Twenty Four

I pulled away from Maggie, pressing one last kiss to her lips as the limo came to a stop. I was thankful I'd practiced keeping up a facade. Inside, I was fuming. It was my wedding night; I should have been at the hotel letting my husband fuck my brains out. I should have been boarding a private jet, flying off to some exotic land with no contact with anyone except for Edward for weeks.

Instead, I was in the back of a damn limousine with Maggie, who was probably one of the dumbest bitches I'd ever come in contact with. I'd never seen someone's brain so addled by lust before. She was the head of her family, but I didn't understand how. It made sense to me now why they'd kept it a secret. I no longer thought Liam acting as the head was a ploy to keep me guessing. I figured it was more the fact that she had good ideas—I'd most likely implement a few myself after she was dead—but she was blind to what was going on in front of her.

During our affair, I'd continually wondered if she truly was as ridiculous as she seemed, or if it was all a game for her. Maybe she was as good an actress as me. For her family's sake, I almost hoped I was being duped. It would have made it all the more fun if she was plotting my demise at the same time I was plotting hers. I saw no evidence of that. Instead, all I saw was a woman who had no business being a part of this world. I'd be doing everyone a favor by taking her out; not that they'd see it that way.

We'd have a war on our hands within the week, but I couldn't have cared less. My men were stealthy; pros at evasion. Besides, I had little to worry about from a family who would put a woman like Maggie in charge. I couldn't imagine any of their tactics would be much better than hers. It was apparent they didn't have the money or the manpower to plot excessively.

The back door of the limo opened, and I slid out before turning to offer Maggie my hand.

"A warehouse?" she questioned.

I wanted to scream and stomp my feet like a toddler having a tantrum at her utter stupidity. Instead, I sighed heavily, ignoring her comment. "There's a shipment coming in; it's one of the biggest ones yet. I like to oversee shipments like this myself ever since you gained my attention." I smirked at her.

She threw her head back, laughing, and I saw red. How easy it would be to pull out my knife and slit her throat! "But it worked out in your favor, didn't it?" She laced her fingers with mine, a grin on her lips.

"Sure. Let's go, I want to get out of here as soon as possible." I pulled her behind me toward the loading docks. There were men everywhere unloading boxes, but I felt my heart flutter as I saw my husband—it was odd to think how much I enjoyed calling him that—standing in the shadows exactly where we planned. I couldn't wait to see her face when she saw him, just as she realized she would die.

"Come." I nodded toward a side door that led into the building. "I want to show you how my men work. The team you surround yourself with could probably take a lesson or two from them."

She was as easy to lure as a child who had just been asked if they wanted to see puppies in the back of a van. I didn't understand why she trusted me so blindly; she knew my history, and that I was known for being ruthless. She knew I'd killed lovers before, so what made her think she was any different? Was it that she thought she was safe since she was offering me power and that I'd leave her unscathed because of it? Didn't she realize that there was only one person I'd ever share my power with? There was only one person in the entire universe who could have what was mine. He'd opened my eyes to the fact that true love was possible, even in its most twisted and sick form.

As our heels echoed throughout the dark hallway, my heart raced in my chest. Adrenaline pumped through my veins from the excitement of what was about to happen. I couldn't stop the grin that spread across my lips as we entered a dimly lit room. I felt every hair on my body stand at attention as my husband—I still couldn't get over the joy I felt each time I thought the word—walked up behind us. His hand rested on the small of my back and my body burst into flames at the feel of his touch.

I wanted nothing more than for this whole thing to be over. Tomorrow, we'd take my father's private jet to a small island just off the coast of Brazil, where we'd be the only inhabitants for the next few weeks. We'd have no worries since our underboss, Caius, was more than capable of taking care of the aftermath of Maggie's death for a short while.

"Mrs. Cullen," he whispered in my ear, and I heard the desire in his voice as he spoke. "And Miss Walsh." The shift in his demeanor was thrilling to watch. His voice, which just seconds ago dripped with lust, now was laced with venom.

Maggie quickly turned around, her already pale skin blanching further as if she'd seen a ghost. I supposed to her, she had.

In a rare moment of wanting to show him just how deep my devotion to him went, I pulled my spare blade from its holster. "You do it."

Maggie's eyes darted between the two of us as she walked backward; anger mixed with fear for her life clear on her face as she realized exactly what was going on.

I rolled my eyes, frustrated this was taking longer than necessary. I turned to Edward. "Do I need to do it myself?"

"No, I was just enjoying the fear in her eyes." He strode quickly to her, wrapping an arm around her chest as she struggled to get free.

"It's almost a shame to kill her and waste a tongue like hers." I laughed.

He narrowed his eyes at me, growling. "All the more reason I'll enjoy this. How dare you think you could take what's mine!"

She continued to struggle against him, finding it difficult to breathe as his grip tightened. He sighed heavily, clearly annoyed with her, as he brought the knife to her throat. Her death was almost instant as he let her drop to the ground, blood pooling around her.

He glared at me, but there was mirth there. "I wouldn't have worn this suit if I knew I was doing the dirty work. Now I have to burn a fuckin' Armani suit!"

"I'll buy you six more like it," I said before turning to the men still diligently working on unloading the shipment. "Someone call The Butcher to clean this mess up," I shouted to them, knowing they would take care of it quickly. I grabbed Edward's hand, squeezing it tightly. "Let's get back to the hotel. We have an early flight tomorrow."

"Anything you say, Mrs. Cullen."

"You know, I like how that sounds." I stood on my tiptoes, kissing his cheek.

It excited me to start a new life with him, one where we shared the reins. He'd said it before, but after these last few months, I finally, truly believed him.

There was nothing we couldn't handle.

We really would be unstoppable.

Well, we've reached our final chapter for these two! I hope you've enjoyed going along on this crazy ride with me!

As always, thanks for your support!