Page 7

O nce again in our captor’s idea of an interrogation room, I lean back in the chair, ignoring the way my guards shift at every movement I make. I’d like them to spend days chained up and restless, then try to sit still once finally given the opportunity to do so. It’s as if none of them know how the human body works, and they just expect me to not need to move around and try to stretch out my aching muscles.

Flexing my hands, I hold back my wince as the wound from my missing index finger throbs. Those idiots think they've hindered me by taking my trigger finger, what they don't know is it’s one of the easiest to adapt to living without. My middle finger will quickly take its place. They probably thought taking my pinkie would be too easy, but if they got their heads out of their asses long enough to do a bit of research, they'd know that's the one I'd struggle to live without the most.

Roman and I can match now, at least. Though, unlike him, I’m not left handed, so it’s a bit more inconvenient to have lost a finger on my right hand.

“Is there a point to this?” I ask my silent guards. “If you wanted to bore me to death, you could have left me in my cell.”

No response, which is typical. Shaking my head in disgust, I relax my muscles, appearing nonchalant, even as the wait begins to grate on my already frayed nerves. The masked assholes clad in dark clothes don’t appear to be affected, and that just won’t do. If I’m slowly being driven crazy, they can be too.

Under my breath, I begin singing “Up On The House Top”, because if Carter gets to drive me crazy with Christmas music, I should be able to gift everyone else the same experience.

One of the guards gets twitchy, and he shifts from foot to foot as the singing gets progressively louder. His partner takes a step forward, as if he’s going to actually do something to me, but before he gets the chance, the door opens and our host steps into the room.

The guards remain still, but I finish the song before going quiet.

My host grins, the smile doing nothing for his bland looks. “You think you’re so clever? That you’re the one in charge here?”

I shrug. “Someone has to be.”

He chuckles and tosses a newspaper onto the table. “And it’s not you.”

Narrowing my eyes, I grab the newspaper and scan the headline: Arrests Made In Weapons Trafficking Takedown. Fear shoots through me as I scan the front page article.

Putting the paper down, I stare up at the asshole who is manically grinning at me.

“Still think you can get out of this?” he asks in a low tone.

Leaning back in my seat, I shrug and act unaffected. “You just made the most critical error you could have,” I inform him. Letting a smile curve over my lips, I do my best to hide the fear and anger that's coursing through me. “I hope you don't have any family who will want to bury your body; there won't even be ash left once Ten is finished with you.”

Anger flashes in his eyes and he slaps the table with both hands, leaning over it and getting in my face. “There's no scenario in which you get out of this in one piece.”

I hold up my bandaged wound. “Obviously. If you think that means you will…” I shrug. “You're more out of your mind than we've given you credit for.”

He sneers. “I can't wait until you're standing in the ashes of everything you've built, and I finally get to put a bullet in your head.”

I grin. “If that's a threat…it needs work.”

His face flushes red at my lack of reaction, and he surges away from the table. “Put him back where he belongs,” he orders.

Once he's gone, his goons move, grabbing my arms and roughly yanking me up. The anger running through me is hard to contain—so I don't.

Jerking out of one asshole’s grasp, I hit the other in his masked face, sad I don't get to see the blood spill.

The dickhead I didn't punch grabs me from behind, his arm locking around my throat. I know better than to flail around, so I let myself go limp.

As darkness creeps over me, all I can think is I hope Tennant doesn't get himself into more trouble than necessary. While at the same time, I'm thankful that Roman has more than one lover to help get him through this…