I watch Penelope’s face with keen interest.
I knew bringing her here would be a risk with a heavy price, but it’s a price I was willing to pay to see her reaction.
She wants to know how depraved we can get? She hasn’t even seen the worst yet.
This is going to be one hell of a show.
I brace my feet against the concrete floor and smash the hammer into Nathan’s leg.
He yelps in pain, crying bloody tears, but I whip up his face so he looks at me instead of the ground. “Did you fucking push a note underneath her door?”
“I forced the fucking girl in that Alpha Psi sorority do it for me,” he screams back, his face all red from the pain he’s attempting to swallow.
I grip his preppy-ass by the collar and growl, “Tell me why you threatened her.”
I tower over him and let it sink in, then turn my head toward Pen.
I want her to look into my eyes and witness the cruelty. The vile, twisted desires coursing through my veins. I want her to see it all.
“Having regrets yet, Pen?” I ask.
She shakes her head even though I can see it’s hard for her to watch Nathan squirm in his seat.
“Answer me.”
“No,” she replies, feet firmly planted on the ground, her arms rigid by her side. Like she’s bracing herself for what’s to come.
WHACK!
I smash the hammer into the same leg, breaking it sideways.
“FUCK! My leg! You broke it!” Nathan squeals like a pig, but I’m only interested in Pen’s reaction, the look on her face. But instead of looking terrified, she looks confident. As though nothing could ever shake her.
I’m impressed.
For a little rat, she sure has a lot of guts.
“Stop him!” Nathan barks at Alistair and Dylan, but they don’t even bother to reply. “Why won’t you stop him? He’ll kill me.”
“Maybe I will,” I muse.
“Why? Why are you doing this?” Nathan begs. “Just because of some fucking prank?”
I snort. “A prank? Good one.”
His face contorts. “You don’t even fucking know her. Why do you even care?”
I tilt my head. “You think I don’t know her?” My eyes narrow as I bend over, leaning on my own knees as I stare into his eyes. “I’ve seen the darkest parts of her soul. And now I’m going to make you pay for reminding her they exist.”
I slam my fist into his broken leg and watch him suffer with pleasure.
I crack my knuckles as I listen to his groans of anguish.
God, nothing gets me going quite like a good beating.
“You hurt what belongs to me, Nathan,” I say, cracking my other knuckles.
“Fuck you, you know she’s going to face the same fate as Eve!” Nathan growls.
I glance at Pen over my shoulder.
She’s staring at him, but her eyes are glossed over, like she’s not really here.
Like her mind’s gone off to that day … the day we all watched her sister jump off the cliff.
Only this time, she’s holding her hand and jumping off with her.
So I raise the hammer and break his fucking hand to snap her out of it.
WHACK!
He cries out in agony. “Please, stop!”
“You threatened Pen. Admit it,” I say.
“Yes!” he yelps.
I grab him by the face. “Did you do it to Eve too?” My voice is unhinged, but my emotions are too.
“No!”
“Liar! What did you do to her?” I growl, holding the hammer over his other hand. “Are you the reason she jumped?”
“No! I don’t know why she jumped.” He closes his eyes. “Please, I swear to God, I’m telling the truth. Don’t do this, please! My parents depend on me to make it through university, and I’ll never be able to finish it without functioning hands.”
“You should have thought of that before you messed with her,” I retort.
“It wasn’t my idea!” Suddenly, his eyes widen, and he swallows. “No, no, you didn’t—”
“Hear that?” I grab his collar. “Now we’re finally talking.”
“I lied,” he says.
“No, you spilled the truth by accident. Now tell me whose idea it was.”
“No one,” he says. “I just don’t want you to hurt me. I’ll say anything you want me to.” He’s really sweating it now. “Don’t you know torture only makes people tell you what you want to hear?”
“Hmm … and what is it you think I want to hear?”
“That I’m sorry?” he mutters.
I raise a brow. “Are you? You scared her.”
“I didn’t mean to. I just wanted her to stop searching.”
“Right … You …” I mumble.
“Yes, me.”
“Because there was no one else involved who told you to do this, right?” I pet his cheek with the hammer.
He visibly gulps. “No, no. I was just trying to get out of responsibility.”
He glares at Penelope over my shoulders. “Please. I’m sorry. Make him stop.”
My nostrils flare.
I’m done with his lies.
I drop the hammer, and he literally breathes a sigh of relief.
Too early.
I fish my knife from my pocket, grab his hand, and slice off his finger while he screams for mercy, the sound like music to my ears.
God, I’ve fucking missed this.
He squeals like a pig. “My finger! My finger! Oh my God!”
I hold it up to the flickering light above us, admiring the view of flesh and bone, dripping with fresh, warm blood, right on top of his head.
“You’re insane!” he shrieks.
I grab him by the hair and make him look up at his own goddamn index finger. “No, you are, for lying to my face.” I lower the finger until it’s right above his face. “Now, let’s see … what should I do with this? Send it to your parents?” He shakes his head in fright. “Your little sister who was begging you to pay attention to her?”
“How do you know about her?” His skin turns pale. “Did you go through my phone?”
“You think we wouldn’t?” Dylan pitches in. “You underestimate us.”
“No, no … I think I know what to do with this,” I say, dangling his finger above his face like a wet noodle. “Maybe I should fucking feed it to you.”
His eyes widen, and he vomits all over himself.
I only manage to just pull away before he covers me.
“Fucking gross,” I snarl, stepping away.
“Oh God,” he groans.
“Yeah, better pray to fucking God, all right,” I reply, and I wipe off some of the blood that managed to land on my expensive shirt. “You ruined my clothes.”
“You cut off my finger!” Nathan cries.
“You prefer dying?” I say, clutching my knife.
He vehemently shakes his head.
I move the knife underneath his chin. “You deserve it, though ….”
“I didn’t make that fucking girl jump!” he says. “You’ve got the wrong guy!”
I’m about to slice this motherfucker’s neck.
“Wait,” Pen suddenly says.
I turn to look at her.
Now she chooses to put a stop to it?
“You’re not going to … kill him, are you?” she asks.
My eyes narrow. “Suddenly grew a conscience?”
“I think he’s covering for someone. Killing him will only make it easier for that person to get away with what they did. And you said he was part of the Phantom frat house. They’ll surely come after you guys when they find out.” She pauses. “He’s paid the price for what he did.”
She has a point. A good one too. Which I wish she hadn’t made because I was really looking forward to butchering this asshole.
I look down at my own bloody shirt, the scent of blood riling me up. It’s not nearly enough bloodshed for threatening the girl who belongs to me. But it’ll have to do for now.
I point my knife right at Nathan’s face. “You tell one fucking soul about what happened in this basement, and I will make sure to cut out your tongue and slice your throat personally. Do you understand?”
He nods a few times, shaking heavily.
“Get him out of my sight,” I growl over my shoulder at Dylan.
Dylan frowns. “What? You’re not f—”
“Do it,” I interject, and I step away before I do something we’ll all regret.
“Okay,” Dylan responds, and he starts untying Nathan together with Alistair, who helps him get Nathan under control. They tie his bloody hands together with a piece of rope and escort him up the stairs.
Out of my sight.
Away from my cruel intentions.
But I’ve got my fucking souvenir.
I stare at the bloody finger and tuck it into my pocket, then turn around to face the girl who wanted to know so badly what I was capable of.
“Did that scare you?” I ask.
She shakes her head, but when I step closer she shakes a little. “I just never expected it to go this far.”
I stand before her in all my bloody, fucked-up glory, tracing a line from her cheek down to her chin, blood staining her skin.
“This is what you asked for. What you begged me for …” I say, savoring the tense look she gives me. “I would’ve killed him for you.”
She shudders as I grip her face and pull her in to claim a kiss from those sweet fucking lips that have been begging me to claim them.
The thrill of the chase has left me in a frenzy, and without the ability to quench that thirst.
Because my prey still walks …
So I kiss her instead, aiming all my wicked desires at her.
And fuck me, is it long overdue.
Her lips are tantalizing, nothing short of fucking perfect for me. And I stake my fucking claim by piercing her lips open with my tongue and licking the roof of her mouth and her tongue.
God, that fucking tongue could fucking kill me if I let it.
The way it moves reminds me of how she wrapped it around my shaft not too long ago, and the thought makes me as hard as fuck, my bulge straining against the fabric of my pants.
Fuck.
She’s too much.
I pull away and look at the bloody markings on her face. My fucking territory.
“You remind me so much of her.”
Her lips part. “What?”
“Get out before I satisfy my cravings with you,” I growl.
She’s frozen for a sec, her eyes glimmering with fear.
“I’m doing you a fucking favor. Now take it.” I point at the stairs.
She immediately runs off, her feet tiptoeing up the staircase, the sound a delight to my ears.
Normally, I’d bolt after her for a good chase.
But I’ll tame that beast inside me, for now.
