"Owen! Help me!" Since her last talk with Owen, Elena had played her part, entertaining guests without complaint. But now she stumbled out of the room—beaten and shaking, her voice carrying pure desperation. Owen understood the situation instantly. She had run into someone with a twisted fetish. He didn't actually care if Elena was hurt, but if she ended up broken, it would destroy his business. Right now, he needed her to keep supplies flowing. So, he moved quickly to smooth things over. Edric was already seething after failing to catch Braxton, and seeing Elena resist only fueled his rage. He wasn't as skilled as Braxton, and now she was giving him attitude? To make it worse, Owen was stepping in on her side. Edric snapped. He pulled out a pistol, his newest toy. It was crudely built in some backstreet workshop, but flashing it was enough to paralyze the room. Owen folded at once. With a forced grin, he shoved Elena back toward Edric. Elena stopped fighting. Her body trembled as she prepared to follow him back inside. But Edric's twisted mind shifted. His eyes locked on Owen. "You. You're coming too." Ever since Braxton, he had developed a hunger for men. Elena was beautiful, yes, but something about her no longer satisfied him. Owen wasn't handsome, but he was still a man. And in the dark, who would notice the difference? Owen froze. He had never imagined sacrificing himself for supplies. But the cold steel pressing against his chest left him no choice. Cursing under his breath, he followed Edric into the bedroom. The door slammed shut. Edric shoved him onto the bed, one hand gripping the gun, the other clawing at him. Owen's jaw tightened. The moment Edric's focus slipped, he slid a knife from the crack in the bedframe and drove it hard into Edric's gun hand. Edric howled in pain, the pistol clattering to the floor. Owen snatched it up and pulled the trigger without hesitation. The shot blasted through the room. Edric's eyes went wide with disbelief as he crumpled.The weapon he had believed gave him power had become the tool of his death. Owen let out a long breath. Once certain Edric was truly gone, he studied the gun in his grip. A grin stretched across his face. "Never thought I'd score something this good." Every man dreamed of holding a gun. He had just killed with one, and the rush surged through him like fire. "With this, supplies will never be a problem again." Elena shrank back as Owen's grin turned darker. He caught her reaction. "You're scared of me?" She forced her lips into a smile. "Of course not ... " But Owen sneered. "You should be."He ran his hand across the gun like it was treasure. With this in his possession, everyone had reason to fear him. He crouched beside Edric's corpse, digging through his clothes until he pulled out a spare magazine. He counted the rounds carefully. Twenty-nine total. Fourteen in the gun, fifteen in the magazine. Satisfied, he slipped the magazine into his pocket. "Starting tomorrow, you get the day off. We're going door to door to collect food." Elena stiffened. "But the snakes are still out there ... " "Most of the venomous ones are gone," Owen said with a dismissive wave. "The only ones left are king snakes. They look scary, but they're harmless." Before the collapse, he had kept snakes as pets, so he knew their habits well. At first, the area had been full of venomous snakes, but now he saw only harmless types. Some people had even started catching them for food. Elena still looked uneasy. "But we only have so many bullets. If the neighbors fight back, how many could we actually kill?" Owen laughed sharply. "Revolt? Who's dumb enough to be the first one? "I might not be able to wipe out the whole block, but I can kill 29 people. Who wants to risk being one of them? "And besides, as long as you keep quiet, who's going to know how many bullets I really have?" He gave her a sharp look. "Women. I don't expect you to understand my vision." Elena's face tensed. Once, she might have snapped back.Back then, he used to charm her with gifts, and she liked the attention. That was why she dated him. But now his charm had soured into cruelty. And with a gun in his hand, she swallowed her anger and forced a smile. "You're right." Owen tucked the pistol into his waistband, then dragged Edric's body outside. He hung it high in the most visible spot in the neighborhood, a bloody warning for all to see. The next morning, people gathered. They stared at Edric's corpse swinging in the open. His eyes were wide open, and a single bullet hole marked his forehead.