Horror Case

Chapter-3

Jennefir Mikhailov stared at me
with those doe eyes of hers and I
laughed on the inside at her
naivety. Ever since the sixth
grade, she'd looked down on me
and thought herself above reproach.
Bet she thought she was coming
here to meet the man of her dreams.
I'd held my tongue, or rather my
fingers, from what I really
wanted to say to her online.

Pretended to be a wuss. Pretended
I cared what she thought.

What had she said in ninth grade
when I got up the courage to ask
her out? Her words still rang in

"She's recovering from the flu and
I've got to get her home to
rest. Like most women, she pushes
herself way too hard."

With uncertainty in her eyes, the
waitress looked from me to Natalia.
"I don't know if you leaving
with her is a good idea."

"No problem." I set Natalia back
down and handed the waitress a
hundred-dollar bill. "Got any
change for this?"

"Ah, sure." She left but looked
over her shoulder at me, and I
gave her a salute.

When they looked back at the
camera footage, they'd discover I
had stopped the feed before I
even walked in. As soon as the
waitress went to the manager in
the kitchen, I hiked Natalia up
under my arm and used my werewolf
power to blur out of there.

Outside, the sounds of the
Manhattan streets assaulted my
ears and I was glad for the darkness. It was easier to blur
with her in my arms and avoid any
traffic or other cameras. Still, I
made it look like she was drunk
and hanging onto me in case
anyone saw us. I pulled her
closer as she tried to struggle

against my hold. Her fresh scent
of espresso with too much sugar
and her tantalizing floral
perfume taunted me.

I grinned, enjoying how I felt
this time and how it added to the
thrill of making her freak out.
Excitement pulsed in my veins as
I carried her to my car.

She moaned, eyebrows furrowing as
she tried to get me in focus. I

I got her to my car in the
parking space I'd paid for ahead
of time for three-times the amount.
After I tossed her into the
backseat, I jogged around and
climbed into the driver's seat. My
Porsche purred as we sped down
the road. The boat was waiting
for us and I needed to get her to
my private island near Fort
Lauderdale before she woke up.
Fighting a hellcat without solid
ground beneath my feet wasn't my
idea of fun. She'd be more than happy to push me overboard and
leave me to the sharks. Not that
I wouldn't be tempted to do the
same to her.

I sighed, stopping at a red
light. No. Not even for her could
I break my vow of never
physically harming a woman. I
glanced back at Natalia, softly
snoring and drooling over my plush
leather seat. Light graced her
face, flashing on and off with
the rhythm of the traffic
signals.

She looked so innocent, so
beautiful. But I knew what a
bitch she could be.
The light turned green and I
revved the engine, telling myself
not to get tangled up in her
looks or her lies. She'd no doubt
tell me whatever it was she
thought I wanted to hear to let
her go.

But it was the payment I was
looking for. Both to finally have
power over her and what happened,
and second, the money I was going
to get for helping the Golubevs
convince her father to vote how
they wanted. The bonus for me was
she'd never forgive me for this,
and I was just fine with that.

I coasted down the street to the
docks, parking my car at the edge of the available parking. All the
lights on the boat were out
except for the loading dock. I
jumped out of the car and opened
her door. I brought my hand to
the back of her neck, pressing
down to make her stand, but she
flopped around like a sleepy fish.
If things went south, she might
run out again, but at least she
wouldn't be able to run very far
in a tiny dress of hers showing
off her long, tanned legs.

The harbor was deserted for four
blocks and I didn't need to be
subtle any longer, so I hoisted
her over my shoulder. She felt so
light in my arms. I jostled her
up higher on my shoulder and hiked with her up the ramp. The
water below us rippled,
reflecting the moonlight on the
waves.

My nostrils flared at the salty
scent of sea air and fish stink
which lingered.

The crew knew better than to ask
me any questions, and the captain
saluted me when I stepped on
board.

I headed to the guest cabin,
where I'd already prepared for
this moment.

In case Jennefir woke up before we
reached the island, ankles and wrists, then laid her
on the bed. Dark curls tumbled
around her shoulders before
clinging to her multiple freckles,
and her ankles turned red at the
pressure of being bent.

She was so beautiful it hurt. She
looked like an angel, but I knew
she was a hellion. And she was
going to be so pissed when she
woke up. That thought brought a
smile to my face. it was so
sweet.

The next morning, the boat sailed
away from the island with the sun
as it rose over the horizon, its rays spilling on top of the water
with oranges and golds casting a
warm glow over everything in view.
Natalia softly snored with low
moans that made me wonder what
the hell she was dreaming as she
lay in the guest bed of my beach
house. I'd spent a fortune on
this island home, but it was all
mine. Who cared that it was paid
for with the blood of the mafia's
ordered killings. I slept just
fine.

Having a hard time resisting the
pull to see if Natalia's lips
were as soft as they looked, I
stood and walked to the kitchen
to make some coffee. She was
going to have one hell of a she woke up, but
that was better than her thrashing
and trying to claw my eyes out
when I kidnapped her.

Even the aroma of the coffee
brewing couldn't keep my mind off
her flowery scent. I wondered if
her being here for a week would
change it. That would be how long
before the vote on who would be
the next godfather in the
Solntsevskaya Bratva.

My mind wandered with the
possibilities of torturing her as
I dressed and sat at the kitchen
table, trying to read.

After my second cup, a groan sounded from the guest bedroom,
then a yelp.

A smile twitched at the corners
of my mouth and I slowly returned
to the room.

She glared at me from the floor
with hatred in her bright blue
eyes. "What the holy fuck,
Tomas?"

"You said you liked serial killers.
" I shrugged. "I wanted to see if
you meant it."

Her face paled, but she cleared
her throat. "Y-you proved your
point, now cut me loose." She offered me a brave smile, though
I could see fear radiating off
her in waves. I wanted to grab
her and hold her and never let
her go, but she had to understand
that this wasn't some weak
game she was playing at home with
friends on Facebook. This was real
life, and real life always had
consequences.

"Afraid I'm not going to be able
to do that." I cleared my throat. "
Not without some rules and your
promise to obey them."

drew herself up straight and

"Well then..." I moved to the
door.