The Skull Ruler Read online

  He turned back to me, the anger in his eyes. “I said I’m not risking you. And I won’t change my mind.”

  “No.” I locked my legs around his waist so he couldn’t pull away. “You’ve been gone every night for the entire week. Stay.” I slept in this enormous bed alone, his smell the only comfort I had. It didn’t matter how many times I begged; he never changed his mind. But I begged anyway…because saying goodbye was too hard. If I couldn’t let him go to work, I didn’t know how I would manage to let him go forever.

  He stayed buried inside me, his cock semi-soft because he’d just come inside me. “Baby, as much as I love watching you beg like this, you know I can’t stay.” He held his massive body on top of mine with just his arms, his biceps and triceps working together to lift a slab of bricks. “I’m an honorable man. Honorable men don’t abandon their post.”

  “But you’ve been gone every single night—”

  “That’s how it is sometimes.” He kissed the corner of my mouth as his cock slowly thickened once more. “Your pussy is a fucking magnet for my dick, but it can’t keep me here forever.” When his cock returned to full size, he started to move in and out of me, his length sliding past previous loads.

  “It can try…” My fingers slid into his hair, and I brought his lips to mine for a kiss.

  His mouth was immobile for a moment, like he wanted to resist me and turn away. But with his dick throbbing inside me, turning away my affection was impossible. His lips caressed mine, and soon he was giving me his tongue. His thrusts picked up speed, and then he was moaning against my mouth. “Fuck, you make me so weak.” He pushed completely inside me then pulled out again, moaning as he felt how wet I was.

  “I know how much my man loves my pussy.” My ankles released because he wasn’t going anywhere, and I widened my legs so he could position himself deeper inside me. I broke our kiss to stare at his expression, to see him abandon the fight altogether. Now all he could do was enjoy me, even if his men were waiting for him to show up at the Underground.

  “Yes.” His arms pinned my knees back so he could fuck me harder, make the headboard tap against the wall with his deep thrusts. “I love my woman’s pussy.” He worked up a sweat as he kept the quick pace for several minutes, taking longer to come because he’d already pumped so many of his loads into me that evening.

  “Stay inside me all night…” My hands moved up his chest, and I looked him in the eyes, seeing him stare back at me with sexy concentration. “You still need to fuck me in the mouth and the ass.”

  He stopped mid-thrust, his eyes closing for a second as my words caught him by surprise. “Jesus, baby.” He stopped and shuddered, his body tensing as he released inside me. He pumped another load deep inside me, moaning louder than before.

  I gripped his hips and pulled him tighter to me, getting every drop of his come.

  He breathed on top of me, his cock slowly softening. He rested his forehead against mine as he recovered, this Greek god covered in sweat. His breath slowed until his cock was completely soft inside me.

  “Stay.” My hands massaged his shoulders. “Please…”

  He pulled out of me gradually and let his come drip from my entrance. “You know I can’t.” He moved off the bed quickly, as if he was trying to get out of arm’s reach. “I’ll be home in the morning.”

  I pouted my lips as I watched him get dressed, disappointed I couldn’t get him to change his mind.

  He moved quickly, getting his clothes on fast before grabbing his phone. He seemed to be in a rush to get out of there as soon as possible. He adopted his usual coldness, like he hadn’t been buried inside me for the last few hours. Indifferent to my presence, he shut down all his human qualities.

  I sat up in bed, disappointed I couldn’t seduce this man. It didn’t matter how much he wanted me, his devotion to his position always triumphed over my desires. I was never the first priority. The Skull Kings were.

  He turned to me before he walked out. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  I’d lost the battle so I caved. “Alright.”

  He gave me one more glance before he walked out.

  When I heard the elevator open and close, I knew he was gone. I lay back in bed, full of his come, and went to sleep.

  8

  Balto

  After I made my rounds, I returned to the Underground. The men unloaded the van and carried all the cash into the main vault, a vault only I had access to. Every Skull King in the organization was rich, making millions every year for their deeds, but I wasn’t stupid enough to let anyone have access to the vault.

  I was surrounded by criminals, after all. We were all weak for pussy, but we were even weaker for cash.

  I locked the vault then returned to the main room.

  Heath was there, drinking with the rest of the men. When he spotted me across the room, he joined me. “I love payday.”

  “That makes two of us.” Denise put a drink in my hand without my having to ask. I sat on my throne and watched the men deplete all the bottles of liquor at the bar. If they were drunk, it wasn’t obvious, probably because we were all drunk all the time.

  “You’ve been at work every night this week.”

  “Got a lot of shit to do.”

  “Cassini must be disappointed.”

  “Don’t care if she is.” Watching that beautiful woman beg me to stay every night was a fantasy come true. She used her best resource to seduce me, the one of her features I couldn’t resist—her cunt. But it made me want to leave more often because I loved her performance. She was even better in bed than usual because she worked so hard to keep me by her side.

  He chuckled before he drank from his glass. “You really are heartless. If I had a woman like that waiting for me—”

  “But you don’t.” I stared straight ahead and ignored him.

  “Do you ever get tired of being an asshole?” he asked playfully.

  “Being an asshole?” I questioned. “I’m not being anything. I am an asshole.” My phone started to ring in my pocket, so I pulled it out.

  Lucian’s name was on the screen.

  Heath glanced at it then met my look. “Should be an interesting phone call.”

  I set my drink down then walked into the other room, away from the booming voices of the drunk men. I let it ring a few more times before I answered. “Is this the phone call where we talk a bunch of shit to each other before we actually do something? Because I’m not much of a talker. I’m a doer.”

  Lucian didn’t respond right away, taking a long pause like he was enjoying the conversation. “It is one of those phone calls. I’ll be making the threats—and you’ll be doing something.”

  “Alright, this should be interesting.” There was nothing Lucian could do to make me panic. Cassini was home safe and sound, so he had no leverage over me.

  “Case is in my custody. Unless you hand over Cassini, I’ll strap him with explosives and hit the detonator. Just as you took my brother’s body from the grave, I’ll destroy Case so there’s nothing to bury.”

  “This would be a great plan—except I don’t care about Case. The guy means nothing to me, and he certainly doesn’t mean more than Cassini. Come on, Lucian. You’re better than this.”

  “Maybe he means nothing to you, but he means everything to Cassini.”

  “All I have to do is not tell her. Problem solved.”

  He paused. “Dirk knows what happened. So if you don’t tell her, he will. I already know what your answer will be, but I’ll give you twenty-four hours to decide.”

  “I’m not giving her up. You’re wasting your time.”

  “Maybe you won’t. But she will.”

  It was a winter night, and the city was quiet. Everyone was staying warm in their homes, so the streets were vacant. I leaned against the truck in the compound while my brother faced me. My light jacket wasn’t warm enough to save anyone from the cold, but my high internal temperature made me invulnerable to the chill.

&nb
sp; Heath stared at me, in just a t-shirt. “What are you going to do?”

  Vapor escaped from my nostrils with every breath. “I don’t know.”

  “You have to tell her.”

  “I know.” But I also knew she would want to take his place. She would rather die than let something happen to her brother. I would have to force her to let him die—and she would never forgive me for it.

  The darkness was starting to fade away because the sunrise breached the horizon. Heath had his hands in his pockets to keep them warm from the cold. “We could try to hit Lucian as soon as possible.”

  “There’s not enough time. I have no idea where he is. And more than likely, Case is in a different location with the explosives already strapped to his body. If we really want to save Case, we would have to hand over Cassini—and that’s not going to happen.”

  “Cassini isn’t going to accept that.”

  “That’s too damn bad.”

  He shook his head slightly. “If he dies, you lose her anyway.”

  I knew how he meant those words, that Cassini would never look at me the same. She wouldn’t want me anymore. She wouldn’t allow me to touch her again, let alone look at her. “I guess I underestimated him.”

  We headed into the building and rode up on the elevator. Heath got off on his floor, and I got off on mine. Cassini wasn’t on the couch, which meant she’d slept in the bedroom all night. She was obviously getting better at accepting my absence overnight.

  I made dinner in the kitchen then entered the bedroom. I kicked off my shoes, stripped off my jacket, and dropped my clothes as I got ready for bed.

  Cassini must have heard the sound of my movements, because she sat up in bed and looked at me, her eyes heavy and lidded like she’d been sleeping soundly all night long. “Good, you’re home.”

  I sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her, dreading the conversation we were about to have.

  She leaned toward me and kissed me on the mouth. “How was your night?”

  I hardly kissed her back, and I didn’t answer her question. I stared into her beautiful eyes, seeing the happiness at my presence. Soon those emeralds would lose their innate light, and she would glare at me in hatred.

  When I didn’t respond, her eyes fell with suspicion, a cloud of unease settling in her gaze. “What is it?” This woman knew me so well that she could read the different variations of my stoic expression.

  I never hesitated to give bad news. There was nothing that could happen that would ever give me pause. I didn’t care about anything, so I had nothing to lose. But knowing how much this would hurt her made me hesitate. I saw the love that existed between her and her brother, the familial bond that was so powerful it could be seen with the naked eye.

  “Balto, you’re scaring me.”

  I’d never wanted not to hurt someone so much in my life. I wanted to protect her from this horrible truth. I wanted to kill Lucian and spare Case just to make this woman happy. “Lucian called.”

  “Okay…” She scooted closer to me, holding her breath in anticipation.

  I paused again, feeling like a coward for the first time in my life. “He has Case. Unless I hand you over, he’ll kill him.”

  She heard every word I said, but it took her eyes several seconds to react. They fell in despair, slowly drowning in darkness. Her body stiffened as her spine straightened, and her hand slowly moved over her mouth, stifling a scream that never came. “Oh my god…”

  I hated seeing the pain on her face. I was tempted to look down, but that would be cowardly. I’d witnessed gruesome things, but they’d never disturbed me like this. Seeing the film of moisture form in her eyes killed me. Whatever pain she felt, I felt it a million times over.

  A few tears escaped, but she didn’t sob. “No…” She dragged her fingers down her cheeks and wiped away the tears. “This can’t be happening…”

  I wished I could make this better for her, but I couldn’t.

  “I want him dead. I want to stab him in the throat with a knife.” She ran her fingers through her hair, and she digested her grief and rage at the same time. “This man has done nothing but ruin my life. He needs to die.”

  My hand went to hers. “I’ll get him—eventually.”

  She squeezed my large fingers. “I know you will. Too bad I won’t be alive to see it.”

  This was the exact response I’d been expecting. “Baby, you know I can’t let you take his place.”

  “Why? Do you have a better idea?” she asked hopefully.

  “No. I don’t know where Lucian is, and I’m sure Case is in a second location.”

  “Why would he be in a second location?”

  I wanted to keep this from her, but I couldn’t. “Lucian said he’ll strap him with explosives and—”

  “Oh my god.” She covered her face with both palms.

  My hand went to her thigh. “Baby—”

  “I can’t let that happen to him.” She dropped her hands. “My brother doesn’t deserve this. My brother isn’t a part of this. I love him so much, and I refuse to let this happen. I would rather die a million times than let him suffer.”

  “I know, but—”

  “I’m taking his place.” She spoke with a steady voice but wet eyes. “You can’t make me stay here. You can’t make me stand aside and do nothing.”

  “And you expect me to let you hand yourself over to Lucian? That I’ll just let this happen? Case wouldn’t want you to.”

  “I don’t care what he wants. This has nothing to do with him, and it’s unfair. This is between Lucian and me. I never should have submitted to him for Evan, and I regret it. But I’ll regret not saving my brother every day for the rest of my life. I’ll be so depressed that I’ll kill myself eventually. It doesn’t matter if Lucian tortures me every day until I beg for death. I would gladly accept that fate as long as Case is free.”

  If I were being objective, I would admire her for her courage. She was willing to sacrifice herself for her family, and there wasn’t a hint of hesitation in her voice. Her love blinded her to the pain, blinded her to reality.

  “Let me go, or I will kill you.” She looked me in the eye as she threatened me. “If you don’t let me go, I’ll never stop fighting. I’ll never forgive you. I’ll never let you touch me again. If Case dies, I die. And I would rather be the only person who has to make that sacrifice.”

  Her determination was powerful, and no amount of reason would change her mind. All that mattered was her brother’s life, and nothing else was important. She meant every word she said, and unless she got what she wanted, she would never be the same.

  She left me with no choice. “Alright.” I wasn’t happy about this decision. I wasn’t happy about the way it would affect me. But my woman wanted this more than anything else in the world—and I would give it to her.

  I stood in Heath’s apartment and made the call.

  “So,” Lucian said. “What’s your answer?”

  “We agree to the trade.”

  Lucian was quiet for a long time, obviously surprised by the decision. “If this is a game, you’ll lose.”

  “No game. And you better not pull a stupid stunt either. I’m bringing an army with me, and I’m not afraid to go to war.”

  “That won’t be necessary. Case is worthless, so I have no issue giving him up. Cassini, on the other hand… You said you would never give her up.”

  “This was her decision. I tried to talk reason into her, but she refused to listen.”

  “Yes,” he said. “She has a big heart…that’s always been her destruction.”

  That woman still had the power to love despite what she’d been through. Evan betrayed her, but she was still willing to make the same mistake for her brother—because she loved him so deeply. It would make my life easier if she were selfish and left her brother to his fate, but I probably wouldn’t feel this way about her if that were the case. “Then we have a deal.” I hung up.

  Heath stood beside me, h
is eyes watching my reaction. “You’re really going to do this?”

  “Yes.”

  Heath didn’t try to talk me out of it even though it was the worst plan I’d ever had. “And I can’t talk you out of it?”

  I shook my head. “No. There’s no other way.”

  9

  Cassini

  Balto made the right decision.

  If he’d stood in my way, I would have clawed my way out. I would have found one of his guns and shot him if I had to. Nothing was going to stop me from saving Case, my older brother, the patriarch of my family.

  I had to save him because I loved him. But I also had to save him because this wasn’t his fight. He was an innocent person being punished because he loved me. I was the idiot for sacrificing myself for Evan. That was how all of this started. Case shouldn’t be the one to pay for it.

  I was certain he hoped I wouldn’t agree to the exchange. He would rather die so I could be free.

  But I couldn’t let that happen.

  Thankfully, Balto didn’t stop me. He understood my love for my brother outweighed everything else. He knew I would never be happy if Lucian murdered Case. He knew I had to do this. I bet he even respected me for it.

  The three of us drove in the blacked-out SUV to the meeting point in the middle of Tuscany. It was pitch-black and foggy from the winter cold. The exchange would take place in the middle of nowhere so there would be no witnesses.

  I’d thought I would be scared, but I wasn’t afraid at all.

  Not in the least.

  If anything, I was anxious.

  I wanted my brother to be free as soon as possible. Once Lucian had his hands on me, he would beat me, rape me, and then crush my skull.