Page 18 of Sweet Touch of Venom
I round the corner, avoiding the cracks and fresh gum sticking on the pavements. I move out of the way as a kid on a skateboard swoops past, brushing an extra gust of air by me.
I keep my head lowered and my ears open. The neighborhood is silent—which is odd, free of humans, only awakened by the passing cars and blaring horns.
I make my way up the deformed stairs as a man on his phone jogs down, not bothering to look at his face. I can tell it’s a man by his large boots and how his legs open as he goes down each step. He takes up half the radius of the staircase, and it’s not wide. I attempt to squeeze by, but he runs right into me. The strength from him moves my shoulder back, almost making me stumble into the rail.
Walking with your phone to your eyes in a sketchy neighborhood is not smart. He’s going to get robbed. Poor thing. I truly don’t wish that on anyone, but he can learn that lesson the hard way.
I straighten up, my focus still on the prowl to upstairs. I fix my hoodie as I walk up.
“Apologies,” a deep and rough voice speaks out. I don’t turn around because I don’t care for his atone, only for him to leave me alone.
“Watch where you’re going.”Asshole. I roll my eyes as I thread the curls through the hoodie after tightening the drawstring. Now, back to where I’m going. What floor does Tractor live on again?
“I’m not sure if you got the notice, but the building is closed.” He has an accent. It’s not difficult to detect he’s of Spanish descent with his slurred words, but the English is understandable. And the notice?
The pebbles under his foot skeet in a way, letting me know he’s shifted toward me.
“Not for me.” My hand wraps around the handle to open the door. I am not concerned with upholding any laws and policies for that. This man upstairs is about to meet death and there is nothing, not even a city work-order, could do to stop his fate.
He lets out an annoyed breath, his boots scraping up the stairs. “Look, lady, you’ll have to come back tomorrow.” And before I know it, his large hand wraps around my arm, bringing me back.
What the fuck?
My heart shoots to my throat as I go into red alert defense mode. I twist around rapidly, breaking from his grasp and aiming for his nose. Not letting it break, but enough to make it bleed out.
He stumbles back, growling so loud that it’s enough to send a tingle up my spine. “What the?—”
I cringe to myself, tucking my lips between my teeth. Crap. Reflex. I don’t stop to check on him. He shouldn’t have touched me. You don’t touch someone you don’t know, and plus, nobody puts their hands on me unless I allow them to. I stroll to the elevator. Thankfully, the door is already open, so I didn’t need to wait and eventually going head-to-head with this caveman. I don’t have the energy to kill two people in one night.
Another bark rings out, loud and vicious. “Are you crazy!?”
I smile to myself.Kind of.
Okay, where did he live again? Oh yes, third floor. I press the number button, then I lean on the wall to get comfortable. I gaze up at the flickering light and dead flies lying inside the dirty covering.
Until this hulk of a man burst through the doors. I flinch, a jolt racking my body, similar to being a part of a horror movie. My heart swells in my esophagus, cutting my eyes to him. Due to the crappy lighting, I don’t get a great view of him yet, but he’s bestial and now stalking to the elevator unhinged.Oh, my hell.
His strides are long and powerful, his stature tall and strong—enough to break through a brick wall. As he gets closer, I see fury on his face, the clench in his jaw and blood trickling down to his mouth. The rage is so intense, it’s making me enthused.
I smirk, my heart rate picking up from the turmoil burning from him. He stills for a second, as if he’s trying to map me out and see who's the person who fucked up his nose. I could scream like a normal woman would when seeing a dark and crazed figure launch toward them, but instead, I raised a hand, waving bye to him. I can tell that irks him, grinding his fucking gears because he charges at me blazing with rage. Oh! He’s a crazy one.
I love it.
I get one last look at him, tawny brown skin and deep honey eyes. I scrunch my brow, the name popping into my mind. Something distinctive pulls at the pit of my stomach. The door shuts before he can smash into it, and I finally let out a breath. The doors begin to part slightly, and I jolt back into the elevator wall. “What the hell.” I mutter. Then it slams closed. I release a sigh of relief, rubbing my chest and frowning. “Fucking maniac.”
Two loud bangs travels up to the elevator shaft. Maybe he kicked the door. I don’t blame his aggression. I mean, he did get his ass handed to him by a woman. But I’m not just any type of lady—I’m trained, and I’ll slice your throat in the blink of an eye. However, that doesn't mean it didn't send some unease up my spine. I relax again, swallowing the dryness away, thinking back on the lunatic.
Honey eyes.I glance down at nothing, the connection setting in. I jump off the wall, heat flaming my neck. No. He’s not in Hollow City anymore. I’m sure of it.
I’m so bent on killing Ronan, I think every guy is him. I relax, letting out a thick sigh, resting back on the wall that I’m sure someone pissed on.
What if it is him?
No, of course, that’s not him. Anyone can have honey-colored eyes. And the last time I checked, Ronan had very short, faded hair—this man’s hair was fuller and wavy.
But the same color.I throw off my hood; the fabric making it turn into an inferno. It’s been twelve years, and anything can change.
I shake my head.No. I’m going crazy.
