Page 207 of Beautiful Venom
“Shut it, Armstrong,” Jude says without even looking at him.
“I’m just setting the record straight. I’d never do this for pussy. It’s so fucking lame, I’m thinking about throwing you out of Preston’s Privileged Close Circle Club.”
“Consider me thrown out,” I say, my muscles bulging with tension.
“I never wanted to be in it in the first place,” Jude adds.
“Liars. You love me and can’t survive without me. If I were a woman, you’d be fighting over my beautiful self.”
“Fighting over who gets to chop your head off first,” I say. “Which we’re already doing.”
“I’d be playing so hard to get, Dallas would have nothing on me.” He grins, ignoring my words, then headlocks Jude. “I think I’ll still pick big man, though. His dick is bigger.”
Jude elbows him. “I’ll stab your dick if you don’t take this seriously.”
“Not my precious dick. How the fuck am I supposed to unwind?” Preston lets go with a pout and continues to walk backward. “Besides, this whole thing is stupid, and Julian will probably light our asses on fire. You shouldn’t even be this invested, Jude. Your brother would be doing you a favor if he kills that nobody.”
Jude glares at him, his eyes nearly shooting daggers. “No one but me gets to kill my targets.”
“Shh.” I raise a hand to my mouth and pull out my gun at the sound of Julian’s cool voice.
Jude motions at the door behind him, and then the three of us inch closer.
I kick the door open, gun in hand, but we freeze upon seeing Julian sitting in a chair, reading out loud from a book as his wife, Annalise, lies in bed, sleeping.
She startles at the loud kick and sits up, her eyes unfocused, her face pale.
Annalise Callahan is the greatest mystery in this town. She’s barely seen, less than my mother, and rumor has it that Julian’s using her as a subject for his latest experimental drug testing.
No one really cares, though.
“Julian…?” she asks, her voice low, almost scratchy.
He strokes her hair and smiles. Didn’t know the motherfucker was capable of that.
“Go back to sleep. I’ll be right back.”
She grabs onto his shirt and shakes her head, but he releases her grip and looks at us, his smile dropping in a blink.
“Let’s talk outside.”
Preston jumps out first. “I was dragged here against my will. They did it!”
We all step out. Jude doesn’t really want to hurt his sister-in-law, and he made it clear that threatening Julian with her life is fine, but she’s not to be touched.
“Annalise is not to be harmed,” were his exact words as soon as we arrived here.
The de facto leader of the Callahan clan casts one last glance at his wife, then closes the door and runs a hand through his hair. “Now, I have to maim you.”
“Not me.” Preston raises his hand. “Against my will, remember?”
I jam my gun against Julian’s temple. “Where’s Dahlia?”
He doesn’t even flinch. “Somewhere far away from you.”
“We have the house surrounded, Julian. If you don’t tell me where she is right now, I’ll blow your brains out.”
“Be my guest. In the event of my death, my people will blow both Dahlia and Violet up.”
