Hot Redemption (19 page)

CHAPTER 19

Epic

As soon as Nix left, I crumbled to the floor. Hard dick or not, I was rattled. She killed Ice, just like that, with no pause for thought. She pulled the trigger. Boom. Ice was dead. I'd soothed her the best I could. The whole time stress pounded against my temples and my erection pressed through my pants. My mind fogged into insanity and horniness.
She's making me crazy.
Even now I balanced on the edge of madness as Ice's corpse lay a few feet from me. My nose itched for quake. My fingers shook in terror.

How do I get us both out of this? Is there a way, or are we both already fucked?
Any prehistoric robot could sniff a dead body out if the police were called. I'd heard that Trinity's security force owned high-tech androids. The planet's crime rate was the lowest in the galaxy. Even if I tried to hide the body, they'd discover the perpetrators.

I yanked out my phone, dialed Shade's number, and prayed to all the gods people kneeled to in time of need—the Duchess of Light, God, Jesus, Turpitude, etc. I crossed my fingers and closed my eyes as the phone rang three times.

Shade picked up on the fourth ring. I almost cried with joy. “Epic, everything okay?”

“No.” I opened my eyes and gazed down at Ice's body. “In fact, things couldn't be worse.”

I explained everything to Shade, from the moment Ice stepped to me until Nix left the closet. The whole time Shade cursed.

“Just get out of there, man,” Shade said when I was done. “Grab Nix and head home. We all got to leave the planet tonight. Forget about the hit.”

“Where in the darkness are we going to go?” I beat my hand against the door. “It was always about this hit. This was supposed to be the last one. Mimi would have money for college. The kids would be in better schools—”

“You stay there and you both will be dead or in jail. For murder, they'll put you on Saturn in the mines for life. You'll never see us again.”

I rubbed my hands against my face. The music outside the door maintained a faint thump that boomed at the same fast rhythm of my heart. Not many options existed—run, jail, or death. Could Nix and I get away with the murder? I doubted it. Someone had to see Ice and me go in. It wouldn't have been a big deal if Ice was alive, but now that she was dead, if someone investigated it, then people's memories would be jogged. Even worse, someone had to spot Nix burst into the closet with two guns. Being that she'd come in full of rage, I didn't think she'd had the forethought to sneak in. She'd been pissed.

“Epic?”

“I'm thinking.” I paced in the closet.

“There's nothing to think about.”

“We don't have the money to run. We put most of it on the house and schools for three months. We got enough for two weeks maybe on a cheap planet, which means back to earth.”

Shade cursed again and then said, “Nix shot her. Let Nix take the blame. Tell Ain and—”

“No! Don't even say anything like that again.”

“But—”

“I'm serious. I brought her in with us, promising we'd watch her back. I'm not going to just let her get caught to save my ass.”

“You mean to save all of our asses.”

“Shade, forget it.” I paused for a minute. “Fuck it. I might as well just say it. I love her, man.”

“Are you fucking serious? You just met her.”

“That being said, if Nix goes down, I go down with her.”

Silence passed on the line. I hated to do this to him and hoped he understood that it wasn't the case of Nix over our family, but that Nix was part of the family now, even though she was a trigger-happy psycho. She was still all mine, and I loved every part of her, even the parts that scared the shit out of me and would possibly give me nightmares next week.

“What do you want me to do?” Shade broke the silence.

“Grab Toy and as many guns as you can—”

“What the fuck, Epic?”

“We're robbing Dynamics tonight. Nix and I. I need you and Toy to pick us up. We're on the bottom level now. There is no way we'll be able to get up to the roof without being killed. Get to the back exit on ground level—”

“This is crazy. I have no idea where the back exit is.”

“Ain will tell me. Trust me.” I glanced at my watch. He had to be working right now. “Just head here with Toy and as many guns as you can get. Be here in no less than fifteen minutes.”

“Fuck!”

“We'll run out. You shoot anyone chasing us. We jump in the car and you speed off.”

“This is your grand plan?”

“For now it is.” I hung up and dialed Ain's number. He answered after the first ring.

“Epic, my man,” Ain said. “Are you finding everything okay downstairs?”

“No.” I snatched an old dancer's outfit off a hanger and covered Ice's face. “I need you to meet me on the bottom level. You know where that abandoned closet is in the far back?”

“Of course. Most of the managers do our thing in there with some of the nicer girls.” He laughed.

“Ice is here.”

“Y-yeah,” Ain stuttered. He had to know I realized he messed up.

“Come on down. As you've probably guessed, the plan has changed. I'll need your help with the new one.”

“Gotcha.”

I figured he would have taken longer, but he was more scared than I thought. It took him less than two minutes to arrive. He entered and shut the door. I snatched the costume off Ice's face. He screamed. I slapped him. My palm stung, but I bet his face hurt more.

He held the side of his face and pointed. “S-she's dead.”

“And you basically killed her.” I pulled out Nix's gun and rammed it in his mouth. “You told her about the hit man. Not a good idea. She thought she could suck me off and have me doing anything she wanted. What she never figured on, is me having a psychotic girlfriend who doesn't do well with females touching me.”

Ain mumbled something incoherent with the gun in his mouth. Sweat trickled down his face. I slid the gun out of his mouth. His bottom lip quivered. “The black-haired girl killed Ice?”

“You're a smart one, aren't you? Is there an exit on this level?”

“Yeah. It's a secret.”

“Now's the time to reveal it. We know you're not good with secrets, don't we?”

“I-it's next to this closet, but on the left further in the corner. You have to press the wall. A light comes on. It takes a thumb print to unlock.”

“Your thumb work?”

“Yes, but what are you going to do with me? We're family, man.” Water glazed over his eyes. Tears spilled out the corners. “I never had a way with ladies like you and Shade. I got to be the only guy who works in a strip club that almost never gets laid. When Ice approached me, I got a bit excited. Please don't kill me, Epic. Our mothers were sisters.”

“Calm down. I kept the point of the gun targeted at his forehead. “Answer me this. Who all knows that I'm your cousin?”

“Almost all the owners and Ted. He trained you.”

“The guy at the rooftop entrance?”

“Yeah.”

“Are the owners here tonight?”

“No. They all left, took a ship to the World Series.” Ain's attention centered on the gun. “They got box seats. Why are you asking man?”

“Because you're going to be my hostage.” I kicked the door open and wrapped my arm around his neck, towing him out the door. “Stay close to me and keep your damn mouth shut.”

He shrieked as I pulled him along.

“Party is over!” I shot a bullet into the floor. The music ceased. Everyone screamed. People jumped up and got ready to rush out. My fingers trembled. I hoped no one saw in the red light. “Stay where you are! My boys are coming down the stairs and anybody in their way is getting blasted with siphons.”

A woman on the right screeched in horror. Increasing my speed, I dragged Ain, in a headlock closer to the DJ I needed to make sure I had a good view of the entrance. Guards and bouncers would be here soon. Movement came from the side. A fat guy with his dick sticking out of his open pants jumped up.

“Sit down and pull your money out!” I pointed my gun at him.

“Drop your gun.” A male's voice sounded behind me and then a shot blasted. I turned around to see the man collapse to the ground. Nix stood behind him with a tiny gun in her hands.

How many guns did she bring into this place and when did she do it?

“I've got your back, baby.” She winked.

“I'm lucky you're with me instead of against me.”

“Very true.”

“Pull out your money!” she roared and held a plastic trash bag. “We don't discriminate. All planets' currencies are welcome.”

I laughed at her taking Toy's line. “Don't try anything special, guys or ladies. Let's keep this simple and quick. That way no one dies tonight and you can all go back to being teased by these lovely women. By the way, the ladies don't have to contribute, just the men.”

“Fuck that!” Nix shook her head. “I don't discriminate. Everyone drops their money in the bag tonight. That means ladies, androids, men, and whatever else is in here.”

I've created a monster or was she one already?

Either way it didn't matter. She was mine and I was hers. People piled in disks, cubes, flash drives with bank account info, and anything else Nix deemed was worthy of the bag. She traveled around the room in seconds. One guy she shot in the calf for taking too long. That guaranteed the rest of the people were ready for her when she arrived.

The entrance door opened. Without waiting to see who it was, I shot at the center. The siphon burned into Ted's chest. He cried out in pain and slumped down to the floor. I shot the guy behind him. “Nix, that's enough. Head to the back near the closet.”

“We only got half!”

“Get your pretty ass in the back!” I shot another guy and began dragging Ain back with me. Four more men appeared at the entrance. We were fucked. I could feel our deaths in my heart and taste them on my tongue. The chances of us making it out of the club dropped to low. Toy and Shade being outside of the club right now was most likely impossible. That meant we'd have to run through the city—an area we were unfamiliar with.

“Drop the gun.” One of the guards shot me in the arm. I gritted my teeth. Blood spilled and scented the air. Ain screamed. Crying out in rage, Nix blasted siphons his way. They left her gun in rapid motion. Smoke rose from the tip. Two guys dropped. Blood sprayed. Dancers fled the area, bumping into the rest of the guards.

“Come on, Nix!” I raced to the back and glanced over my shoulder to make sure she was following. She flipped off her heels and sped my way. I didn't move until she was in front of me. She clutched the bag to her chest. I shot a few siphons behind me, not even targeting anyone. I just wanted to cause hysteria in the crowd and I did. People jumped up and ran in all directions, pushing each other out of the way, knocking into the poor DJ, and trampling over the guards at the entrance.

“Open the door!” I yelled to Ain. Although his legs wobbled a little he tapped the area. The space lit up with a white glow in the shape of a door. A box appeared where a doorknob would be. He pressed his thumb there. A click sounded. The door opened. Cool air breezed in. Car horns blared farther away. Nix went through without being ordered. I shoved Ain in next. A shot bit into my lower side.

“Oh God!” My body banged into the wall. Blood spurted out of the wound. A gut-wrenching pain exploded in the area. I clenched my teeth. My vision blurred.

“No!” Nix pulled me through the door, screaming as she tugged. “Help me, Ain. Help me get him through, dammit.”

Another siphon pierced my other side. It hurt so much. I coughed. Blood coated my tongue and leaked out of my mouth. “Just go, baby. I'll meet you there.”

“Fuck you, Epic. I'm not going anywhere without you.” She yanked at me until I was all the way through. I crashed into her and Ain. We all fell down on the sidewalk. I shut my eyes. Someone slapped my face.

“It's not time to sleep, damn you!” Nix cried. “Get up! We have to go, baby. Help me, Ain!”

He said something. Or maybe there were others around. I battled to open my eyes, but my eyelids wouldn't budge. I lowered into myself.

I tried to talk, but blood poured out of my mouth. I needed to tell her to leave. She was so stubborn. Although I couldn't see, I knew she was there, shaking me. Her fragrance enclosed me, that aromatic blend of jasmine and rose. God, I was lucky to have met her—if not for just a few days, I'd held her close to me, skin pressed against skin. I licked every inch of her body, tasting her sweetness, relishing in the soft moans that left her lips. She'd been mine and nobody else's.

I reached my hand out to touch her. Her silky strands slipped through my fingers. She pressed my hand against her face. It was wet. I prayed tears didn't coat her cheeks as a soothing darkness devoured me.