The Butcher of the Bay: Part II (Mounts Bay Saga #2)

by J. Bree

I met little Matteo D'Ardo at the group home. We slept in different rooms, the little psycho was years younger than me and I didn't notice him when he first arrived. Everyone knew his story though, everyone knew that he'd slit his mother's throat while she slept, escaped juvie because of the state that the emergency services found him in.

There's a garden trowel sticking out of his fucking eye socket buried far enough that the jelly-like eyeball has oozed out and his brain matter is starting to show. I stare over at him and then I see D'Ardo. Skinny little fucking thing, all arms and cheekbones, but his eyes are fucking clear and sure. He knew what he was doing and this is an olive branch, a gesture of friendship. I take it. I take it because even my own worthless father didn't throw down like that for me, no one had done that shit for me since my mom was hacked to pieces.

"You can't kill a member of the Twelve, Johnny. The others will come after you."

So I lie. "My friends call me Illi." Too bad he was never my fucking friend.

The Jackal sends his regards. The Jackal sends his regards. The Jackal sends his mother fucking regards, I will choke that fucking cunt out while I bathe in his goddamn blood.

told you to get a side project, not lose your fucking balls to some used up pussy. I'll get her out of the way, take a day or two to get your head together, and then we can meet up for drinks at the Dive. You just needed a little reminder of who you are, Johnny-boy."

"Listen to me, D'Ardo, and listen good. We're done. There's not going to be drinks or meet ups. No more going out hunting together, no calling me when shit goes south. You've burned this bridge and I'm not a viable option for you anymore but what's worse... if Odie has been harmed in any way, she get's a fucking splinter or a fucking broken nail between when you took her and when I get her back... you remember what I did to the Barracuda right? Fuck me, you'll be praying for that death by the time I'm through with you."

“The first two numbers are both down at the docks. I mean at the fishing side, nowhere near your digs. The Jackal is showing up at his vaults but he's definitely not there. I've tracked his bodyguard’s phone and that's showing up crossing state lines. It’s moving, they’re in a car. There's no way Luca is going anywhere without the Jackal. He doesn't take a shit without Luca watching and wiping his ass.” Luca. The blond idiot.

"You know the Wolf killed my mom for me, right? Gutted the selfish cunt while she slept in her bed. Never said a word about it to anyone, never narked on me to the Crow or fucking anything." I grunt in reply. Sounds exactly fucking like her, too. "She called me and told me she was vouching for you, anything you needed I should give you and square with her later. If she trusts you then, fuck it, I guess I'll give you what you need without the fucking lip... even if it does make the job fucking boring."

The moon is hanging high in the sky, shining down on us and illuminating the apartment so I can see the room clearly. The smiling man at the door has four men with him but I know exactly which of them is in charge. The thick black lines tattooed on his face make the smile look even more terrifying, the grin is something savage on his handsome face.

"Ah, look. There is some fire in you! I was a little disappointed to begin with, whore. I thought Johnny-boy had lost his balls over some pathetic little piece of ass. At least you'll be fun to play with." Absolutely not. Never again.

The smiling man looks me over and then says, "Look, it's nothing personal. I don't give a fuck about pussy at the best of times and used up pussy? Nah, not for me. It's just you've fucked with my friend and that's not part of my plan. He's a little... lost at the moment. He's not on the right path, I need to get him back to where he belongs, in the cage and working for me."

Luca grimaces and glances over his shoulder, quietly shutting the door and walking over to me with his hands raised. "It's okay, Odette. I'm not going to hurt you, I'm trying to get backup and to get you out." I blink at him. He knows my name.

"Look, I need to tie you to the bed so the Jackal doesn't know I'm trying to help you but... I can stop anyone from hurting you. I can get them to leave you alone until I can get you out."

"Are you friends with Illi?" I murmur. He shakes his head and glances over his shoulder at the door again. "That man hates me but it doesn't matter. I'm not helping you because we're friends... I try to help whichever of the Jackal's victims I can. It's... a long story and I can't tell you half of it. Just know that I'm trying to get you out."

Please, don't let him hurt her. Don't let him torture her with his personal brand of fucking evil. Not my baby girl.

It brings me to a tiny little fucking house. It's then that I realize that I don't know real torture, not until I find it fucking empty. Fucking. Empty.

A hand grabs my arm and I turn on my heel ready to shoot some biker scum between the eyes, only to come face-to-face with Colt motherfucking Graves. He looks a little less beat up than the last time I saw him but fuck does he look pissed. Why the fuck does he look so familiar?

Harbin grimaces and rubs his face. "Fuck man. What’s happened?" I fill him in, ignoring the biker kid still standing there full of fucking attitude but watching me with careful eyes. Fuck it, I don't even care. “Fuck, what did the kid do to get him to leave your girl? She really took one for the team like that, man, you’re right about her.“

“Fuck, of all the nights to have fucking hell break loose with your jealous jilted lover. After the demons took out the Dive we let them take Roxas as a trap, so now we're about to take out as many of the fuckers as we can. That’s going to eat up a whole fucking heap of the night though, man… if you’re on board to clean house then we can bounce. I just need to get Roxas back.”

"What are you doing here then? Turning on your club?" The scowl he gives is a good one, fucking fierce. "I live and bleed for the Demons, dickhead. I'm here because the Butcher was about to get his fucking head blown off and I knew there was a sweet blonde waiting for him back home. I don't know much about heaven and hell but I know when my soul is in danger of permanent damage and hurting that angel ain't what I'm about."

I blow out a breath when I see it’s Lips. "What do you have for me, kid?" “I found her. I found who bought her, one of the Vulture’s old contacts. I’m heading back to the group home to grab my supplies, come get me.” I tip my head

I grin and start jogging to my own car, jerking my head at Harbin and Roxas to get them moving too. “I’ve sent him a little ‘Fuck you’ gift, kid. Don’t you worry bout a thing.” She chuckles under her breath. “I’m sending you the coordinates but make sure you come grab me, yeah? You know I'm coming. You know nothing is stopping me from being there and gutting anyone that's touched her." I could fucking weep at her conviction but I don't have that sort of shit in me so instead I hang up and get to my car.

"Lord Devareux is a very rich man. He has paid a lot of money to be able to enjoy your company, do you understand? He will give you a life you cannot have anywhere else."

"He has saved many girls from those auctions. They all are very grateful to him and he keeps in touch with them all after he gets them home. Is there somewhere you can return to?"

Growing a conscience is fucking wild, man.

We pull up outside the building Odie is being kept in and I tear out of the car. Even if they did have serious firepower, I have Kevlar and enough weapons that I'm not fucking worried. The kid moves with a little more caution behind me but she doesn't call out to me or attempt to hold me back. She just follows me up to the doors of the fucking hellish mansion Odie is trapped in with a motherfucking rapist. Solid as a fucking rock, she’s got my back.

We make it to the end of the hall, every room being fucking empty and this is the last fucking option. If she’s not in here then either there’s a basement or… I’m not fucking thinking about any of the other options. I grab the handle. The door is fucking locked. Blinding, fierce rage over takes me. She has to fucking be in here and some fucking piece of shit is with her, I can fucking feel it. I rear back to kick the door in until the wood splinters and just fucking flies away from my boot. I charge into the room but only make it three steps in before I falter to a stop, the kid swearing behind me as she nearly slams into my back. Odie is sitting on a bed, wearing only my shirt from days ago, covered in blood. I'm too late.

Finally, after I’m sure he’s no longer able to move, I stop stabbing him and with shaking arms I slit his throat just to be extra sure he’s dead.

The popping sound is closer this time and then I jump at the ear-splitting sound of the door shattering away from the doorframe. Mon Monstre is here for me, his face the picture of devastation.

"Where are you bleeding, baby girl? Fuck, where, baby? Kid, grab me something to stop the bleeding!"

"Illi—" "Gimme the fucking thing! Baby, tell me where the blood is coming from!" His hands are desperate. I find my voice, rough as it is, "It's not my blood, mon Monstre." He blinks at me, his hands still moving around, and Lips says, "Illi, the buyer is dead at my feet. Odie took care of it herself."

"Well, fuck me. Baby girl, you did a fucking great job of it too," he murmurs into my hair and I preen at the compliment. I did do a great job of it.

"I need you in the Kevlar, baby girl. We've taken care of everyone but I'd never fucking forgive myself if something else fucking happened. Again.”

"There's a lot of blood, baby girl. A lot of death and gore. You can shut your eyes if you need to, I've got you." Illi murmurs to me as we leave the room.

Illi squeezes my shoulders gently to push me more securely into his side, then he starts to move us again. It’s only now that I notice the piles and piles of dead bodies. The four of them… they’ve taken out dozens of armed men in their own territory. They are incredible.

should have known he was leaving a trail of bodies in his wake as I planned my own escape and I did, but to see it… I am the luckiest woman alive, to have the love and loyalty of mon Monstre.

"You need to either call Doc or take Odie in, that's definitely a concussion, Illi." He grunts and threads his fingers through mine. "Don't go to sleep yet, baby. I know you're tired but just stay awake for me." I let my eyes drift shut again but I nod. "It's okay, I don't want to sleep yet. I don't want to sleep until I'm back home and clean." His fingers tighten in mine and then he brings my hand up to his mouth to kiss my palm. "Good girl. Do you want the radio on? Or silence? Tell me what you need." I smile up at him and murmur, “I have everything I need right here, mon Monstre.”

“Merci, le Loup.”

The kid shifts like she’s uncomfortable with all the love seeping through my girl’s words. Odie just smiles and says, a little louder this time, ”I mean you as well, le Loup. You mean a lot to me too."

I glance in the rearview mirror in time to catch the kid rolling her eyes. "You mean a lot to me too, Odie. That asshole is alright as well, I guess, but he'd be better if he didn't run his mouth."

The kid fidgets a little and then says, "Actually... I'm heading to court next week for my emancipation. I got a scholarship to Hannaford Prep and I'm going there in a few months. I’m going to make it out of the slums of the Bay.” My eyebrows damn near hit my hairline. "Hannaford? Fuck me, kid, you really are a fucking genius."

“Listen here. This friendship of ours? It’s a ride or die situation. I had the same thing with D’Ardo but he fucking betrayed that. I know you won’t. You’re a good kid, a good friend, and I’m all fucking in. You need something? You call me. I’ll answer, no matter what and I’ll throw down for you even if you’re facing all of the fucking Bay. That’s how this is going to go.”

Then again. Then she gives me the smallest of nods, like admitting she wants me as a friend kills her but it’s not about who I am. It’s about admitting she needs a fucking friend. She desperately needs some fucking friends.

Of course it does. She is the Bay’s most famous assassin. The quiet and deadly type that slits your throat while you sleep.

The apartment is spotless. I stare around at it all like it's suddenly going to have the bodies appear but, nope, they're fucking gone. What the fuck? My phone buzzes in my pocket and I grab it, keeping one arm still firmly around my girl. I couldn't have Odie coming home to that mess so I called in a favor. You're welcome. A savage grin breaks over my face. That fucking kid, one in a fucking million.

She frowns at me through her wet hair, the water still running red from all of the blood and gore. "Won't you join me, then? I want us both clean and... I need your arms wrapped around me. I need your skin against mine to chase away all of the bad that happened. Please."

"Baby girl, I know every inch of your soul. I know every fucking inch of this body of yours as well but I could be tied to a fucking chair, blindfolded and deaf, and still know what my baby girl needs. It's my job to keep you safe... I failed that, I trusted someone I never fucking should have... that's not going to happen again. I'm getting you the fuck outta the Bay."

“I think you’re underestimating me, mon Monstre. There is nothing I want more than to have that knowledge. How else will I carve their hearts out of their chests?”

“Baby girl, if you’re here in my bed, in love and of your own free will, you’re already fucking insane and fuck am I glad about it.”