Chapter 22: one

LUCA

Adiv and I pull up to this building that’s placed discreetly between a bunch of other ones. In fact, the businesses on either side of it look like just that—regular places of business. I guess it’s a good idea because they’re hiding in plain sight.

Nero is parked nearby by the looks of it, because he gets out of the vehicle the second he spots us parking. He seems glad to see us, excited even to get to the job at hand. He looks the same way a dog might look as its owner pulls up to a park—he’s ready to play.

Tonight is a job a bit more serious than the other robbery jobs we’ve been sent on in the past. Previously, we’ve been asked to steal cars. This evening, it’s drugs.

A lot of drugs.

There’s a plan in place—someone, somewhere is looking out for us and will kill the electricity to the building just as we’re about to break in. It’ll allow us to hopefully sneak by any security systems undetected, thereby making our job a thousand times easier.

I’ll admit, it feels weird as hell being here. I can vividly remember some of the first jobs I ever did for Cain all those months ago. Stealing cars was something that had me anxious, nervous that I’d get caught and end up dead. I was paranoid over every little thing.

Now I’m about to steal six duffel bags full of drugs. It’s making me feel like I’m a snake that’s shed its skin. In the process of my original goal of trying to take down Cain’s empire around him and get him and everyone who works for him in prison, I’m not sure I recognize myself anymore.

One thought that keeps swirling in my head is that I’m finding myself enjoying this job. Sure, there are small parts of it that I still don’t like, but there are so many aspects of it that I prefer over what I was doing before Cain Brooks hired me.

Can I defeat these men—these demons, this evil—if I enjoy working alongside them?

The shit I’ve seen some of these men do, it doesn’t horrify me like it once did and I’m aware of that fact. Of how I’ve changed in that manner. If Cain cut off another man’s fingers like he did with Dario, I wouldn’t be as sickened about it.

In fact, I think I’d sleep just fine.

Even after I’d removed Kash’s fingers, it didn’t affect me the way I thought it would. I can still vividly hear the sound of his digit bouncing off the toe of my shoe, but it doesn’t make me want to vomit like it should.

That somewhat terrifies me.

Or it should.

I actually don’t even like the idea of Kermit roaming free out there somewhere. I feel like I’ve begun thinking like Cain because I don’t feel comfortable knowing that cockroach is alive. The idea that he laid hands on Raven still eats at me.

I’m not sure if his punishment was suitable for the crime anymore and that’s an intense thought.

My lingering anger about Kermit has me thinking about taking Marco down too. As my rank under Cain rises, I feel more powerful with each day that passes. It does give me a sense of invincibility, but I’m not moronic enough to actually believe that.

I haven’t figured out an angle to fix Raven’s problem. I still don’t want to kill Marco. As much as I hate the piece of shit—I especially detest the way he is with her—I reckon killing him will create more problems than it will solve.

I think cutting the head off that particular snake will cause it to grow two more and I don’t like the sound of that.

Besides, I’m not sure what to think of Diablo as things stand. If he’s as nice as he outwardly appears, shouldn’t I feel bad if I’m going after his son? Or is it just business? Business that he wouldn’t hesitate to do if he was in my shoes?

I haven’t found any sort of weakness in that sense. Although, I’m not sure if Raven has either. She hasn’t mentioned anything to me of particular importance. I know she said they call him Reaper, but I have no idea why. It could be any number of reasons, ranging from a nickname to annoy or make fun of him, to something more serious like the fact that he’s known for his violence.

I don’t like the idea of the latter, but I understand it’s something I have to consider. I truly don’t know him or the Cardoso business well enough to know for certain.

There are still so many unknowns and I feel as if I’m driving myself crazy trying to decipher them all. It’s fascinating as hell, of course, but it’s frustrating. Everyone has a reason to be tightlipped and I need to teach myself better social skills to get people to find comfort in me and want to be vulnerable and confess.

Not sure if I’m skilled enough for that though.

I also haven’t stopped thinking about the night in the hotel between Raven and I. I slipped again. I fucked up.

Difference this time? It’s not bothering me nearly as much. In fact, I can’t stop replaying everything in my mind. The feeling of being in her mouth, and down her throat. The look in her eyes as she swallowed all of me. The taste of her on my tongue. The sound of her whimpers as I buried my face in her pussy and ate her like my life depended on it.

There’s some part of me that believes it happened just as it was meant to. As it was supposed to.

She went to dinner with my cum in her stomach. Ate dinner across the table from her fiancé as if she didn’t have her legs spread for me, crying out my name as she needily ground her pussy against my face.