Fresh Meat

I looked over at Harry, not sure what to do. He looked simply terrified.

I gulped. Then stood up and went to a drainpipe by the edge of the roof.

I’m not sure what made me obey Hael’s command. I should have been running as fast as possible in the other direction.

But I wasn’t.

His eyes. The way he zeroed in on me, like he knew where I was without having to search for me. It was like I was powerless, drawn to him, compelled to follow his commands without thought.

I grabbed hold of the pipe and slid to the ground where I paused to shake off whatever was causing me to blindly follow Hael and get a hold of myself. ~Don’t show fear. Don’t show fear.~

If he was going to have me arrested, fine. But I would hold my head up all the way to prison.

I marched over to him and glared up, straight into his eyes. He looked even bigger up close.

He raised a massive arm, and I flinched, ready for him to slap me.

But instead, he held out his hand to me.

“Hael Dobrzycka,” he introduced himself. His voice was deeper than his brother’s, but not as gravelly. It had a nice silkiness to it.

“So?” I said, trying not to sound like I was shaking in my boots.

He just stared at me, and then he reached forward and grabbed my hand, swallowing it with his.

The moment I touched him, I felt a jolt of electricity shoot up my arm and into the pit of my stomach. It hurt, but in a weirdly good way.

And then I felt something shift inside me. But not like I was going to be sick.

More like there was a creature inside me who had been sleeping for a long time.

And now it was waking up and getting ready to come out and play.

Which made zero sense whatsoever.

Hael didn’t take his eyes off me, and it was like he could see into my soul, into the deepest recesses of my very being.

He finally unclasped our hands, sliding his fingers along my palm.

I shivered at the touch. This was something new for me. Something unexpected. And I wasn’t sure how to react.

~Stop freaking out. Stop freaking out.~

I repeated the words over and over again in my head as Hael Dobrzycka walked me wordlessly to see Elle, the headmistress of the residential center. I still had no idea why he was here.

On the same day that I stole from his brother…

I should have run. Right then. The only rational thing to do was get the hell out of there, but I wasn’t thinking rationally.

I didn’t know if it was fate, or destiny, or something else, but…

I felt drawn to Hael.

Drawn to the power clearly visible in the bulging muscles of his back. To the way his hips moved as he walked.

Hell, even to the way his scent filled my nasal passages until all I could think about was him.

But what was he doing here? And why was I having this reaction to him?

I didn’t know, but I had to find out.

Hael walked into Elle’s office, pulling me behind him. The corrupt bitch jumped up in surprise as we entered.

“Mr. Dobrzycka, this is such a pleasant surprise,” Elle said, flustered. “I…I didn’t expect such a late visit. I would’ve freshened up.”

“I’m not here for you,” Hael said coldly. “I’m here on business.”

“About the fu-funding?” Elle gulped.

I fought the chuckle that threatened to escape. The kids at the center all knew Elle lined her pockets with the funding the center received from Req Enterprise, but her terror at the possibility that the money would disappear was amusing.

Without the Dobrzyckas’ money, she wouldn’t have anyone to pilfer from and feed her excessive lifestyle. No more late nights out drinking at the hippest clubs or wearing the latest fashion trends. And forget about upgrading to the latest phone every six months.

It would have been nice, just once, to see some of that funding.

“I have an opportunity for one of your residents,” Hael replied. “My brother and I need an assistant. It would be an…~internship~, of sorts. And we thought it would be a good…learning opportunity. One of the many ways we can give back to the community.”

I shook my head. Who did he think he was kidding? ~Give back to the community.~ Like he ever thought of “the community” or what we have to go through on a daily basis just to survive.

Elle glanced at me standing behind Hael and tilted her head toward the door. It was a clear sign that she wanted me to leave the room, but I smirked at her and held my ground.

She cleared her throat and turned back to Hael. “I could recommend several of our—”

“I’m looking for someone specific,” he said, cutting her off. “Someone young. Female.”

“Oh,” Elle said, raising her eyebrow and smiling. “How young are we talking? Sixteen? Fifteen? Thirteen? There are plenty of girls here that might…~satisfy~ your needs.”

My stomach wrenched tight, and I dug my nails into my palms.

That bitch—she’d sell any one of us for a damn dime.

“You misunderstand,” Hael said, shooting Elle a disgusted look. “This is purely professional.”

“Oh, of course. I wouldn’t suggest otherwise,” she said, trying to backtrack. “What qualities are you looking for? I can create a list for you to go over.”

Hael turned wordlessly and pointed to me. Elle’s eyes went wide. Hell, so did mine.

~Shit!~

In all my years of pickpocketing, I’d never once been caught. I didn’t think it was possible.

But a Dobrzycka was right here, wanting to take me away.

How had Loch identified me? He only saw me for a split second.

I was fast.

The fastest.

It didn’t make a lick of sense.

Unless…

Shit.

There was probably an engraving on the back of the watch. Meaning it would stick out, be noticeable as one-of-a-freaking-kind.

~Dominic, you stupid son of a bitch.~

He probably tried to pawn it somewhere where they tracked that sort of thing. And the minute it popped…

I could put the rest of the pieces together:

~The Dobrzyckas track down Dominic.~

~Dominic sells me out.~

~Yours truly is royally screwed.~

***

As I sat in the back of the limo that was sent to pick me up in the morning, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for myself.

I was heading to an unknown fate. I had no idea what the Dobrzyckas had in store for me, but it felt like I was heading to my execution.

Who knew what they would do to me? For all I knew, I was probably going to spend time behind bars. All because of a stupid watch.

Everything I’d been fighting for. Every side hustle and scam. They were all for nothing.

And the worst part was I might never get to see Darshan or Harry again. The only family I’d ever had.

Nothing stung more right now.

It wasn’t like I’d ever had a ~real~ family.

My parents? They left me on the steps of an orphanage when I was two, leaving me with only a name—Madeline.

They’d abandoned me like I was nothing. Like I was no one.

Like I didn’t matter in this world.

When I was six, Darshan started calling me Maddie because I was “mad” all the time, and it stuck.

Cause that was what I was.

Mad.

Crazy.

It meant a series of foster homes, temporary residences, and eventually Greensward with the other street rats who had no hope of a future. Until we turned eighteen, then we’d be out on the street.

Once we were of legal age, we weren’t the city’s problem anymore. Well, until we wound up in jail. Or the morgue.

But I was determined to not go out like that. I was willing to do what I had to do to survive.

Looked like I’d finally gone too far. I was done for.

I’d spent most of the night staring at the ceiling, determined that I would pack a bag and make a run for it. I was sixteen, almost seventeen, and I could tough it out on the streets. I’d done it before, the few times I ran from foster homes or the center. But I’d always returned. I couldn’t leave Darshan and Harry for long.

But it wasn’t like I would be able to go back to them this time. I was sure, so sure I was heading to the police station.

So why didn’t I run? Why did I stay in bed until it was time to meet the car that Hael promised would pick me up at eight?

Hael’s eyes flashed in front of me, quickly followed by Loch’s smirk.

My heart sped up, which I didn’t think was even possible. But…it wasn’t terror. No, it was something more, something I didn’t have a name for yet. Something I was, maybe, willing to explore.

When the car parked, I felt resigned. I knew any second the doors were going to open, and the police were going to swarm me and throw me in the clink while news cameras captured the image of the idiot thief who thought she could steal from the most powerful people in Requiem City.

But when the doors opened, I wasn’t looking at the clink.

I was looking at a glass skyscraper that spiraled up into an open mouth, like that of a mythical animal. Instantly recognizable to anybody who’d grown up in Requiem City as the headquarters to Req Enterprise, the corporation run by the Dobrzyckas.

I didn’t know what fresh hell awaited me in that glistening building, but suddenly prison wasn’t sounding so bad.

The Dobrzycka brothers were known for being the most cruel, terrifying people in the city.

People who got in the Dobrzyckas’ way either knuckled under or…well, let’s just say there are rumors that the fish in the river are well fed.

And their company keeps the city afloat, funding everything from schools and community centers to the police and other social services organizations. Without Dobrzycka money, Requiem City would crumble.

It was foolish for me to try to steal from them.

They were basically the mafia.

I didn’t even want to imagine what fate awaited me.

I hesitantly stepped out of the limo. Private security escorted me inside, and I rode the elevator all the way up to the ninety-ninth floor.

When the doors opened, all I could see was red. The wallpaper, the floors, even the ceilings of the hallway—all bloodred.

The guard pushed me into the corridor and then stood in the elevator as the doors closed, leaving me alone.

~What am I supposed to do now?~