The devil's advocate

Chapter 46 Damien

Adrenaline courses through my limbs as I speed up the walkway, masking the panic burning a hole through my chest.  

He didn’t lock the front door behind him. Because he knew she wouldn’t run.

I take a heavy breath, pushing down the dread as I twist the knob.

The house is eerily quiet when I enter…never a good sign.

“Cain,” I call out. No response.

There’s an ominous tug in my gut when I check the kitchen and see the bottle of whiskey on the counter. The cap is off. He was impatient.

Bracing myself, I walk past the living room, following the small beam of light coming through a crack in the half-open door at the end of the hall.

The sick feeling in my gut intensifies with every step I take.

I never should have let her go back to get her dress.

I never should have abandoned her when she was so vulnerable.

Eden wasn’t ready for the truth. She’s strong, but she wasn’t strong enough.

Regret and remorse pump through the organ currently beating like a jackhammer in my ribcage. I should have told her I loved her.  

The foul stench of death fills my nostrils as I push open the door.

Tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, and pure shock roots me to the spot as I take in the sight.

Cain’s blood-soaked body lays stiff on the floor of his office. His flaccid cock hanging out of his pants. The tip of the knife I gave Eden is sunk into his chest, straight into his black heart.

I walk a little closer and smile. After she slit his throat.

Pride starts to swell…until the awareness of it all plummets like a boulder in my gut. She killed him.

I check my watch. It’s almost midnight.

If I don’t act now…it will be too late.

A smug smile pulls at my lips. I wish I could have seen Cain’s face the moment he realized his little lamb had officially become the slaughterer…and she was out for his blood.

But as Cain found out tonight, we don’t always get what we want. Sometimes you just have to make the best with what you have.

I quickly survey his office, taking in the surroundings before I zero in on the full glass of whiskey on his desk.

I’ll start there.

After extracting the knife from his chest, I drizzle some of the amber liquid over the wound before doing the same to the gash in his throat. I pour the rest around his body, pausing when I notice a wet spot on the rug by his desk.

I grimace as I inhale. Urine. Son of a bitch.

Swallowing my rage, I remove one of the candles from the mantel and put the flame to the end of my cigarette.

I step back as I take a long drag, examining his body. His brown eyes are fixed and dilated. His body is drained of color and stiff as a board. However, it’s his mouth that draws my attention. It’s hanging open…as if she took him by complete surprise.

The muscles in my chest draw tight. I never should have doubted her.

“She did it, Kristy,” I whisper, emotion lodging in my throat. “She fucking did it.”  

Eden took the emperor down.

And now there’s only one more thing left to do.

With a smirk, I hover over his body…and drop the candle.

I take one last drag of my cigarette, smiling from ear to ear as the flames engulf him.

“Rot in hell, Cain Carter.”

I’ll be joining you soon.

My grin grows as I make my way out of the house.

For every action…there is a consequence.

For every transgression…there is an outcome.  

For every act of vengeance…a debt must be paid.  

I close the front door behind me and drop the knife.

And I’ll gladly pay the price for hers.