Page 15 of Tortured Souls
“Sky, you’re not going anywhere. Give it up already.” I look up at Saint, anger blooming in my chest again.
“Fuck you, you caveman. How could Sage even like you?” I whisper to him, but the moment it comes out of my mouth, I know it’s a mistake. He comes to stand in front of me, leaning down and getting right in my face.
“Say that again, and it will be the last thing you say.”
“Why, you afraid your bestie will hear?” I wink at him, knowing I’m playing with fire, but I don’t fucking care. Grabbing my hair, he yanks my head back so I’m looking up at the ceiling, holding in the scream I want to let loose from the pain shooting all over my scalp.
“This is your last and final warning, Sky. I’m not against killing a woman, even with Saxon’s weird fucking obsession with you.” Pushing my head back, I right my neck and spit at Saint’s boots for good measure.
“You good?” Saxon asks Saint. Saint’s eyes meet mine again as I wink at him just to push him that much further.
“Yeah, we’re good.” Saint looks away from me and back at Saxon.
“Now, Damien. Question. Who is she to you?” Saxon kneels beside Damien, his hands gripping what appear to be a pair of wire cutters. Damien doesn’t see the new weapon at his side. Staring at Saxon, he says nothing.
“Right, you want to be silent. I get it. If I were you, I can’t say I’d be the chatty type either. Let me help you with that.” Lifting Damien’s pinky finger, Saxon chops it completely off with the wire cutters. The now detached finger falls and slaps against the concrete as Damien lets out a bloodcurdling scream. I wish I could cover my ears, but lucky me, my hands are tied to this fucking chair.
“You see, this will be so much easier if you just answer my questions.” Saint laughs at Saxon’s comment, and I want to punch him in his stupid fucking face.
“So, let’s try this again. You have nine more fingers to go. Who is she to you?” Damien’s voice is cracking, trying to hold back the sobs, but still, he doesn’t answer Saxon.
“Right, on to the next one.” Damien’s ring finger joins his pinky on the floor along with more blood that’s soaking both appendages in a rapidly growing puddle.
“Fuuuck, stop! Please stop, okay? She’s Sergio’s daughter. I work for him.” I let out a sigh, thankful Damien didn’t spill how we really know one another, other than the fact that he’s part of the Hellstorms.
“Well, no shit. I know that.” Saxon slaps the back of Damien’s head as he circles the chair once again. “Why does that woman over there seem to want to kill you all on her own? Is she lying to me? Is this her way of protecting you? Pretend like she wants to kill you so she can help you escape? However, that wouldn’t make sense since she was the one to drug you in the first place. And she did just bust your last remaining kneecap as well. She’s playing this game a little too well, you know what I’m saying? Why do you think that is?” Saxon is right in his face now. Snot and tears stream down Damien’s face, and that’s when he locks eyes with me. My stomach drops.
Please don’t say it. Please don’t do this.
I try to speak through my eyes, my brows furrowing and head slightly shaking, pleading with him not to talk. Staring into the eyes of the man that destroyed me, I give him a sympathetic smile, hoping he understands my silent communication.
“Eyes on me, Damien. Answer my question, or it’s another finger gone.” My skin is on fire as I watch Damien’s eyes leave mine and land on Saxon. He’s about to crack. I can see it in the way he starts trembling.
“Well, time is ticking, and I’m not a patient man.” Saxon grabs Damien’s pointer finger, settling the wire cutters high on his knuckle.
“WAIT! Okay, I’ll tell you. I?—”
“He cheated on me!” I scream. All heads snap towards me as I take in breath after breath. “I dated him in the past, and he cheated on me!” I scream again, cutting off Damien before he can spill my darkest memory. I know what Saxon would do to him. I know he’d kill him, and right now, I would say anything to stop that from happening. It’s not a secret that the Kings protect women from scum like Damien—that’s why so many women from the Hellstorms escape and seek out Golden Heights. It’s a sanctuary for them until they can figure out their lives again. If Saxon finds out Damien raped me, Saxon would kill him immediately. Not to mention his involvement in his father’s death. Then again, Damien may have already signed his death warrant from that simple fact alone. Either way, I need to do this. His death is mine—it’s supposed to be mine. With everyone staring at me, my whole body begins to tremble against the restraints, my eyes boring into Saxon’s handsome face. I need him to believe me.
The room is silent. Saxon’s black eyes are fixed on me as he tries to decipher my outburst. Reading my every expression, as if he can tell just by looking at me if I’m lying or not. He stands to his full height, tossing the wire cutters to Saint as he stalks over to me. He crouches, his fingers twirling around a lock of my hair before he brushes it behind my ear. His touch cooling the inferno in my chest.
“Why do I have a hard time believing you, tesoro?” He watches as I part my lips but not letting the truth come out. “He doesn’t seem like your type.”
“And you know my type?” I whisper, his proximity to me making me flustered.
“Oh, I know more about you than you will ever know.” I watch the corners of his lips lift. His devilishly sexy smirk causes me to swallow my response. I can’t give him my usual retort. He’s everywhere—under my skin, his scent in my nose, his touch lighting a fire everywhere he trails his fingertips, which are currently gliding down the side of my neck and around the front of my throat. I can’t stop my breath from catching when he dusts over my chest, pulling away just as he’s about to reach between my breasts.
“Damien, my friend. Is she telling me the truth?” He speaks to him without even turning around to face him. “I need you to be careful with how you answer my question. I have a very good sense for people lying to me.” Saxon finally stands and starts back towards Damien, the air rushing from my lungs as his heat leaves me. Suddenly, I’m so cold.
“Y-yeah, we dated.” I knew I was fucked the moment Damien dropped his eyes from Saxon. The most telltale sign of someone lying, avoiding eye contact. A chuckle and the exchange of the wire cutters between Saxon and Saint are all the warning Damien needs before he speaks again.
“Okay, man! I fucked her, okay? I forced her to fuck me on my twenty-ninth birthday.”
The room falls silent. I lower my eyes to the floor, but I don’t miss the feeling of their eyes on me once again. The heat of their stares makes my skin prickle, and the familiar feeling of being plagued with a filth that will never wash away. A violation that will never heal. A memory forever scarred inside me. No, not a memory, a nightmare. A lifetime of disgust constantly swimming through my body. I wish I could wash away my insides to cleanse me once and for all—a wish that will never come true.
“Fuck,” Saint whispers from my right, barely audible to the room, but I hear him. I hear his pity.
“You raped her?” The tone in which Saxon speaks could have scared the devil himself.