Page 54 of Ruthless Desires, Vol. Two (Ruthless Desires Series Extended Editions #2)

Oliver

We’re all going to die. We’re all going to die. We’re all going to die.

My hands are trembling as I sit in my dark room. I abandoned the mattress a couple minutes ago, hoping that the hardness of the wood floor would ground me some.

It hasn’t worked.

Wrapping my arms around my legs, I rest my chin on my knees and slowly rock myself back and forth. I’m not sure how long it’s been since Elliot left. Hours, maybe? At this point, I’m worried he’s not coming back.

I do my best to take a deep breath. Calm yourself down. You can do it.

But my heart continues to race, and my thoughts only take a darker turn. What if Ludo has already killed Elliot? What if he’s dead?

No. No. Ludo said he needed him alive and in “perfect condition”

for something. But what if that’s done? Or what if Elliot failed?

My breaths come in short, tearful gasps as my mind conjures an image of Elliot, bloody and still, his eyes open yet lifeless.

And what about Rhett? I saw him again this evening while he played catch in the yard with Benny. Rhett doesn’t always look up at me—he has to be careful not to draw Benny’s attention—but he managed to tonight. The little bit of hope that’s usually in his expression was gone.

Does that mean there’s no chance of us getting out of here? Out of the three of us, I’m the least likely to be able to come up with an escape plan. Both Rhett and Ell have some semblance of freedom, although I’m sure it doesn’t feel like it to them.

As for me, I’m stuck—until Ludo comes for me, that is. His threat hasn’t left my mind since those words drifted through the walls.

What’s he going to do to me?

It feels like I sit on the ground for hours until footsteps sound in the hallway. At first, I’m worried it’s Ludo, but then they pass my room, and the door next to mine opens and closes.

Ell.

With a suppressed sob of relief, I crawl to the wall in between us and tap on it gently.

There’s no reply.

My heart sinks. Was that not him? Is someone else in his room? What’s going on?

I tap again, and this time, it’s answered, but not on the other side of the wall. It comes from my window.

Springing to my feet, I tiptoe to the window and open it carefully. Elliot looks tired, but he’s alive and seems to be unharmed.

“Ol,”

he whispers when he sees my face. He climbs into my room carefully, entering my open arms the second his feet hit the floor.

This time, I’m not as worried. No one comes into our rooms at night except for when Axel has come to get Elliot. Since that’s already happened, no one will come in—as long as we stay quiet.

“I found a way out,”

he whispers as his arms lock around my waist.

“I’m not sure when, but it’ll be as quickly as we can manage.”

“How?”

I whisper back, clutching his arms and peering at him through the darkness.

“Axel,”

Elliot says.

“He’s not who we thought he was. At least, I’m pretty sure. He’s our best option, and it’s better than ending up dead.”

“You’re positive?”

“As much as I can be.”

Framing my face in his hands, Elliot leans his forehead against mine.

“I can’t handle hearing you crying during the day and not being able to do anything to help you. I have to try, Oliver.”

“I’m sorry,”

I whisper.

“No,”

he says softly.

“No, don’t apologize. This isn’t your fault—not in the slightest.”

He fits his mouth to mine then, I think in an attempt of reassurance or comfort. It only makes me feel worse.

“I don’t want you to endanger yourself because of me,”

I murmur.

“What if something happens to you?”

“If I don’t do something, we’ll all end up dead,”

he replies quietly.

“I know, but—”

“I’m being careful,”

he whispers.

“Axel got me in contact with Finn and Wren, so we’ll have help from the outside.”

The tension in my muscles eases.

“You talked to Wren? How is she?”

“All right. We’re meeting with Finn tomorrow, and I had a lot of trouble convincing her to stay behind. Not sure I managed, honestly.”

“You don’t want to see her?”

“I don’t want her to get hurt.”

Elliot runs a hand over my hair, unable to stop touching me.

“It killed me to tell her to stay away, but I had to. I don’t want her locked up like this—or worse.”

I nod in agreement.

“Did she ask about me?”

“She did.”

He caresses my face, and I lean into his touch, my hands resting on his hips.

“I told her you’re okay.”

“Tell me more about your plan with Axel.”

Elliot shakes his head.

“We shouldn’t talk that much. Besides, you need to sleep.”

Gently, he leads me over to my mattress.

Since he held me while I fell asleep a few days ago, I’ve craved it every night. His warmth, his soothing touches, him. So this time, I don’t protest as we situate ourselves on the mattress. Elliot’s arms come around me, my back to his chest, and I focus on the feeling of his skin against mine.

“I’ve got you,”

he murmurs in my ear.

“You won’t fall asleep?” I ask.

“I won’t.”

His body is more relaxed than it was last time—probably because he’s found a way to save us. I melt into him and stroke my thumb up and down his arm. As he holds me, my anxiety fades, at least for the moment. And for the first night since the last time he was in here, I sleep peacefully.

***

In the morning, I’m woken by the sound of my bedroom door opening. Something heavy and warm is draped over my body, and I’m sweatier than I normally am.

“Hey,”

the guard shouts.

“They’re both in here.”

Elliot jerks upright, and he immediately shoves me behind him.

He fell asleep, I realize, before a second, much more terrifying thought hits me.

We’re dead.

“How’d you get in here?”

one of the men shouts.

“The window, obviously,”

another one snaps.

Despite Elliot trying to shield me, the men grab us both and drag us apart.

“What should we do?”

the third man asks.

“Punish them somehow?”

“I think that’s up to the boss.”

“No,”

Elliot blurts.

“Oliver didn’t do anything wrong. It was me—just me. Leave him alone.”

They ignore his pleas and shove us into the hallway. Elliot looks over his shoulder, his gaze clashing with mine in an apologetic stare.

“I’m sorry,”

he says, right before one of the guards hits him over the head.

“Shut up and walk,” he snaps.

They take us to Ludo’s office. The layout of the mansion is burned into my brain from when I studied the blueprints with Wren, so I know the way even though the men don’t tell us where we’re headed.

Halfway there, we hear yelling.

“How the hell did this happen?”

It’s Ludo’s voice.

“No, I want answers! Why didn’t the fire system go off? Why were the fryers still on?”

What the hell is he talking about?

“Who was the closing manager last night?”

Ludo barks.

“Get them on the phone. And get me the security footage!”

“It was all destroyed in the fire,”

a familiar voice says—Axel.

“Goddammit,”

Ludo shouts.

“I’ll find out who closed last night,”

Axel tells him.

By now, we’re right outside the office. The door is closed, and after one of the guards knocks, Ludo shouts, “Not now!”

“Uh—sorry, sir, but I don’t think you’ll want this to wait.”

The door opens, revealing a tired-looking Axel. For a split second, worry flickers over his face, but it’s gone before it fully registers. “What?”

he asks harshly.

“We found them together,”

one of the men holding Elliot says.

“This one snuck in through the other’s window and spent the night with him.”

Ludo shoves Axel out of the way. His glare makes me flinch.

“I never thought you were a fool, Hayes,”

he says, swiveling to look Elliot in the eye.

“I was wrong.”

“Punish me,”

Elliot says desperately.

“I shouldn’t’ve done it, I know. So punish me, but leave Oliver out of this.”

Ludo laughs, and a chill settles over me at the genuine amusement in it.

“Your begging won’t do any good. Besides, I’ve left Oliver alone for long enough. It’s time.”

“No!”

Elliot lunges for him, but the guards stop him before he reaches Ludo. It takes two of them to hold him back, but when Ludo speaks, Elliot freezes.

“You’ll only make it worse on him if you put up a fight.”

My chest tightens with dread. Is this it? Is he going to kill me?

“Take them to the basement,”

Ludo says.

Neither of us protest as they drag us downstairs. Elliot’s face is stricken with fear and regret, and my mind feels almost numb as we descend a second set of stairs into the basement.

The ceiling is low down here, and it’s dark except for the occasional lightbulb. One of the guards opens a door that’s covered in thick foam padding, and then we’re shoved inside.

Inside, the room smells damp and mildewy. There’s a metal chair in the center, right next to a drain in the floor, and a hose hangs on the far wall.

I’m more than familiar with the rumors surrounding Ludo—specifically the ones that earned him the nickname Redback. He’s a fan of torture—slow, painful torture that ultimately leads to the death of his victims. He takes pleasure in drawing out the process, much like the spider of the same name.

Gulping, I look to Elliot. His face is slack, his chest rising and falling quickly.

I’m sorry, he mouths.

When Ludo steps into the room, I swear the temperature drops. He’s carrying something long and thin with two prongs at one end. I recognize it almost immediately—a cattle prod.

“Please let me take his place,”

Elliot says weakly, but Ludo ignores him.

The guards yank all my clothes off before shoving me into the chair. Between all of them, they hold me so tightly I can barely even struggle. Only once they’ve cuffed my wrists and ankles to the chair do they back off.

My vision blurs, and with every passing second, it’s getting more difficult to breathe. I’m never going to see Wren and Rhett again.

“I really thought you’d learned your lesson,”

Ludo says to Elliot.

“But here you are, so quick to underestimate me again.”

I yelp as Ludo shocks me in the thigh.

“It’s insulting, really.”

He shocks me again, holding the prod to my skin for longer this time. As the pain builds, I try my hardest not to scream.

“It seems you’ve forgotten who you’re dealing with.”

This time, when Ludo shocks me, a pathetic cry forces itself past my lips. I barely register Elliot wincing in the corner of my eye.

Don’t look at him. It’ll only make it worse.

As I try to catch my breath, I realize that Ludo is still talking.

“… and you’d do well to remember that. But I have to make sure you do, since clearly you’re incapable of doing it yourself.”

My scream echoes around the small room as Ludo presses the cattle prod into the same spot. When he lets up, I gasp for air, and almost on instinct, my watering eyes turn toward Elliot. He’s fallen to his knees, two men holding him even though he’s not moving. Tears are streaming down his cheeks, and his fists are clenched at his sides.

I’m sorry, he mouths again.

Finally, Ludo turns toward me, and his smile makes my stomach tighten with dread. He raises the prod.

“I’ll enjoy making an example of you.”