The devil you know

Emma parked her car and got out. She couldn’t help but yawn as she got the groceries out. She had been working since seven am and it was now well past ten in the evening. The hospital was, as always, short-staffed when it came to nurses and she had agreed to stay and work an extra shift.They needed the extra money and Emma always felt bad for her colleagues if she didn’t help. It wasn’t like she had kids or a husband that was waiting for her at home. She looked at the house; it was strangely dark tonight. Her aunt and uncle usually would sit in the tv-room watching one of their shows by now. But there was no flickering light coming from the window. Maybe they had gone out. Sometimes uncle Jonas took aunt Laura out on the town. Emma didn’t like when the two of them went out. They usually came home in the middle of the night drunk as skunks. Emma sighed and started up the three steps that led up to the front porch. They needed to be replaced, the first step flexed as she put her wei

Bane walked with determined steps through the nightclub. He had been in his office on the third floor when Jax had called him and asked him to come down to the counting room. Bane knew that Jax wouldn’t have asked if it wasn’t something that Bane needed to deal with.He was still irritated to be interrupted and whoever had caused it would face the consequences of it. Bane smiled as two women called for him to join them. He didn’t have time to stop and talk, but he let his eyes move over both of their bodies. He made a mental note that he should go back after he had handled the situation. He came to the door that led to the back area of the nightclub. Bane held his card up to the scanner and entered his code. He sighed as he stepped into the white corridor and relaxed as the sound of the music and the people were muffled as the door closed behind him. The nightclub was a good investment and a good base of operations. But the noise of it could drive the sanest man mad. He walked alon

Bane looked at the trembling woman before him. His men shouldn’t have hurt her. They definitely shouldn’t have taken the deal with her uncle. And they would pay for that. Bane didn’t believe in keeping his men at a short leash or babying them. But he had four rules that everyone in the organisation had to live by. His word was law. They didn’t hurt women and children. They didn’t deal with human trafficking. No one was to sell drugs to children.The four rules were enforced without exception, with severe punishment for disobedience. What his men had done to Emma violated rule number two and was a clear attempt at breaking rule number three. But this angel in front of him didn’t know that.Bane’s need to possess her had only grown. Her innocence was like a light in the night and he was the moth. He needed to possess her, to corrupt her. So he smiled his wicked smile and saw her tense up. She may be innocent, but her instincts were strong.“We need to get our money back and that is one

“Boss,” the mountain greeted Bane as Emma got into the vehicle. There was a second man in the driver’s seat. “Tom,” Bane greeted the mountain before getting in and taking his seat next to Emma. “Boss,” the man in front said.“Luke,” Bane nodded. “Everything good?” the man called Luke asked.“We should have no issues,” Bane said as he placed an arm around Emma. She jumped at the touch. Bane shot her a disapproving look. Emma took a moment to regret the fact that she had never learnt to swear. She felt like this situation could have used a couple of good swear words. But she couldn’t really seem to use them, even in her own mind. As the car started and she once again found herself in a black SUV with gangsters, without knowing her destination, she forced herself to relax her body. Fudge, fudge, fudge, she repeated in her head.Emma focused on the city passing by outside her window. She wondered if her aunt and uncle had got free from their restraints. She shouldn’t care. After all,

Emma woke from a light knock on the door. She was confused for a moment; she didn’t recognise the sheets, or the bed, or the room. Last night came back to her as a freight train mercilessly ploughing through her sleepy mind. There was a second knock on the door.Emma sat up and called for them to enter, making sure the cover was up around her waist. She had been sleeping in her tank top and panties since she didn’t have any of her nightclothes. The older woman from the night before walked into the room with a smile on her face.“Good morning, miss Emma,” she said.“Good morning, Anna,” Emma replied. At least she thought that was the woman’s name. The smile she got back had her thinking she had been right.“I have some new clothes with me and some make-up,” Anna told her and put the bundle she had in her arm on the dresser. “Thank you,” Emma said.“Not at all. Let me have a look,” Anna said, walking up to Emma and turning her head to look at Emma’s cheek. Anna made a tutting noise.“