Page 17 of Imperfect Skin

“Nah, this is nothing. I saw what those other guys did to him. He’s just getting warmed up, aren’t you, slut?”

“Kiss my arse!” I rasped out. “You aren’t even the smeg under the worst Dom’s foreskin! You are a pissant, trying to be big and bad.” I searched my brain for more insults. “Little man needs a big whip to make up for what he’s got in his pants.” I laughed hysterically as Ziggy snapped, threw the whip to one side and stalked towards me.

He leaned in and for a brief, hopeful moment I thought he was going to undo the cuffs, but instead he bit down on the exposed and flogged skin of my shoulder, hard and deep.

I did scream then.

I could feel the twisted grin Ziggy gave even if I couldn’t see it.

“Try hiding that from your precious Callum.” I could hear the sneer in his voice.

The blow to my kidneys came as a surprise. Ziggy had given up all pretence of playing Dom and had settled back into his true persona of abusive bully. This was the Ziggy I knew. This was the man under the fake smiles and pretty words that I had tried to convince myself didn’t exist any longer.

“I’m out. I can’t be here watching you kill this guy. Let him down, Zig. You’ve taken this too far.”

“Fuck off, Bryn. Do you know how long I’ve waited to get one up on this little cunt? He’s always been a fucking freak. Thought he was too good for me!” Ziggy yelled, any pretence blown away by his rant.

I laughed at the thought that anyone would think I considered myself too good for them. The laughter kept coming, and I knew I was hysterical. Between the pain and the situation, it was laugh or cry, and I was pretty sure if I started to cry now I wouldn’t stop, and I would never give the likes of Ziggy my tears.

Fuck him. He couldn’t do any worse than I’d done to myself.

Through my laughter I heard the door click. So now it was just Ziggy and I, alone. I’d hoped that the guy would call someone for help, but I suspected he’d get out of here as fast as he could, leaving me at Zig’s mercy.

“Just us, Mitch. Your big brother ain’t here to save you or stick his fucking nose in this time.” Ziggy stepped around the cross so I could see him. I kept my head up, even though the movement sent waves of pain through my shoulder and back. I’d not fucking bow my head to this fucker.

“I don’t need Simon to fight my battles for me.”

Ziggy grabbed my hair roughly in one hand before bringing his other up to punch me—one in the jaw, and then another to my nose.

“No, but I have a few photos I’m sure he’d be shocked to see. Maybe I’ll even show them to Callum. Show him what a sick little fuck you are.”

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. “I don’t get it. Why are you doing this? We broke up. You wanted to fuck around, and I didn’t. I was never what you wanted. I was a make-do.”

Ziggy shook his head. “No, I was the make-do! I knew you were in love with fucking Callum when we got together, but I thought you’d eventually come around when you realised he’d never want you.”

I cringed back as far as I could when Ziggy stroked my face. I was struggling to catch my breath. The blows to my back and kidneys were really starting to hurt.

“I don’t love him. He had nothing to do with us breaking up. You fucking anything with a pulse and beating me had everything to do with us breaking up,” I gasped out, trying to watch Ziggy as he walked back behind me.

“You never told Simon about me hitting you, did you? I’m pretty sure if you had, I would’ve had him beating down my door. Which leads me to believe you knew I did what I did for your own good. You should never have tried to leave me, Mitchell. I’m the only one who knows the real you.”

I laughed out loud at his audacity. The man was more fucked in the head than I thought. But at the same time, there was a terrifying truth to his words.

I didn’t get much time to dwell on that before the whip was brought down again, harder than before. The pain drove the air from my lungs. This wasn’t the sort of pain I could sink into and float with until I found the quiet place outside of myself. This was brutal and hard—no respite or rhythm.

A loud bang sounded, but I didn’t know where it came from or what was going on. My head was full of cotton wool, and I wanted to throw up and pass out all at the same time. I barely registered Ziggy making a strange grunt, until I saw the bullwhip thrown against the wall and Ziggy following. He had a bloody nose and wild eyes.

Strung up like I was, I could only stare at Ziggy’s terrified expression and the way he held his hands up trying to ward himself. I was too far gone on pain and fear to really register what was happening, right until a deep, gravelly voice spoke against my ear and the cuffs were slipped from my wrists.

“Oh, little Mouse. What has that fucker done to you?”

Callum?

Callum was here? How?

“I’ve got you, little one. Can you walk?” Callum moved me around so I could see him.

I tried to answer, but all that came out was a ragged sob. My thoughts were everywhere and nowhere at once.

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