Shadow and Shine (Book 2): Dark Divide Read online

  ““I’m so sorry, detective, please. I don’t want to be here. I’ll do anything. I’ll give you money.”

  “You killed her. Where is she?”

  “She’s at Eastburn Cemetery. She’s dead, alright?”

  “Did you bury her alive, Silvio?” Adam asked.

  Peretti nodded. “Yes.” He turned to Adam and began to sob. “Why are you doing this to me?”

  Adam patted Peretti’s cheek and smiled before reaching underneath the wheelchair.

  He pulled out a severed hand. Roy recognized Markie’s wedding ring.

  “Silvio was carrying this when we met. As well as Markie’s cell phone.”

  “How did you do it?”

  Peretti’s chin dropped, tears were zig-zagging along the cuts on his cheeks. “If I tell you who helped me, will you let me go?”

  “No,” Roy answered. He wanted to choke Peretti to death. Right now.

  “Who helped you?”

  “Please—”

  “Who!?” Roy shouted and slammed the bottom of his fist onto the desk, leaving an indent.

  “Chief Jackson. We have an agreement.”

  “No…” Of all the people. It couldn’t be Chief Jackson. He was inept, but not evil. He wasn’t someone who would stoop to Peretti’s level.

  Except it made sense. Roy was thinking it was the whore who was pulling his strings, but he should’ve known someone from the inside was setting him up for far longer. The more he thought about his history, the more he knew it was true. Chief Jackson was a dirty cop. And he sold out Markie Nelson. Roy wondered who else he set up.

  Adam wiped the sweat off Peretti’s forehead with Markie’s hand. Peretti tried to move his head away, but Adam gripped the back of his neck and held him in place.

  Peretti looked at the whore, “Lady, woman, please, don’t let them do this.” Roy didn’t bother to turn around and look at her. She was going to keep her mouth shut. “Listen to me!” Peretti yelled, “This man is evil, he’s—”

  Adam interrupted, “Evil? How about Laila Porter? Henry Boitz? The Franco family? How about Markie and Diana Nelson? You, Silvio Baroni Peretti, cut them into pieces all because of evil. Did they beg for their lives? Did they cry? Did they crap their pants?”

  Roy cleared his throat. He didn’t want Adam to get too far ahead of himself. He was starting to like the man in the suit. They had similar views on evil.

  “He calls me evil,” Adam said, knocking his knuckles against the desk. He rolled his shoulders in small circles and composed himself. There was something about him that made Roy think he was sitting across from a used car salesman while they negotiated a no win deal. There was another part that thought he was the only person Roy ever met who saw the world for the fractured hellhole it actually was. Adam brushed his fingers through the whore’s hair. “I don’t torture. I don’t kidnap… usually. I’m here to fix what’s broken. To right the wrongs. If this is evil, then so be it.”

  “So now what?” Roy asked.

  Adam reached under Peretti’s wheel chair, this time pulling out a thick butcher knife. “Roy, I want you to kill this man. And I know you do, too.”

  “I do.”

  “But I want to give Silvio Peretti a chance to survive. And I want to make you earn it. I’m all about a fair fight.” Roy liked where this was headed. He watched Peretti’s bottom lip quiver as Adam continued, “Peretti gets his knife. You get Peretti. How does that sound?”

  Roy agreed, “Give him the knife.”

  “Don’t do this,” Peretti cried out. “Please, detective, don’t trust him.”

  The hooker whispered, “It’s too much. Look at him, just take him to jail. He’ll do anything.” She was sticking up for him. Cockroaches always stuck together. They wanted to survive. Peretti might not have hired her out, but she became his whore nonetheless.

  Roy held back the urge to slap her across the mouth, he pushed down against the desk and stood. “This ends now. Pick up the knife and fight me.” The opportunity was not going to be lost.

  “You heard him. Rise, Silvio. Give yourself the chance. Only one person leaves here tonight.” Adam said.

  Peretti’s hands were shaking as he picked up the butcher knife. How many people had he killed with it? His hands were steady before, but now it was different. His victim wasn’t lying down, weak and terrified. Roy was standing in front of him, prepared. Peretti was the one afraid, and he had no idea who he was dealing with. Deep inside, Roy was more of a monster than anything Peretti could imagine. All the hatred, the failure, the death, and the ugly inside him was ready to come to life. Roy was going to enjoy this.

  Roy looked down at the standing Peretti. “You have your chance, roach.”

  Peretti swung his knife towards Roy’s face. Roy didn’t bother blocking him, he wanted Peretti to feel each missed opportunity.

  Another swing.

  Another miss.

  Peretti was frantic, his desperation was pathetic.

  Not as pathetic as the whore crying.

  “Come on, roach. Hit me.”

  Peretti spun the knife in his hand and swung again. This time bringing the blade down, instead of across.

  The change surprised Roy, who didn’t have the time to avoid the attack before the blade slashed into his left bicep.

  Roy’s blood squirted out into Peretti’s face as he tried to pull the weapon loose. He kicked Roy in the groin and punched him across the mouth.

  All of this should have hurt. Peretti was a capable fighter who was desperately landing damaging blows.

  But Roy felt nothing but discomfort. There was no pain. No agony. Just anger and wrath.

  He pulled Peretti’s blade out. Blood gushed onto the ground.

  The slopping sound made Roy laugh.

  “Come on! I want more! Give me more!” Roy shouted. Peretti seemed to shrink as Roy’s voice echoed in the room. He was covered in blood, but he wasn’t in control. The loss of control hurt, just as bad as the failure to win. Peretti prided his control over people and murdered those who stood against him. At the end of the day, he never met someone he couldn’t own. Except Roy.

  Peretti raised his knife and quickly swung down again.

  Roy caught his wrist before the blade made impact.

  A left hook smashed into Roy’s face.

  A tooth fell to the floor.

  It felt good to be broken down. It felt like Roy was earning his meal.

  Roy pried the knife away and pulled him in close. The knife clanged on the steel table. “How does it feel?” Roy asked, inches away from Peretti’s face. “How does it feel to lose everything?” Roy had himself wrapped around Peretti’s body, keeping the mobsters arms constricted against his sides.

  Peretti didn’t answer. He was too focused on trying to break free. His arm wiggled against Roy’s.

  Roy smiled.

  And then, Roy squeezed.

  Every ounce of his strength, every ounce of his hatred, every ounce of everything inside Roy squeezed as Roy felt bones break and veins burst. His body made soft vibrations. Peretti’s eyes grew wide. He could feel his life being crushed.

  Adam began clapping.

  Peretti began screaming

  Roy could feel his heartbeat slow.

  He didn’t want it to end. He wanted to savor the moments of Peretti’s demise a little longer.

  So he let go, and let Peretti drop to the floor. His dirty suit covered a mush of a man. He was ruined. Paralyzed. It was better than killing him. This tasted sweeter in Roy’s mouth. Peretti would die in this room, starved and disabled.

  Adam’s voice broke his concentration. “Only one person leaves here, Roy. I love a long death as much as anyone, but we don’t have time. Kill him, and come sit back down.”

  Roy didn’t have to like it to accept Adam’s request. Adam is the one who gave Roy the opportunity, he wasn’t going to fight back. He didn’t bother to think about what Adam meant about not having time, but he was ready to hear what Adam had to say ne
xt.

  He picked up Peretti’s knife and observed it. Markie died trying to use this weapon as evidence, only to end up making himself and his wife a victim. The bloody blade glistened under the lights. Roy was going to keep this weapon, as a reminder of Peretti’s reign.

  It was Roy’s now.

  He bent down and began to cut Peretti’s head off. He wanted to mail it to Chief Jackson later.

  *******

  Jenna

  Hours away from sunrise

  East of Utah, maybe Iowa.

  No matter what happened, innocent people died. These awful men were clueless to the damage they were doing. They didn’t care, either. They were tearing apart something Mona worked so hard to build, right in front of her face. She was trash to them. Just a well-spoken child who was followed around by other pieces of trash. Jenna might as well have been in the gutter.

  Marshall is the Big Bad Wolf.

  Worse. At least the Wolves were mindless. They didn’t know any better. Even Toppy probably was mentally deficient and could have been less horrible with medicine and treatment.

  You know better than that.

  She did. Toppy was a monster, but Marshall was something else.

  It’s like chasing between being eaten by a bear or a shark.

  This was her life, now. Jenna transformed from Robert North’s floozy girlfriend to the weak life surrounded by predators.

  You’re only alive because the hunters found something else to kill, but your time is coming.

  Is it? Did she have to be prey? Did she have to be protected? Maybe, somewhere deep in her, there was the Pulse.

  Good luck finding it.

  She didn’t have to find it, did she? Mona had said it was never about turning it on or off. It was about the Pulse brimming over and spilling out into the world. Jenna would turn this moment of tragedy into a spring. She didn’t know how, but Shelly and Asher deserved it. Marshall underestimated Harry, too. If he thinks he would just quit on life, he didn’t know Harry the way Jenna did. They were similar in that area. No matter who underestimated them, they would rise above it.

  If Harry can do it, then maybe there is hope for you. But Harry is in Iowa, and he’s not exactly going to walk to the nearest bus station and hitch a ride. Good luck.

  Jenna looked out the window, the passing lane’s white lines rhythmically passing by. She smiled to herself. She could do it. She had to.

  *******

  Acacia Gold

  12:13 a.m. (Western time)

  Las Vegas, NV

  “You’ve done humanity a service,” Adam said, handing Roy a towel. Acacia stared at Peretti’s dead body in disbelief. Roy was an awful person, but he was supposed to have limits. The man sitting beside her was no longer any sort of a police officer. He was just as bad as the man he killed.

  Roy spit on the ground. The sound made Acacia jump. “He deserved worse.”

  Beside Peretti’s crushed body laid one of Roy’s front teeth.

  “I agree. I wish we had more time. But I asked you a question earlier, do you remember?”

  Acacia looked back to the door. She needed to leave. Whatever Adam and Roy decided on, whatever they talked about, Acacia wanted out. She followed Roy because he offered the best protection from Peretti, and now Peretti was dead. She looked at the blood-soaked murderer sitting beside her, who would protect her from Roy?

  “You asked me why I resigned.” Roy nodded to the body. “The answer is right there.” He was proud of himself.

  “I disagree,” Adam said, standing. “If you merely wanted Peretti dead, it wouldn’t look like that. Many alive deserve death, but there’s more to your resignation than Peretti.” Adam walked behind Acacia, and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Or am I wrong?”

  Roy didn’t answer. The glossed-over look in his eyes said he wasn’t trying to explain himself.

  “How long have you been a police officer?”

  “Ten years.”

  “How many murderers, rapists and monsters went free in those ten years?”

  “Too many.”

  Adam began massaging Acacia’s shoulders. “Too many, yes, too many. Mmm.” His finger gently tickled under her chin. “Why did they get away?”

  Roy shrugged. “Flaws in the system.”

  “Who made the system?”

  “We did.”

  “I didn’t make the system. Did you?” Adam asked. Roy shook his head as Adam continued, “Take this woman for example. You’re an officer of the law, yet you allowed this woman to sell herself illegally. Why?”

  “Because if I arrest her, I got to arrest them all.”

  “And there are too many to arrest, aren’t there?”

  “What’s that have to do with the system?”

  His hands softly caressed her face, neck and shoulders. “The system isn’t flawed, it’s broken. Fractured. People break the law every day and no one blinks. Monsters wear suits. Rapists teach religion. There is no good in this world. Only poisonous imitations. You resigned because you realized there was no justice. If a man like Peretti can kill a police officer and his wife without causing a stir, then you wanted out.”

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  “Exactly!” Adam’s fingernails lightly dug into her neck. “And I’m going to change it. Every flaw in the system will be burned to the ground. Every tarnished truth will be eviscerated. I will not stop until I’ve razed the system.” Acacia bit her lip as she began sobbing, attempting to not make a sound. She was in the middle of two lunatics.

  Adam stopped touching her and walked back to his seat. “I’m going to give you and Acacia the same option as I gave you and Peretti. Is that okay?”

  “What?” Acacia asked. Roy smiled at her with his broken smile.

  “She’s no different than Peretti. They both make a living by spreading their filth. I want nothing to do with the whore.”

  Acacia screamed through her sobbing, “And you’re innocent!?” She looked at the door wanting to run away.

  “No one is innocent.” Roy shot her a glare. “How many marriages have you ruined? How many diseases have you spread? How many lies have you told?”

  “So you’re gonna kill me?”

  Adam sat Hadley’s gun on the table. “Or you’re going to kill him. As I’ve said from the beginning, only one person leaves here.” It was close enough for Acacia to reach.

  Hadley cleared his throat. “Can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs.”

  “Exactly,” Adam’s thin lips smiled.

  “But you’re not using eggs, you’re using people.”

  Adam rubbed his hand on her leg from under the table. “Killing people, actually. I’m talking about fixing the world by resetting its population.”

  “Roy, Detective, you can’t seriously be buying into this, can you? This guy is insane. Why would you—”

  “I’ve made my decision, make your own.”

  “Acacia, if I tell you Roy is going to become a mass murderer, and hand you this gun, would you shoot him?”

  “No.”

  “You should. What if Roy was going kill everyone at Barbie’s bar, would you shoot him then?”

  “I wouldn’t believe you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because he’s a police officer.”

  “Not anymore.” Roy interjected. He stared at the ground near Peretti’s feet. It wasn’t until now that Acacia noticed the mobster was barefoot.

  He picked up the gun and handed it to her. “Roy, because it’s not a fair fight, I would like to give her a head’s start. Is that okay? I’ll count to ten, and if you’re alive at ten, you can choke her to death on the table.”

  Roy’s chest and stomach wiggled as he laughed. Finally, he looked up and relaxed. Acacia tried to get him to look at her, but instead he just smiled at Adam as he began counting.

  “One. Two. Three.”

  The gun was heavy. She wanted to set it down, but Adam continued.

  “Four. Five.”


  Hadley was hateful towards Acacia since they first met. Now, he’s laughing as Adam jokes about murdering her. She didn’t want to believe he was serious, but at the same time, she couldn’t deny it. Hadley just killed in cold blood. She raised the gun up to Roy’s face. The old detective smiled, calling her bluff. There were no other options. She could run, but Adam might be faster than her.

  “Six. Seven.” Adam tapped his knuckles against the table. “A little secret, Roy, Acacia isn’t even her name.”

  “Not surprised. Everything about her is a lie.”

  “Her real name is Sherry. Her daddy and sister died in Utah a few days ago.”

  “Really?”

  “Eight.”

  “I’m done with you, whore. Just like everyone else. I got what I needed and now I’m done.”

  “Ni—”

  Acacia closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.

  The gun jerked back as the boom was followed by the wet thud. Pieces of Hadley’s brain hit the concrete floor behind him. Acacia opened her eyes to see the window where his nose used to be. She killed him.

  A long silence came over the room. “Well done, Sherry.” Acacia turned the gun to Adam. He raised his hands and smiled. “But there was only the bullet in the chamber. The clip is on the table.”

  She didn’t look down. She couldn’t trust him. If she looked away from Adam, he would take the gun. She didn’t know what would happen, but she didn’t want to find out.

  “Let me go.”

  “It’s not that easy, Sherry.”

  “Please.”

  “You don’t know what you’re asking, Sherry. I’m offering you the only safety you will ever find. I’m offering you a purpose.”

  “You’re a monster.”

  “And?”

  “I’m leaving, please don’t follow me.”

  “Fine. I’m not going to bring someone into my fold that does not appreciate my message. If you’re not on the team, you’re the target.”

  Acacia pointed her empty gun at him and backed towards the door. Adam smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “We’ll see you around, Sherry.”

  She ran out as fast as she could.