) (3 page)

I pull my cell out of my pants and dial up Frankie.

“Yo. What you need my man?” 

“I need to set up a meet. Running low on funds, and I know you still owe me. Meet me in twenty and we will make the exchange.”

I hang up, not waiting for his yes. That little fucker has no choice. I took a lot of shit for saving his ass, and for covering for him when a drug deal went sour a few years back. One thing about this business I’ve learned is to always call in favors and to only trust the minimal few. 

I drive to the spot were all deals go down in this part of town. It isn’t much, the damn neighborhood is run down, and it looks like a ghost town. Hell I think the only people who live here are the druggies too strung out to get anything better for themselves and the hookers. I pull up by an alley, and get out the car. I am early, but I can’t sit in the car in this heat. 

I pop the trunk and get out my 9mm. I make sure it is loaded and put it in the back of my pants. Another thing I have learned over the years is to always be prepared. Never can tell when some asshole will try and shoot your ass for whatever you have going down. I choose to hide my gun because I don’t want to scare Frankie. I just want my fucking money. I lean by the car and cross my arms. I don’t want to sit and wait. Because dammit, every time I have a free second, I am thinking about Karen. I have no idea why she means so much to me. I don’t love her. A man like me can’t love another person. But fuck me, she is more than I expected. I love how short her hair is. I love that button nose and those luscious lips. She has nice tits, more than enough for my hands. And god, that fucking ass of hers. I can’t wait till I can leave my hand print on it. I want her ass nice and red for me and only me. I shouldn’t have handled her so roughly earlier, but hell, she was demanding shit from me, and that shit I couldn’t let happen. She needed to know I was in control and she was to do what I said. No questions asked. 

I shift my weight and have to adjust myself. Never fails, all I have to do is see or think about Karen and I am ready to fuck. Yeah I know, every guy is the same and yeah I used to use other women the same way I wanted Karen, but she is different somehow. I haven’t figured that part out yet. I feel a pang of guilt wash over me. Thinking of her again. Rachel.

I didn’t feel the same way about her as I do Karen. I wanted to care about Rachel that way, but for some reason, I just couldn’t. Fucking hell. I stop all those thoughts from surfacing. No way can I be in control thinking about the fucking past. 

I am relieved when I see Frankie’s Ford Ranger pull up right on time. He gets out, looking around as if he is about to get jumped. Good. Little shit needs to stay on high alert. I have no idea if Dominic knows if I left town with Karen or not. I am hoping for the latter. That will definitely buy me some time to get my shit together. And hopefully get Karen on board. If not, I have a plan B.

I meet Frankie in the middle of our vehicles and tell him what I need. I hadn’t thought he would come prepared, but I was pleasantly surprised when he comes back from his truck with the 50k I need. I have a feeling I wasn’t going to be the only person coming into Texas. I can tell that Frankie is a little nervous about this exchange.

“What is it Frankie?”

“It’s nothing man. I just wonder what you need so much money for.”

“It’s nothing to concern yourself with. Just know if I call you for anything else, you will be ready. Got it?”

“Yeah man. You know if you’re in some sort of trouble I have your back. Call anytime.”

I give Frankie a quick nod and I watch him as he walks back to his truck. I take one more look at him before I do the same, thinking he has grown up a lot since the last time we did a job together and I turn to leave. 

I stop by a local grocery store right by the motel and I grab a few things I think we need for a few nights. I don’t plan on staying at one place for more than a few nights in case anyone tries to follow me. I don’t know if I want to take Karen to Mexico yet, but I hope she will be more willing with time. Maybe if I tell her what is going on she would want to go.

If I do tell her some of the things I have done, I will have to be straight up with her. Totally honest about it all. First, is telling her my name isn’t Josh. I hate when she calls me that. 

As I make my way down the aisle in the grocery store, I’m not picky with the items I grab and put into my cart. I don’t fight the surge of pride that courses through me as I stand in line to pay for the items I picked up. Providing for my woman. The thought makes my cock twitch and I start to tap my foot impatiently waiting for the lady in front of me to finish paying. Whether Karen knows she is mine or not, isn’t the point. She will soon know who she belongs too. Finally I am able to pay for the items and I notice the cashier hasn’t looked up at me once. This is good. If for some reason the authorities question her, she won’t have a clue what I look like. That makes it easier for us to disappear. I walk back outside and my forehead starts to sweat. I wipe it off with my shoulder on my shirt. I open the car door, and the heat from inside forces me back. I get in, and wish my seats weren’t leather. My ass is on fire, and I can barely touch the steering wheel to drive off. I suck it up, knowing I need to get back to the motel. Yes, I realize the motel I chose is a dump, but like I said before, it was the perfect location at the time. I drive back as quickly as I can. I pull in the lot and I park right by our door. I grab the shit and I pull out the room key. When I walk in, I am expecting to hear the shower still going, or at least see Karen on the bed waiting for me. What I see instead makes me fucking furious. 

The room is untouched. If Dominic had broken into the room, he wouldn’t have left it looking like this. He isn’t the type to leave anything undisturbed. I know she fucking ran. I feel the rage coursing through my veins. My heart starts to pound, and I scan the parking lot seeing if she might still be here. I have no clue where she would go, and the thought of something happening to her sends emotions that I have never felt before all throughout my body. I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, hoping she didn’t do anything stupid. If she fucking gets hurt or worse, I don’t think I could move on from that. And knowing she ran from me, makes the darkness inside of me fight and claw its way out. I try to fight it back down, but fuck, the urge to let go and let it out is stronger. Somehow, I manage to regain some sort of control. I have to be in full and complete control to be able to think. 

Goddammit! I wasn’t gone more than thirty minutes. I toss the bags down and I walk back outside. There is no way she could’ve gotten far. I figure she only has about ten or fifteen minutes ahead of me, and she doesn’t know where we are. I hope some poor asshole doesn’t give her a ride, because I am in no mood to let anyone walk away untouched. 

I can’t tell you why I turn right instead of left as I pull out of the motel’s parking lot. I am going on pure instinct, and something is telling me to go right. I drive around for a good twenty minutes before I see her. She is walking on the side of the road, trying to flag down someone to give her a ride. A black sedan pulls up beside her, and she gets in the damn car. Why would she get inside a strangers vehicle is beyond me. Does she not realize that stranger can take her anywhere and do anything they want? I might be a monster, but there are still worse monsters out there. 

Breathing deeply does nothing to calm the seething, I’m trying to calm myself down enough to follow them. I notice the car isn’t going to the highway, but instead is taking Karen to a bad part of town. My anger turns to dread. This part of town is the worst part. And fuck, being a monster myself, it is telling me that this guy is just as bad as I am. 

I make sure my 9mm is loaded and turn off the safety. When the car pulls in front of a crack house, I know why that bastard brings her here. There is a mark on the side of the house and I know all too well what that sign means. Karen, I am sure, is freaking out by now. The sedan parks and I jump out of my car in a flash.

The driver doesn’t even see me coming to his side of the car. I take him by surprise when I jerk him out of the car. The asshole thinks he can wiggle his way out of my grasp, but I refuse to let him go. The things I know he would do to Karen just adds fuel to my rage. I hear her run to me, telling me to stop hitting him, to stop what I am doing. I have no control over my actions at this point. The monster within has broken free and it will not stop until it’s finished.

Again I blame Karen for this fucking mess. I turn my gun to the bleeding bastard, and not even thinking twice of it, I pull the trigger. I fire four times before lowering my gun. His blood running down his chest, staining his shirt lets me know he’s dead. I can’t risk him telling anyone about Karen and me. I turn to Karen, and the look I see on her face instantly makes me regret killing him in front of her. Her screams send chills down my spine.

The chills don’t come from how horrified she is of me, or how disgusted she is. It’s from the kill. From standing over a man’s lifeless body and feeling that rush of power run through my veins. The rush I get from taking someone else’s life is unlike anything. Fuck, the high it gives me, it’s almost as good as sex. 

A part of me knows I should not be feeling this way after taking someone’s life. I tell myself over and over that I will stop and I will never do it again, but the truth is, I instantly start to crave the next before this body turns cold. It is my darkness. It feeds off the power and all the intense feelings I have after. I have no idea if I can ever stop being this way. 

I hear Josh shut the motel door, and I breathe a sigh of relief. I don’t want a shower anymore; I just want to get the hell out of here. I slowly open the bathroom door, hoping he didn’t forget anything, or decides to come back. I have no idea where he is going, not that I want to know, but I need to leave soon if I am to get a head start. I am also thankful I don’t have any of my belongings with me now. It will be easier just to leave and not have to worry with dragging a bag in this god awful heat. I look out the motel window, making sure he is gone from the parking lot. I don’t want to risk him seeing me leave. I also knew if he did, I wouldn’t like that out come at all. 

I don’t think twice when I leave the motel room. I scan the parking lot, seeing Josh’s car missing. With my hearting pounding in my chest and ear, I quickly walk towards the motel’s office. I push and pull on the door, but when it doesn’t open, I notice a small sign saying ‘Will be back in five minutes’. Unbelievable. I know the person working for today won’t be back in five, because they’re never on time. I don’t want to waste any time waiting, so I start walking, not really caring which way I go. I have no idea where I am. I just want to leave and just to get as far away as possible from Josh. It is the only thing on my mind right now. It is a struggle not to run, but I don’t want to have any attention drawn to me. How odd would it be to see a woman running in jeans and a T-shirt? Not to mention the fact that I probably looked as lost as I feel. Yeah, it is best not to grab any attention. 

I don’t know how well Josh is at tracking people, and I don’t want anyone being questioned about me either. I make it out of the parking lot, and I head right, down the main road. I don’t know how long I walk in this direction. Every step gets a little easier, and my confidence grows with each step that I’ve gotten away. 

I turn to see if I can flag someone to stop and hopefully give me a ride. I’m not sure how much longer I can stand this heat. I’m really sweaty and my shirt is starting to stick to my body. My mouth is getting so dry from lack of hydration. I try to swallow, and lick my lips, but since I have gone so long without anything to drink, even these small things are hard to do. I know if I keep going like I am, I will have a heat stroke. I am thankful when a black sedan pulls up beside me and slows down. The driver rolls down the window and asks if I need a ride. I don’t bother saying anything while opening the door and getting in. Not once do I think about what the stranger might do, or who he is. All I am thinking of is getting the hell out of the heat. The cool air from within the car is a welcome relief. My health is my priority and everything else gets pushed to the back of my mind. The driver seems nice enough. He’s wearing a plain white shirt and jeans. He doesn’t seem to be putting off any killer vibes, but then again what do I know. Josh seemed like a nice guy too. I don’t get out much. I would much rather be at home watching a movie and having popcorn or curling up with a good book. Pretty much anything to keep my mind off things of the past. 

He pulls away from the curve and I ask, “Can you take me to the police station?” He doesn’t say anything in return, but I take it on blind faith that he will take me there. The man drives around for a bit, but I notice he doesn’t get on any main highways. He keeps turning down back roads, and frankly, I am starting to regret my decision of getting in this car with him. It shouldn’t be taking this long to get to the police station. Even if I’m not familiar with the area, I know something is off about this. What’s even creepier, the guy never says a word once I get into the car. He doesn’t turn on the radio, or try to make any type of conversation. He just holds onto the wheel and stares straight ahead. Almost as if he is on a mission for something. Panic starts to bubble within. He misses the turn for the highway, and I see him pass by three more exits. I really start to become more aware of my surroundings. Even if I don’t really know my way around this place, I know the empty streets he’s turning down now are not a good sign. I see a gas station, but my heart sinks when I realize it has an out of business sign hanging on the front window. I need to get out of this car.