Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 49907 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 166(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49907 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 166(@300wpm)
“All this,” Thorne gestured around the room, to the scene of chaos and terror they had orchestrated, “it’s for you. To protect what’s his and in retrospect, ours.”
I sat there, my mind racing in frantic loops. Every piece of this nightmare felt impossibly heavy, each revelation landing like a fresh blow.
My fingers twitched against the twin biting into my wrists. I fought to remain calm. I couldn’t look at Cherish for too long. I knew her eyes would be full of fire and terror, and they’d catch that. I feared they’d notice and weaponize it. They were too calm, composed, and controlled, the way predators always were when they knew they were at the top of the food chain.
Their sense of brotherhood was as twisted and deranged as they were. They acted like they were trying to include me as if I somehow belonged to them and they truly had my best interests in mind. I chanced a glance across the room and nearly growled like a damn animal. Ryan kept glancing at me, his eyes darting from the men to me and back again.
I wanted to scream at him to quit being so damn obvious, for fucks sake. He was trying to read me. It was only making things worse.
Atlas’ masked face shifted my way the slightest bit, the motion of someone who noticed far too much.
My pulse spiked, and I dropped my gaze to the floor, feigning interest in the wood beneath my feet.
"Interesting," he rasped.
Wilder finally stepped forward, his towering frame blocking out the rest of the room as he crouched in front of me. His gloved hand tilted my chin up, forcing me to meet his gaze—or at least the cold, unfeeling gaze of his mask. The polished black surface reflected nothing back at me, as blank and unreadable as the man behind it.
He tugged the gag free, his voice almost gentle as he asked, "Any questions?"
I opened my mouth, but no words came. I snapped it shut again, swallowing back every plea, every sob, and every bitter burst of rage. They wouldn't care.
These monsters weren’t moved by emotion. If I wanted to survive and get my sister out of this, I had to play it smart. Everything else, the others, even my sanity could wait.
“You have my dog?” It was the first thought that pierced through the mess in my head.
Someone laughed.
“I have our dog. He’s coming home with us.” He paused, letting his words sink in before asking, “You want to go home, don’t you?”
I swallowed hard, my mind spinning. Was this a trick question? There was no way to tell, not with his mask concealing his every expression. He chuckled softly, able to read me without issue. “It’s a yes or no, Mint.”
I nodded once, forcing the words out. “I want to go home.”
As soon as I said it, I swear I felt him grin behind that mask.
His gloved fingers brushed my jaw tenderly.
“Good,” he murmured. “Let’s wrap this up then.”
Wilder straightened, his towering form casting an even darker shadow as he stepped back. He turned his head slightly, his tone shifting to one of calm “KJ.”
KJ. The name from their group chat? Why had I not tied that together until right then? She stepped forward, her mask eerily doll-like, her movements unnervingly graceful as if she were enjoying every second of this. She made her way to Liza, who was still tied to a chair, her face streaked with tears.
“No!” I yelled, my voice breaking as I saw what she was about to do. “No—don’t.”
KJ grabbed a fistful of Liza’s hair, yanking her head back with a vicious jerk. The chair rocked with the force of it.
Liza’s broken plea ended in a choked gurgle, KJ’s blade slashing a clean line across her throat.
Blood sprayed in rivulets, streaking across the mahogany table. Liza’s body jerked once, twice, before going limp and her head lolled forward. Muffled screams came from the others, their cries stifled by their gags. My mind screamed at me to do something, anything, unable to even process what I’d just witnessed.
Wilder’s voice broke through to me low and steady. “Lesson one, Mint, no one disrespects you and gets away with it. Not even your friends.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I watched her closely, studying every flicker of emotion that crossed her face. The defiance was still there, simmering beneath the surface, tempered now by fear and temporary grief.
Across the room, Thorne circled Naija like a predator. He gripped her face and forced her to look at him. She squirmed in the chair, but his hold didn’t waver. Jason stirred, groaning as he began to wake. He was saying something, not realizing we couldn’t understand.
Lucian tugged his gag down. “Start again.”
His voice was weak, cracked with fear, but he managed to croak, “Why? Why are you doing this to us?”