Kyle stands from the table, and I realize this is my opportunity to take care of this problem. I follow him toward the restroom and walk inside immediately behind him. Gripping his shirt, I throw him against the closing door and promptly pin him to it. My forearm is pressed against his throat, and I eagerly watch as his face reddens from his lack of oxygen.

  “Take my wallet,” he struggles to push out the words as he urinates on himself.

  “I don’t want your fucking money,” I snarl. “I think I was pretty fucking clear you weren’t to see Alexys again.”

  “That was serious,” he cries as his skins begins to show a slight bluish hue.

  “Do my messages seem fucking serious now?” I lean harder into him further cutting off his ability to breathe, “I also think I was pretty fucking clear what would happen if you didn’t heed my warnings.”

  His body fights unconsciousness, and his mouth gapes trying to suck in air. But it’s the wideness of his eyes when his foggy brain realizes his fate that truly excites me. His eyelids flutter as he can no longer fight the looming darkness. As his body goes lax, my forearm the only thing keeping him from falling to the ground.

  Taking the hat off my head, I slip it onto his and tousle my hair. I pull his arm around my shoulder and wrap mine around his waist before pulling open the bathroom door. Taking a quick glance toward the restaurant, I carry his limp body to the kitchen.

  “Hey!” A guy shouts from the grill. “You can’t be back here!”

  “My friend had too much to drink,” I nod my head to the unconscious Kyle slumped against me. “Our boss is out there, and I really don’t want him to get fired over this. Just let me out the back and I’ll get him out of here.”

  “We’ve all been there,” he smirks. Not only does he lead me to the back door, he helps me get Kyle to my car parked around front.

  Sometimes this shit is too fucking easy.

  I pull out my phone, call for a cab, and send a quick text before driving to a desolate part of the city to rid myself of the issue sitting in my passenger seat.

  eight

  ALEXYS

  The waiter brought the bill a solid ten minutes ago, but Kyle still hasn’t returned from the bathroom.

  “Ma’am, is something wrong with the bill?” the waiter questions when he returns to collect payment.

  “No. It’s fine,” I pull out my card and hand it to him, “but…this is going to sound strange…can you please check the restroom for the guy I was with? He’s been in there for a while.”

  He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind before agreeing. He returns a moment later with my receipt in his hand, “Sorry, but the restroom is empty. I think he might’ve left.”

  “What an asshole!” I shake my head and pull my phone from my purse to give him a piece of my mind. When it turns on, a text from an unknown number pops up.

  UNKNOWN

  A cab will be waiting for you out front. It’s not safe to take the subway alone this late at night.

  Kyle will not be returning.

  Do you have him?

  I was clear with you both what would happen if he touched you.

  No one touches what is mine.

  Yours?

  Si, mi reina. Mine.

  You’re fucking insane.

  Only for you.

  Get home safe.

  My hands are trembling as I drop my phone into my bag.

  What the fuck is happening to Kyle?

  Is this my fault?

  How much does this guy know about me?

  Is he going to hurt me?

  A chill rattles me to the bone as I exit the restaurant and find a bright yellow cab parked out front.

  “Alexys?” the driver yells to me through the open window.

  My feet are rooted to the sidewalk, my brain screaming at me what a horrible idea it is to get into this cab. I step closer and dip my head to get a look at the driver, and then at his medallion. Confirming it’s actually his cab, I answer, “I’m Alexys.”

  “The meter has been running for the last five minutes,” he huffs. “Are you getting in or not?”

  I hesitate for a moment and step to the rear passenger door, “In.”

  Please don’t make me wind up on Dateline.

  “Where to, Miss? I was left instructions to take you wherever you want to go, but to remind you it’s late and you should probably head home.”

  “Home,” for some reason I comply with the unknown man’s request.

  I’m scared shitless, yet so intrigued.

  “And that is where, miss?”

  I give the driver my address and mull over what is happening for a moment before asking, “What else did he tell you? I’m assuming it was a he.”

  “Yes, miss. It was a man,” he pauses for a moment as he navigates traffic. “And your name and a brief description of what you look like.”

  “His name?”

  “Sorry, miss, but dispatch didn’t pass that on if he gave it.” He eyes me in the rearview mirror before asking, “Is everything okay?”

  “Yes, of course,” I sputter the lie, realizing that my line of questioning is probably raising suspicions about my safety. “I just wanted to know which of my friends to thank for fetching the cab.”

  He nods in understanding, and we drive in silence the remainder of the way to my apartment. When he pulls toward the curb, I swipe my card to pay. He drives away the moment I step out and shut the door, confirming my intuition that he wasn’t a threat. Standing on the sidewalk, I look up at the street-facing window of my apartment and take solace in the fact the lights are off.

  He could just be hiding in the dark.

  That was an unnecessary thought as I press my keys into the lock.

  Unlocking the door, I step inside and redo the deadbolt. Holding my keys between my fingers and my heart pounding in my chest, I walk through the apartment, flipping on lights and checking behind closed doors. The fact that I’m not certain if I am relieved or disappointed to find myself alone is a little concerning.

  No, Lex, that’s really fucking concerning.

  Walking back through the apartment, I ensure all of the windows are locked before turning off the lights and heading into my bedroom to change. After putting on pajamas and washing my face, I climb into bed with a book in hopes that reading will temporarily take my mind off whatever the fuck this is that’s happening.

  It’s futile. I read the same two paragraphs at least ten times and still have no comprehension of the words before me. Instead, my brain is reeling, trying to figure out this situation.

  Who is this guy?

  Is this a joke? A sick joke, but a joke.

  Maybe it’s an ex?

  Grabbing my phone, I pull up a few different apps and begin stalking the few guys that I ended things with. Hopefully I’m not incorrectly assuming guys that dumped me aren’t now stalking me. A brief search of Josh, Marc, and Darius quickly rules out all of them. It’s so outside of their personalities, and all three of them appear to be in serious relationships. My thoughts return back to thinking this is some fucked up prank, and I text Kyle.

  What happened with you tonight?

  I didn’t think you were the kind of guy to ghost me mid date?

  Is this some sort of sick joke, because it’s not funny.

  I wait a minute for a response before letting out an exasperated grumble and toss my phone to the bed.

  Buzz.

  Ripping my phone from the bed sheets, I’m surprised when it isn’t Kyle.

  UNKNOWN

  Kyle is a little tied up at the moment, but this definitely is not a joke

  Did you get home safe mi reina?

  Are you fucking serious right now?

  I type a response, but my finger hovers over the send button. As though I am unable to control my thumb, it taps the button.

  Yes

  That’s my good girl

  My heart races and my pussy flutters as I read his words.

  Fuck…

  That should not be how you react to this, Lex.

  nine

  ANDRES

  Tucking my phone back into my pocket, Kyle grumbles from the chair behind me, drawing my attention back to him.

  Pulling my mask back over my face, I squat before him so we are at eye-level, “Well, hello there, sleeping beauty.”

  His eyes flutter, and he stares blankly at me for a moment. I watch as they span over my face, slowly registering the skeleton shrouding the majority of my face. He jerks violently against the restraints binding him to the chair when he realizes who is standing before him.

  Death.

  Kyle attempts to scream, but the gag in his mouth muffles his cries. He pulls so hard at the zip-ties securing him that the steel legs of the chair scrape along the concrete floor. I allow him a moment to panic, watching as the plastic bands slowly tear through his skin. After a few minutes, the fight slowly drains from him, and he stills in his chair. He sits slumped over before me, his face red and stained with tears. Fear fills his bloodshot eyes, and I relish knowing he has become fully aware of his fate.

  If only he knew what he was really in for…

  “I believe I was quite clear that Alexys belongs to me.” I stand from my crouched position before him and gather the supplies I need from the table behind me.

  “Please,” Kyle snivels from behind me. “Please don’t kill me.”

  Keeping my back to him, I grab the thick wooden plank and hatchet before turning and responding, “That’s going to be entirely up to you, Kyle.”

  “I’ll do anything. Anything you want,” the words bubble from his pathetic mouth as snot drips down his face.

  “From this moment forward, you don’t know Alexys, understood?” I place the items in my hands at his feet.

  His eyes focused on the hatchet beneath him; he pushes out sputtered words through his tears, “I’ll never talk to her again.”

  “No,” I firmly grip his jaw, “You don’t fucking know her. As far as you’re concerned, you’ve never met, and she doesn’t fucking exist.”

  “Fine,” he cries, “I don’t know her. We never met, and I have no idea who she is. Is that what you need to hear? I’ll do it! I’ll do anything! Just please don’t kill me.”

  “Good,” I patronizingly slap my hand against his cheek, “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

  “Are you going to let me go now?” He sucks in his snot as he sheepishly questions.

  “No, not yet. You didn’t heed my warnings and laid your hands on mi reina. I do not tolerate disobedience. You need to be punished.”

  Turning from him, I flip on the hot plate behind me before grabbing the board at his feet. I firmly grip his trembling hand and shove the plank between his wrists and the arm of the chair.

  His eyes go wide when I lift the hatchet from the ground, and he begins to beg and plead for his life pathetically. With his forearm gripped tightly in one hand and the hatchet in the other, I lift the hatchet into the air. Swinging down, I drive it through his wrist and into the plank beneath it. A blood-curdling scream comes from his mouth as his severed hand falls to the floor at his feet.

  Blood pumps from the stump bound to the chair as Kyle quickly loses consciousness. I grab the hot plate and press it to the stump to cauterize his wound. The smell of burning flesh quickly fills the warehouse. Kyle’s eyes dart open as I sear his flesh. He lets out a gurgled scream and promptly passes out again.

  While he is unconscious, I wrap his burned stump in gauze and cut the ties around his legs when I bend down to retrieve his hand from the ground. Turning it over in my palm, I contemplate for a moment gift-boxing it for Alexys and chuckle to myself before dropping it into a trash bag.

  I call for two of my guys to meet me at the warehouse as I wait for Kyle to come to. He groans as his eyes flutter, pained moans rattle from his as the pain coursing around his body causes him to wake.

  “Who is Alexys?” my palm slaps against his face.

  “I don’t know,” he cries the words through tortured screams.

  “Good boy,” I pat his face again. “Make sure you remember that when the police talk to you later, because if you don’t, I’ll be visiting you at your home and very slowly you’ll be losing much more than your hand. Understood?”

  He vigorously shakes his head at me in agreement, and I slip a hood over his head as two of my guys let themselves into the building.

  “No names,” I command before they have an opportunity to speak. “This one lives to send a message. Drop him in Central Park where cops will find him. And make sure you don’t get seen.”

  “Yes, boss,” they both quickly acknowledge me in unison.

  As they drag his pathetic ass to the exit, I look down at my watch to find it is just after midnight.

  Plenty of time to drive across town to check on mi reina.

  ten

  ALEXYS

  It’s been a week since my date with Kyle, and as eager as he seemed to give me what was probably going to be the best three minutes of my life, I haven’t heard a peep from him since he stuck me with the check. My texts are all sitting on delivered and his dating profile has been deleted.

  The unknown texter has been nearly as non-existent, but I know he’s still there. It’s as if I can feel him watching me from the shadows. It concerns me that I’m not quite sure how that makes me feel.

  Is it wrong to like the idea of a man being completely and utterly obsessed with you?

  Yes, Lex. That’s how you wind up in a sex dungeon or buried in a shallow grave upstate somewhere.

  Yet, when my cell phone buzzes on my desk, I lunge for it like I’m in high school and know the quarterback is calling to ask me out.

  Nope…not the quarterback.

  “Lex, it’s Mr. Ramirez,” his smooth voice comes through the phone after I answer. “Clear my calendar for the rest of the day. This meeting is going to keep me busy much longer than expected.”

  As horrible as I thought it was going to be working for him, this past week really hasn’t been that bad. I’m mostly kept busy with clearing his calendar because unexpected meetings off-site keep springing up. And as shallow as it may be, he gets a pass on his awkward and abrasive behavior because I thoroughly enjoy staring at him from my desk.

  All jobs have their pros and cons.

  It just so happens the pros of this one are a hefty salary and someone hot as sin to occasionally think about as I fuck myself before bed.

  “Are you sure you don’t need anything else before I go?”

  He mumbles something in Spanish, which I don’t quite catch, and abruptly hangs up the phone.

  Again, he gets the hot as fuck pass…

  I really just need to get fucked.

  After quickly clearing his almost empty calendar, I grab my stuff and head home for the day. Sitting on the couch, I pull up one of the many dating apps on my phone.

  More correctly, a hook-up app.

  Swiping through nearby men, I look for one with a profile that screams ‘no strings hook-ups only’. Finding one that looks like he’ll do, I am about to message him when a text pops up over his profile.

  UNKNOWN

  What are you doing mi reina?

  I thought I was clear that I don’t like you dating other men?

  How the fuck do you know what I’m doing?

  And who said I’m looking to date him?

  Maybe I should be more clear…I have no problem removing the parts of any man that touches you.

  Was Kyle not enough of a warning for you?

  What the fuck?

  Unless you want his cock showing up in a box on your doorstep, I wouldn’t even think about sending him a message.

  Got it. I’ll just be celibate…

  That was sarcasm, in case that wasn’t clear

  Bad idea of the day: playing fuck around and find out with this guy.

  Is your cunt needy, mi reina?

  I will happily tend to every need you have.

  I stare at the phone unsure how to respond. Part of me wants to test him, but the rest of me screams that playing around with this deranged man is a really bad fucking idea. Listening to my intuition, I put down the phone.

  I change my clothes and head down to the gym for a run. If I’m not getting fucked today, I’m going to run myself to exhaustion.

  I’m a sweaty, disgusting mess as I jog up the flights of stairs to my apartment. I’m surprised to find a sleek, black box sitting outside my door. Picking it up, there’s no label or shipping information on it. I carry it into the apartment and place it on the kitchen counter as I hesitate to open it.

  Please don’t be that poor man’s dick…

  Tentatively opening the lid, I gasp when I see that it actually is a dick. Relief washes over me when I realize that it’s made of silicone. My hand barely wraps around the massive dildo as I lift it from the box.

  This thing looks like a fucking gag gift.

  Reaching back into the box, I pull out the card that was sitting next to the silicone monster.

  I won’t be able to make it until much later tonight, mi reina.

  But if you can’t wait, I’ll allow you the pleasure of stretching out your cunt for me.