The Bodies We Wear by Jeyn Roberts Read Free Book Online Page B

to see the horror they unleashed.

    I stand across the street from my favorite bar and watch the doors, wondering how long I’ll be waiting tonight before I see my prey.
    The dead man inside the bar is Montague Rufus. Most everyone calls him Rufus, never Monty. He’s forty-three years old. His hair is blond, he likes to slick it back with gel, and his eyes are dark buttons that sink deep into his head. His eye twitches constantly and his hands sometimes shake from years of drug abuse. He doesn’t touch Heam but sticks mostly to the weaker drugs. He drinks constantly. His blotchy red nose is a testament to his disease.
    He likes to wear an old leather jacket that has burn holes on the sleeves and a pair of cowboy boots that have broken more than their share of fingers. He never fights fair.
    I know everything there is to know about this man. I’ve spent a long time watching him. He’s the man who, six years ago, destroyed my soul.
    He’s not an important person but he likes to believe he is. A middleman, his job is to regulate the Heam dealers for the neighborhood and report back to his boss. He is trusted enough to pass on the money but not trusted enough to be given more power. Sometimes he’s given jobs that require a little more nastiness. Like going after the children of people who owe money. He likes to drug them, ensuring they will become addicts, gutter rats. I also know he’s been responsible for making people disappear now and then.
    He does his job well and lives in a nice house in a good neighborhood. He has no family but has no problem giving prostitutes regular business.
    There were four men there the night I saw hell. I have made it my life’s goal to personally destroy each and every one of them.
    I will leave Rufus for last. My plan is to go through the list, eliminating every single one until Montague Rufus is the only one left. I want him to know I’m coming. I want him to fear me.
    But not just yet. Not until I feel I’m ready. I don’t want to screw up. Until then, I will continue to watch and wait, taking notes, following their moves, and learning everything there is to know about my enemies.
    “I see you’re predictable, at least.”
    The words make me jump and I spin around with my one arm raised in defense, and my other gripping the knife hidden behind my back. Chael stands a few feet behind me, an amused expression on his face.
    This is the second time I didn’t hear him.
    “You scared the hell out of me,” I snap.
    “Sorry,” he says, but he’s not.
    “What are you doing here?”
    “Hanging out. You?” He tugs at a stray strand of hair that’s fallen into his eyes. He reaches back and pulls up the hood of his jacket until his already- wet hair is covered. He tugs at the sleeves, pulling them down and over his fingers, which look cold and wet.
    “I’m beginning to think you’re following me.” I remember how he winked at me this morning as he pulled the child from the burning building. It’s a bit too coincidental that he’s here again.
    “Or perhaps you’re following me,” he says. “Or it’s just a small world and we can’t help but bump elbows every now and then.”
    “Why would I follow you?” I ask.
    “Why not?”
    I shake my head and beads of water drip down my cheeks. Being elusive and avoiding the question only means he doesn’t want to answer.
    “You were a real hero this morning,” I say. Maybe if I ask the right questions I can get some answers. “Why did you save that child?”
    He shrugs. “I couldn’t not save her. Building was burning. Nasty stuff. You would have done the same thing.”
    “Maybe.”
    He smiles. He knows I’m lying. “I’d bet you would have gone in, flames or not, if I hadn’t come out when I did. You could never stand by and let a child die.”
    “Oh, so you talk to me for a whole total of five minutes in two days and now you’ve got me all figured out?”
    “Yep. Pretty much.” He winks again.
    “I could eat babies