Razor's Mark: (Marked Book 1) (5 page)

He didn’t even know if the threat was real, and if it was, what would they actually do to her? He knew thugs and shit like that, but government crap and military undercover OPs were not his
thing
.

Getting this done and getting Faith out of his life and out of his mind was his motivation for turning around and going to the shop. Pulling in the back, he parked in the spots for the artists. He waited for Faith to climb off before he did. Taking both helmets, he locked them away, then
after making sure she could stand on her own,
they headed inside. Opening the
back door, he smiled when Tex was there.

“Oh look, fresh meat. Please tell me she’s a virgin and I can mark her first.”
Tex, with his crazy ass southern drawl, made Faith jump and hide
behind him, like a scared mouse.

“Shit, I didn’t think about that. Not sure about the virgin part, but marking her, not while she’s here. Sparkle in?”

“Yeah, in the front. Want me to send her to the office?”

“Could you?”

“Yup, oh and, Razor, if you don’t want her, I’ll take her. She looks sweeter than a Georgia
peach,
and I bet I can make her cry.” He winked at Faith before leaving.

“What was that about?” she asked. Faith hated people talking about
her,
and she really hated when people assumed she was a virgin. Sure, she
lacked
in the sexual department, but the men she worked with thought coitus was only needed for reproduction and not enjoyment.

“Nothing,” he said before pulling her once again into the office she had been in before.

“That wasn’t nothing. I don’t like people talking about me, especially when I’m standing right there.”

“What about that bothered you?”

“Just parts,” she answered. She didn’t need to tell him specifics.

“Ah, the virgin part. Let me reassure you,
kitten; it
’s not what you think. He didn’t want to know if you had had sex before. He was talking about your skin. A virgin to tattoos and piercings. They are the best to work on. Fresh, clean skin, untainted by color and marks. It’s a great honor to have someone do a virgin tat that’s not some stupid butterfly shit.” She blinked a few times, not sure what to say. That was the most he had ever said to her and with his few words she was drawn in. His voice was soothing and hypnotic. She enjoyed his voice when he talked like a person to her and not barking orders. It made him much more attractive than before, and it made her feel drawn to him in some sort of weird way she couldn’t explain. A magnetic pull of some kind.

“Oh, okay.” She lowered her head, unsure of what to say next. She sat down on the chair waiting for, well something. Trying to keep her nerves calm with herself and not look up at him anymore.

“
Are
you a virgin, kitten?” His voice took a husky tone, and suddenly there were parts of her body that sparked to life; parts that
that never had happened to
before. He looked up then down her
body
as if weighing something. In decision was evident on his face, as if an internal battle was going on inside him.

“In the manner in which you are referring to, with a tattoo or anything else, then yes.

I have nothing on me.”

“And the other?” He practically growled
it. She
was going to tell him it was none of his business, but the door suddenly opened cutting her off.

“Razor, you punk, why are you in?” This seemed to snap both of them out of their little trance they had going on.

“Need some help,” he said. Suddenly Faith knew what he was going to do.

“No, please don’t, Razor. I don’t know who to trust. John said I could trust you, and only you. Please don’t,” she pleaded. Faith didn’t want so many people involved. John was already dead, though the details had yet to be determined, and she didn’t want more people in danger.

“Hush, kitten. I got this. You trust
me,
and I trust her. Plus, I need some help.” His way of explaining. At least he did that and didn’t shut her down completely. He went and explained what was going on, though she was happy to admit he didn’t give exact details about the whole thing. He told Sparkle, but in a roundabout way.

“Well fuck me. I knew your brother’s death was some sort of government
cover-up. Plus
the square you’re watching. She’s too plain Jane for you, Razor,” Sparkle laughed.

Faith looked down at herself. She didn’t see anything wrong, but apparently, no one liked how she looked.

“So will you help?”

“Yup,
can do. I say she can hang out here, and just so you know, I have a secure network. Had a friend of mine install it. No one can access my
code, so you’re good. You log in,
and if they try to piggy back to your location they will be bounced all around China and Egypt. So, do what you need to do. I’ll figure something out by then.” Faith thanked the woman, though she scratched her head. Everyone in the shop had the strangest names. Razor called her Sparkle, and her outside sure matched it, so when she spoke about secure lines and such, it caught her off guard.

“Stay here. I have work to do.” And like that, Razor dismissed her, again. It was just fine with her. She wanted to look at the coroner’s report and find out what the hell really happened to John. She needed to find out if John has had anything on him at the time of his death. She also wanted to check her work email to see if anything had been sent to it since she’d last logged in.

Looking at Sparkle’s desk, Faith knew she needed to clean it before she could even work. There
was
paperwork scattered all over it, and old paper coffee cups lined the side. Opening a few
cabinets
she found some cleaning products, and although she could almost guarantee that these were for some of the equipment, they would work for this too. Slipping on some gloves, she threw the cups away and then looked at the papers. They were bills that looked to have been paid. Finding some paper clips, she straightened and organized them to the best of her ability, which she had to admit was above par from the typical secretary.

Happy, she started the computer in the office. Looking for the network, she was pleased to find that Sparkle was telling the truth. Logging into the network, she hunted down the reports on
John; it didn’t take long to find the coroner who did the autopsy. She read the report and couldn’t stop the tears from rolling
down her face.

Scrolling down, she read more and more and then got to the pictures of him. They’d tortured him to death. The police said it was a mugging, but she knew different. It looked
like he had some defensive wounds on his knuckles, but his face was shades of black, blue, and purple. A few teeth were missing. He had stab wounds on his chest, stomach, and upper thighs. Red marks on his wrists and neck indicated he was tied down. She knew he would never have willingly divulged any information, and they killed him for it. He didn’t deserve it. Wiping the tears from her face, she needed to find out if they’d found anything in his possession.

His wallet was still on him, but all cash had been removed, and his watch was missing.

The police report didn’t say anything about them checking his apartment. That was where she needed to go next. She could easily sneak in and look around, but it would mean she would have to get past Razor. His only concern seemed to be keeping her safe, not helping her solve the problem and Johns murder.

Determined to figure this all out, she looked up the metro to find the best way out of DC to John’s house. Logging off the computer, she opened the door quietly. Not wanting anyone to see her, she looked around and noticed the curtain that led back to the office was closed. Perfect, no one would see her. Shutting the door as quietly as she could, she went to the
back door
and soon she was outside, by herself. It was scary to know anyone could get her, or someone could be watching her, but she needed to do this. The sooner she solved this issue, the sooner she could go back to living the normal, boring life like she had before.

Reaching into her pocket, she held onto the pair of scissors she’d found in Sparkle's drawer. They would work well enough to get away if someone grabbed her. She ran down the small alley and walked right out into the crowd, blending in, and she was gone.

Faith felt like her heart was beating out of her chest. She was able to get on the green line and then the red right to John’s apartment without any trouble. She didn’t have a
key
but knew where he kept a spare. Finding the odd-looking gnome next door at his neighbor’s house, she reached inside the small hole and found it. Looking around, she made sure no one was watching her. Luckily, there were no cameras in the building. Putting the key in the hole, she held her breath as she turned it and a click sounded. Opening the door and closing it quickly, she sighed in relief as she relocked it.

Looking around, it was easy to see she wasn’t the first one to come here. John was somewhat neat, but the place was trashed. The couch was
flipped,
and the cushions were ripped open. Paintings were off the
wall,
and drawers were open. Someone was looking for something. She did her best to stay quiet. But Looking at the chaos made everything more real than it had been before. Slipping on a pair of latex gloves she’d found in the
office; she
started searching.

She knew John better than whoever had done the searching prior. He wouldn’t have left things out. He had reasons for everything. She opened the fridge, putting some of the stuff
sitting
out back inside. He wouldn’t hide anything here. His kitchen, she knew, was safe. Normal people hid things in the kitchen, not people who studied and analyzed human behavior patterns on how to survive.

Pushing drawers back in, she came across a picture of her and him. It was taken at a company picnic. He was smiling so big, and she wore a half smile. His arm was wrapped around her a little over a year ago. It had been a fun day. Not wanting to leave it there, she tucked it away in her pocket to keep. Moving into the living room, she pushed the cushions back on the couch and put the pictures in a neat pile. Not John’s style. He wouldn’t hide anything in the bedroom, except maybe his desk area. His computer was missing. He had both a laptop and desktop. It didn’t
matter; John
was smart enough to enter an erase pattern. Unless you were an incredible hacker and knew how to enter his password within three tries, the hard drive would fry itself, leaving it useless. John taught her that as well.

Looking around the room, she couldn’t see anything off. No odd pictures that stood out, a safe, nothing. It must have been on him, whatever it was. Maybe he mailed it. She went to the door to leave when she heard keys in the lock. Stunned, she ran to the bedroom to give a few second to think. Shit, someone would find her. Looking around, she had to find a place to
hide; she could hear two male voices suddenly inside the apartment.

“No, the boss man said to check again.”
Shit, shit, shit.
Looking around the room, there was no place to hide. The mattress was flipped over, boxes on the floor. Damn it. There was a deck, but she couldn’t hide there. Or could she? She thought about the distance between his deck and the
neighbor’s
. It was risky if anyone was outside, but at least she had a chance then.

They were in the living room,
and drawers were being opened again. “Any word on the bitch yet?”

“Nah,
said she took off yesterday during lunch. We’re watching her place. She’s one for routine; she’s bound to show up. Not too smart; blonde,
ya
know.”
Fuck, okay, Faith, it was now or never
, she told herself. Opening the door quietly, she stepped outside. She could stretch and reach the deck next door, but it would have to be a good stretch. Swinging her body over, she held her breath and leaned over. The sound of banging startled her. Looking behind her, she needed to just jump and not be a baby about it. Saying a Hail Mary, she jumped and grabbed the rung. Unable to stop the yelp when she heard them say, "Did you hear that?” Climbing over the edge onto the neighbor’s, she found some boxes and hid behind them and the potted plants. The sound of John's deck door opening let her know someone was outside.

“I heard a noise.”

“You’re hearing
things. Let’s finish the
job; I’m hungry.”

“'Kay, let me check something.” Faith held her breath and tried to make her body as small as possible. “Must’ve been a dog.” And just like that, he went back inside.

Her body was shaking from the rush of adrenaline from her jumping decks outside or from the men now looking for her that probably killed John. Not sure what to do now, she waited, trying to calm her racing heart.
Finally
able to stand, she reached for the door of the deck she was on. Thank God, it opened. She listened and didn’t hear anything. No one was home. Not wanting to take a chance, she ran to the front door and opened it. Making sure to keep it locked from the inside, she shut it. Just as she did, someone grabbed her and covered her mouth. Panic set
in, and she started to scream.

“You better shut the fuck up now, kitten. I’m so damn mad right now that I could spit nails. We will talk when I cool down. Let’s go.” He released her
mouth,
and before she could say anything, he bent and flung her over his shoulder. Unable to do anything, shock, fear, and relief flooded through her body. Never in her dull life had she ever been through something like that.