Page 60 of Ruined

Smug prick.

"For a little girl, it took four of you to carry me down into that basement," I pointed out. "And a cage and a chain to keep me there. But you know all of that. Because you were there. Were you the one with the camera, filming Kurt violating me while I was unconscious? So brave of him that he couldn't even deal with me when I was awake."

I snorted softly and ran the tip of my knife up and down the side of my finger.

"It was Stefan who took the photos and video," Leon said easily. "He thought it was hilarious. So did Kurt, Hammer and Jase."

Apparently he had no trouble throwing his associates under the bus. People like him never did. At the end of the day, he was nothing but a coward. One who thought he had the upper hand. He was absolutely certain of it. Otherwise he wouldn't dare to taunt me. Even if he didn't know what I was, I still carried a knife I knew how to use.

"And you, no doubt," I said. It was taking all the restraint I had not to throw my knife, and put it through his eyeball. From there, it was a quick trip into his pathetic brain.

Watching him die would be as satisfying as hell, but that would be too quick. He had to at least live long enough for me to twist the blade.

Leon shrugged. "It was just a job. I was paid well to help Kurt to get you down there. What he did to you after that was not my business."

"So you're okay with women being raped?" I asked coldly. "You were happy to see him cage me? You walked away and never gave me a second thought, as long as you got paid? That's fucked up."

It was way beyond fucked up. It was psychotic, disgusting, and made my stomach turn. What kind of man does the things he'd done? I didn't know how he slept at night. He deserved the nightmares I was tortured by.

He shrugged again. "Like I said, it was just a job. When it came to you, he was unhinged as fuck. I wasn't going to get in his way. The one person who tried ended up dead."

I couldn't help the surprise that flitted across my face.

Leon smirked. "You didn't know that, did you? Some guy named Prior, or something like that. He told Kurt he was fucked up and should let you go. He tried to stop him from touching you, but Kurt put a bullet between his eyes. The rest of us, we weren't going to argue."

I didn't remember anyone named Prior, but I respected his attempts to help me. If there was an afterlife, I sent him my thanks, along with a dose of regret that he died trying. And that he failed.

"He had bigger balls than all of you put together," I said. "Where's Kurt?"

"It doesn't matter." Leon shook his head. "There's two ways this goes down tonight. One, people are about to walk through the door, take you and give you back to Kurt, or two, you die. You don't need to know where he is. Just stand there and wait and they'll take you to him."

"And you're going to sit there and let it happen," I said darkly.

If he was right, and people were coming for me, I'd choose death. But I'd fight like hell first. "Don't tell me, you're paid well to do nothing."

"Exactly," he said. "You're finally catching on. Personally, I never understood what he saw in you."

I snorted. "Am I supposed to be offended by that? The last thing I want to be is your type. Besides, someone with balls as small as you wouldn't be able to handle a woman like me."

"Ohhh, your insults sting, little girl," he sneered. He picked up his coffee and downed the rest of it.

"Not as much as my knife will," I said. "Maybe you're right, and there are people coming for me. But I can't think of a single reason why I should leave you alive to see it."

I tapped the tip of my finger against the tip of my blade. Not hard enough to break the skin, but enough to make his eyes widen.

He glanced backwards slightly, in the direction of the kitchen. Presumably this was where he expected Clarissa to come out and do something. Maybe help him pin me down until help arrived.

Clarissa didn't appear.

He blinked a couple of times, like his eyes were becoming heavy.

"Is it too late for you, old man?" I taunted. He couldn't have been more than in his late twenties. "Do you need a nap? I'm sure Clarissa can find you somewhere to lie down for a little while."

He blinked again and shook his head. "I'm fine."

He was clearly not fine. He was struggling to keep his eyes open. His body swayed to the side. He grabbed the table to keep from tumbling over.

"Are you sure?" I asked sweetly. "You look like you're about to pass out. I'd be very careful about doing that, if I were you. You never know what might happen to you while you're unconscious."

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