The Untouchable Derek Cross

chapter 6

The first thug didn't even see it coming. Derek's fist crashed into his face with a sickening crunch. The man's nose exploded. Blood sprayed. His head snapped back violently. Derek's boot caught him in the chest, launching him backward. He flew six feet and crashed into a table, shattering it.

Derek caught the falling metal club mid-air.

Then he moved.

The club whistled through the air like a lightning strike. It smashed into the second thug's ribs. Crack. The man's chest caved in. He collapsed, gasping, blood pouring from his mouth.

Derek spun. The club connected with another man's knee. The knee shattered. The thug screamed, his leg bending backward at an unnatural angle. He hit the ground, shrieking.

A club swung toward Derek's head. He ducked, stepped inside the man's reach, and drove his elbow into the thug's throat. The windpipe collapsed. The man dropped, choking, clawing at his neck.

Derek swung the club in a wide arc. It connected with three men at once. Bones cracked. Arms broke. One man's jaw shattered, teeth flying. They all went down screaming.

Another thug tried to grab Derek from behind. Derek drove the club backward into the man's gut. The thug doubled over, vomiting blood. Derek spun and brought the club down on his skull. The man crumpled.

The remaining thugs hesitated, fear creeping into their eyes.

Derek didn't stop. He moved like death itself, unstoppable. His fist shattered one man's eye socket. His boot crushed another's ribs. The club broke arms, legs, spines. Blood sprayed across the white marble floor. Screams filled the air.

Ten seconds.

In ten seconds, over a dozen men lay scattered across the floor. Broken. Bleeding. Groaning. Crying. Some unconscious. Some begging for mercy.

Derek stood in the center, breathing steady, not even winded. He dropped the club. It clattered to the floor.

The ballroom was silent. Dead silent.

"What... what the hell..."

"Did you see that?"

"He took down all of them in seconds!"

The guests stared, wide-eyed, mouths open. Disbelief written all over their faces.

Nathan's face went pale. His hands shook. "That's... that's impossible..."

This waste, this nobody, had just destroyed all of the Morrison family's trained enforcers in under ten seconds?

Claire's eyes narrowed. She forced a cold smile.

"So you learned some basic fighting skills in prison. Impressive. But fists and feet tricks are useless here. You're still trash."

Derek kicked a groaning thug out of his path and walked toward Nathan. His voice was calm, deadly. "Nathan Morrison. Like I said. You're not escaping today."

Fear flashed across Nathan's face. He grabbed Megan by the throat, pressing hard. Megan gasped, choking.

"Stop! Don't come any closer! If you do, I'll kill her right here!"

His voice was shrill, panicked.

Derek stopped.

His voice dropped, colder than ice. "Let her go now. If you do, today I'll let you die quickly. Painlessly."

Nathan laughed, high-pitched and manic. "Seems like you actually care about this ugly freak! Then here's what you're going to do, Derek. You're going to kneel. Crawl over here on your hands and knees. Lick my shoes. Beg me to spare you. Cry like a little bitch. Crawl between my legs like the dog you are."

He squeezed Megan's throat harder. She gasped, her face turning red.

"Do that, and maybe...maybe—I'll consider letting you both live. Otherwise, I'll snap her neck right now and you can watch her die."

Derek's eyes went cold. Empty.

Then he moved.

It was so fast the crowd gasped. A blur. One moment Derek was ten feet away. The next, he was right in front of Nathan.

"What—how—"

Nathan's eyes went wide with shock, he couldn't believe what just happened.

Immediately he tried to squeeze Megan's throat, tried to kill her before Derek could stop him.

But his hand wouldn't move.

Derek's fingers were wrapped around Nathan's wrist like iron. Nathan pulled with all his strength. Nothing. He couldn't move an inch.

Derek stood there, towering over him, his voice quiet, lethal, like death whispering in Nathan's ear.

"I gave you a chance just now. I gave you a choice. Why did you insist on dying?"

Derek twisted.

Crack.

Nathan's wrist shattered. Bones splintered. Nathan screamed, a raw, high-pitched shriek. Derek released him and Nathan staggered back, clutching his ruined wrist, tears streaming down his face.

Derek caught Megan gently as she collapsed. He lowered her to the floor, his voice soft. "I'm here now. You're safe."

Megan sobbed, her hands covering her face. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry you have to see me like this."

"Don't apologize. None of this is your fault."

Derek stood and turned back to Nathan, who was on his knees, cradling his broken wrist, sobbing like a child.

"Please... please, I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

Derek grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the ground. Nathan's feet kicked uselessly in the air. His face turned purple.

"You destroyed my sister's legs. You tortured Megan. You thought you could do whatever you wanted because your family has money."

Derek's grip tightened.

"Today, you learn what real pain feels like."

He threw Nathan across the room. Nathan's body slammed into a marble pillar. Something cracked. Nathan slumped to the floor, groaning, blood pouring from his mouth.

Claire's face twisted with rage.

"You dare! You dare attack my brother! Guards! Kill him! Kill him now!"

More Morrison enforcers poured into the room. Twenty. Thirty. Forty. They surrounded Derek, weapons drawn clubs, knives, even a few guns.

Upon seeing what was happening the guests screamed, scrambling back, trying to get away, without being told they could tell it's going to be bloody soon, or get really messy.

Derek stood in the center, calm, his eyes cold.

"All of you. Come at once. Let's not waste time."

The enforcers charged, Derek moved like a storm.

His fist crushed one man's jaw. His elbow shattered another's ribs. He grabbed a knife mid-swing, twisted the man's arm until it broke, and drove the blade into another attacker's thigh. A kick sent one man flying into three others. They all went down in a heap.

He moved faster than they could react. Faster than they could think. Every strike precise, brutal, devastating.

Bones broke. Blood sprayed. Men screamed.

Derek was untouchable. Unstoppable. A force of nature tearing through them like they were nothing.

Within a minute, all of them lay on the ground. Broken. Bleeding. Defeated.

Derek stood in the center of the carnage, not even breathing hard.

The guests stared in terror. Some were crying. Others looked like they might faint.

Richard Morrison stood, his face pale, his hands shaking. "Who... who are you?"

Derek's eyes locked onto him. "I'm the man your family destroyed five years ago. And tonight, I'm here to collect every debt you owe."

Claire's voice was shrill, desperate. "Father, call the police! Call everyone! He can't—"

Derek's voice cut through hers like a blade. "No one is calling anyone. Tonight, the Morrison family pays. All of you."

He stepped toward them, slow, deliberate, his eyes burning with fury.

The room filled with the sound of their fear.