Miscreants: Next Generation by Natalie Bennett (essential reading .txt) 📗

the empty stalls. He locked her in with the heavy padlock hanging on the exterior.

Once she was secure, he turned back to us.

Skipping right over me and Takara, he went to the blonde, giving her almost the same treatment.

The man who’d joined us and announced their supper would be ready soon stepped up on the blonde’s other side and ran a hand through her hair. It was nearly the same color as his but a shade lighter. She flinched, causing him to grin wickedly.

“Can I keep this one, Knox?”

Goggles turned his head. “Why in the hell would you want it?”

“Doesn’t she look like Danielle?”

“Ty, our sister would be mad as hell if she showed up and saw her.”

“She won’t get a chance to. I only need a day.”

The certainty with which he said that was disturbing.

“Come on, Knox. She’s clearly a heifer, not as valuable as the others.” He poked her right breast as if to prove his point.

“Plus, you’ve got these two still, the redhead, and that big guy. That’s four extras ahead of delivery day.”

“There’s that skinny gelding as well,” Jacob, who I’d determined was the guy in the Stetson, said.

“Fine, fine. But she better be gone before Dani gets here.”

Ty nodded like a child that had just gotten his way. When he went to reach for her, Knox knocked his hand away and dragged her forward, shoving her into the stall beside the redhead’s. “After Ma goes to bed, you can play. Not a minute sooner.”

He locked her up like he had the redhead and then moved to Takara. I sent her some strength, steeling my spine as she straightened and readied herself for him to touch her.

“You’ve got some beautiful silky-smooth skin,” he murmured, ripping her tank top in half. “Chest is on the smaller end though.”

“Pig.”

He glared and grabbed her jaw hard enough to make her lips pucker. “Watch your mouth.” His head dipped and he smiled, placing a kiss on the center of her chest. “It wasn’t an insult.”

I bit my tongue and looked at the ceiling. Tackling this asshole and kicking the shit out of him probably wouldn’t get me all that far, though it would surely make me feel better. I waited for him to find her insignia, but he completely missed it amongst all her other tattoos. Idiot.

Knox placed Kara in another of the stalls and locked her up. She was immediately at the rusted window grill, peering out to watch.

“You get to be last,” he said, stepping in front of me with a smile.

“Does that make me lucky?”

He smiled bigger, slicing down the front of my tank like he had the others. I remained stoic, not letting on how much this bothered me. Thank Satanas I wore a sports bra.

“You know,” he began, “I think I like you…?”

Did he think I’d volunteer my name? That was one of the most tried and tired tricks in the book. I knew my mouth had to remain shut. Keeping my face neutral, however, was easier said than done. The moment his grubby hands touched my skin, I wanted to headbutt him.

“Got anything on you I should know about?”

“Nope.”

He’d taken my holster and my bag already. The most lethal weapons I had could never be stolen from me, anyway. I got common sense from my mother and the reckless ability to raise hell from my father.

As his fingers trailed down both of my arms, I swear my skin shriveled beneath his touch. Why were his nails so jagged?

He flipped my left wrist, then the right. The moment he spotted the insignia on the underside, he froze. His head moved up and down as he looked from me back to the mark.

“Well, I’ll be damned.” His grip tightened and he lifted his goggles, revealing a dark shade of amber eyes and surprisingly well kempt eyebrows.

“What is it, Knox?” his friend with the dirty blonde hair, Tyson, asked.

“She’s one of them Stag fuckers.”

“Creed’s then? Or is that Lazarus?”

“It’s the same dang thing, Jacob. A conspiracy for the ages.”

It took me a second to remember that Creed was Amo.

I don’t know why he’d needed an alias, but what was more concerning was Knox knowing he and Samael played for the same team.

“She looks young,” Jacob said. “So does the Chinese one.”

Takara scoffed. What a piece of ignorant swine.

“Yeah, she does…” He leaned in, nearly pressing his nose to mine. “I’m old enough to be your daddy. Ain’t I, girl? I’ve always liked that.”

Ew. How dare he?

“Fortunately, my daddy has a lot more polish than you, and he isn’t into little girls.”

I expected pain in retaliation for that, but he simply shrugged it off. “That’s common in our family. The closer the kin the better.”

That wasn’t something I cared to know.

“I take it your friends came from the same place you did?”

I wasn’t confirming or denying anything when his motives were unknown. I had barely escaped him finding my other insignia tattoo—the one that marked me as a Savage.

“I’ll find out for myself.” He patted my cheek and stepped back, pulling me along to another stall. Once I was inside, he turned to his companions. “Call the boys, Jacob. We’ve got some stakes to raise.”

“What are you going to do with us?” the blonde whimpered from a few stalls down.

“I can’t tell you yet. It’d spoil all the fun.” He turned to Jacob. “Help me get the big fella situated, would ya?”

They took their leave, Knox calling over his shoulder before he slammed the barn door shut. “See you soon.”

I removed my torn tank and turned to Takara as soon as they were gone.

I couldn’t touch her due to the window bars being so close together,