The Moon's Rebirth (The Downworlder Series #4)

Chapter Two: Checking It Twice

I sat beside Octavia and the twins while the car drove slowly through the city. "I need a list of infractions, Tatum. Don't skimp either." Octavia drawled it out and I gave a small smirk.

"A list?" I slowly looked over at her and she nodded, firmly. "She has denied the girls every single chance they had to further their learning. Roughly over six hundred requests she flat out denied in my stay as well as dumping all the textbooks you sent over." I ignored the rumbling of Octavia's chest. "This coupled with some pretty serious punishments. We are talking broken skin and girls being sent out to clients looking black and blue. She has even threatened to start drugging them to keep them compliant." Those tactics were only used in the roughest brothels Octavia had and certainly not on her top earners.

"That bitch." I could hear the venomous anger in her voice and it pleased me greatly. Octavia could be a hard Doyen but she wasn't stupid. She wanted to compete with Madame Lao and Madame Lowell was fucking with that.

Octavia didn't deal in fuck ups.

"Not to mention she skims twenty percent off the top of all of the marks cards, even the tips." I fought the smile down as best as I could as she let out a heavy snarl and nearly vibrated her anger. The twins made low and comforting sounds to her in an attempt to keep her calm before she hulked out in the car.

"Keep control of your emotions, Octavia." Benjin's voice was calm and even. "Emotions in this situation need to be controlled. If you let them control you, you will end up killing her outright. You need her alive to send a message and killing her in the club is bad for business." I wanted to make a face at the back of his head, he was ruining my fun. I honestly wanted to see Octavia tear apart the Madame the moment she walked through the doors.

I knew it would be bad for business. I just didn't particularly care about that fact. I looked out the window. "You should talk to Racah and tell her to smarten the fuck up." I couldn't let that female run rampant through the club harassing the other females. That was definitely not good for business. She was detracting from the other females, pushing clients away in her petty attempts to maintain her status as top earner.

It was a bit better when I was there but that was because I wasn't one to keep my mouth shut and I was very good at reminding her of her place. Being Octavia's companion had allowed me to speak my mind and call out the fuckers who needed to be called out.

"Who the fuck is that?" Octavia's gaze was intent on the side of my head, i could feel it burning my skin, like she was trying to look inside my skull.

"Racah was your top earner at Precious before I got there. She felt a little miffed that I kicked her off her proverbial throne so she is pulling petty shit with clients to try and maintain that little power hold she has. It's causing the other girls to lose earnings and clients to go elsewhere." I darted my eyes to her to watch as her expression darkened severely.

"I should kill her." She said it so simply that I had to laugh.

Viktor reached over and thumped my arm, making me yelp. "Top earner. No kill." He threw a glare at me as I rubbed my arm, making a face right back at him. There was no reason for him to hit me. The Russian brute.

Octavia slapped him upside the head. "Don't hit." She bent forward and pointed at me. "And you need to control yourself and not antagonize them." I felt a bit disgruntled at that. I hadn't really done anything but laugh. Laughing wasn't a bad thing, unless one was stuck next to a big old Russian asshole with a stick up his ass because Octavia was getting all tetchy about killing people.

"I'm sorry but I had to laugh, you said it so deadpan." At the words she fluffed her hair, sticking her nose up primly.

"Well I am considered to be hilarious when I want to be." She crossed her arms over her chest as the twins agreed with her, their hands stroking skin as they gave her their praise. I looked away, I didn't want to be privy to that. No matter how much I hated Chad for what he did, there was an empty longing within me that wanted him to hold me like the twins held Octavia.