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Someone grabs my head and straightens it, pressing the towel over my mouth again. The water refills me, burning my throat, constricting my airway. This assault continues, each time the length of torture growing longer, the moments of reprieve growing shorter.
They pull the towels from my face and I fight to breathe. Secondhand drowning is a possibility right now. I try to look at Blake, but someone is standing in the way. The ropes around me slack, and they hoist me off the table. I put my hands on my knees, trying to regain some composure, barely able to hold myself up.
Fuck, my chest burns!
The cane hits my back with a deafening crack, and I scream, falling to my hands and knees. I push off the floor, kneeling. Sharp pain radiates through my body as a hooked flogger tears through the fabric of my dress, digging into my skin. The cane comes down across my skin again. Each hit stings more than the one before until my skin splits, wetness soaking the thin fabric of my dress.
"Enough," Khoui yells. "Stand her up."
On my feet, my back stings like hell. Khoui steps in front of me, his face impassive.
"Now, shall we see if your name really suits you?"
I straighten myself the best I can as one of the men steps in front of me.
He rushes forward and I slide to the side, avoiding him by inches. I turn, planting my fist into the back of his head. Another man moves toward me, but Khoui holds up a hand stopping him. Adrenaline and rage build in my chest, sending fire through my veins.
As the guy turns, I land another punch, hitting him in the temple. He staggers and falls to one knee. I grab the knife strapped to his belt, unsheathe it, and ram it through the top of his head, a sickening crunch reverberating through the room as his skull gives. His body stills. I pull the knife out, and he slumps face down on the floor.
Then, there were five.
Khoui nods and another man bounds forward, circling around me. I flip the knife, leaning the dull side of the blade against my wrist. He lunges and I duck, sweeping my hand out, running the blade along his rib cage. He screams, stumbling and holding his side. He turns, his eyes glaring into mine with fire and hate.
I hold my free hand up, palm to the ceiling. Curling my fingers back, I invite him to attack, a sinister smile on my lips. His hands grip my neck. I lift my arm, sliding the blade just under his ear. He drops me and I twist the blade, slamming into the dip at the base of his throat.
He spits blood, splattering my face. I grit my teeth and twist the knife as he falls to his knees. The slippery, sucking sound of blood and tissue hitting the floor brings a smile to my face as I roughly pull the knife from him. I turn without thinking, and dash to Dresden, sliding the knife up the rope binding him.
It falls to the floor and he reaches up, ripping the duct tape from his mouth. We stalk to the center of the room, our eyes on Khoui and his three remaining goons.
"I'm going to cut your fucking heart out," Dresden says, smirking at Khoui.
I reach down and slide the knife along the lace of my dress. Ripping the bottom off and throwing it to the side, I bend my knees and smile at Khoui. He nods toward us, and the other three men stampede forward. I grab the man closest to me by the arm, and jerk him forward, ramming the knife deep into his stomach. I twist the handle, jerking the blade upward before pulling it out.
He screams in pain as I plunge it into his shoulder, remove it, and slam it into his chest. He slumps to the ground, blood pooling at my feet, seeping between my toes. Dresden has his arms locked around the neck of one guy as the other grapples him from behind. Bounding over, I slide the knife in between the second guy's ribs. He releases Dresden, and falls to his knees, gasping for breath.
Dresden squeezes his arms around the man he has in his grasp, and the slow, methodical crack of bones snapping seeps through the air. The veins in Dresden's arms bulge from the force, as the man slumps to the floor. I step back, as Dresden whips around and grabs the last goon, pushing him down.
Climbing on top of him, he grabs the guy's head and slams it into the floor repeatedly. Sprays of blood in all directions follow the crunch of bone as he continues to smash the goon's skull into the floor. Dresden stops, climbing to his feet, his hands and forearms dripping red liquid.
"Oh, Khoui," I sing, lifting my gaze to his.
His face is ashen, eyes wide and flat. I stalk toward him and he drops to his knees.
"Oh, that's so cute," I say sweetly, moving to stand behind him. I grab his hair, pulling his head back. "No one fucks with my boyfriend or my daughter," I whisper in his ear, laying the knife against his throat.
The front door burst open, and Dresden rushes to my side, stopping short.
"Lily, don't," Hyde says in a panic. "Arrest him. Don't give in to this. Don't let them turn you into a monster."
"Sorina," I call out, looking up to meet her eyes. "Close your eyes, kiddo," I say, sternly.
Her eyelids droop shut, and I pull the knife across his throat. Hot blood hits my hand, and something evil takes hold inside me. Ecstasy. Gurgles sound from his lips. I press harder, sliding the knife back and forth.
The torn skin sticks to my hand as I continue to move, losing all sense of myself. His body sags, but my grip tightens, pulling back, exposing the gaping wound. Pressing my knee into his back, the blade stutters, grinding against the top of his spinal cord.
"Lily," Dresden whispers behind me.
I let go of Khoui's lifeless body, his head barely connected to his shoulders, and he hits the floor with a wet slap of skin and blood. I stand, the fuzziness leaving my mind. I shake my head, squeezing my eyes shut. Commotion is all around me and I fight to find myself again.