Page 129 of Ruining Vanessa

“Traci threatened you. I knew there was more to this than just a simple little chat.” Giulio looks past me at the torture scene. “Why would you think threatening my baby mama was a good idea, Traci?”

Traci wails, and I don’t know what’s happening to make her make that sound. Slayer’s doing something, probably, and I don’t even want to know what. “I was… I was scared!” she yells, the words coming out slurred. “I’m sorry, Giulio, I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” she babbles, hiccuping through her sobs. “I’ll never do it again.”

“Well, duh.” Giulio laughs and pulls me closer. “Damien, the drill is for Paul, not Traci!”

I hear a grunt from Damien, but thankfully the drill stays off.

“Awesome. Good job, Vanessa, you win the prize of only one of these fucks dying.” He cups my face and forces me to meet his eyes. “Do you want that? Do you want to spare one of their lives?”

“Y-yes,” I say, my voice strangled as I try to look at him, but his eyes… His eyes are so dark, so wild, so at odds with his calm demeanor. He’s not calm at all. There’s a storm beneath the surface, and he’s barely holding it at bay. It’s only now that I see it. He may be using Slayer and Damien to carry out his wrath, but he’s not immune to feeling it. “Please. Please spare them both.”

Giulio’s grip on my chin tightens. “What kind of message would I be sending if I did that? You steal from me, you try to kill somebody I care about, and you get away with it, zero consequences?”

I shudder, wanting to say something to convince him that they’ve had more than enough consequences, that they should’ve both learned their lessons, but there’s no point. He’s not listening to me, or anyone else. He’s made up his mind, and I… I whimper, because I don’t know what to do.

I can’t save both of them.

So who the fuck do I pick?

Paul, who’s a sleazebag who’s been stealing from Giulio? Petty theft, nothing worth losing his life over. Traci, who’d been telling people about what went on at Ntimacy, who had threatened me? Who had been the reason I could’ve lost my baby?

I’m more affected by what Traci has done, and part of me wants to blurt out her name. But I want to protect the women here. I’ve said I would.

“By the way. You haven’t asked me what the hammer is for.” Giulio grins wildly. “I didn’t bring it just for show.”

My heart skips a beat. He’d given it to me. He’d already tortured Paul and Traci.

It’s for me.

I choke back another stream of sobs, shaking my head. I can’t say anything. The words just won’t form, even though I want to plead with him and make him stop this madness.

“You’re going to pick that hammer up, and you’re going to go join Damien and Slayer. They’ll have Traci and Paul’s hands on the floor for you. And you’re going to smash that hammer as hard as you can on the fingers of whichever one of those pathetic, useless little fucks you want to save.” Giulio grabs my hair and forces me to look up again. “Are we clear?”

I stare at him, unable to even comprehend what he’s telling me to do. “I can’t,” I whisper. “Giulio, you know I can’t.”

“Well.” Giulio suddenly lets go of me and backs off. “If you can’t. I guess I’ll just take the hammer and smash both their skulls in.”

I stagger, barely remaining upright, but I don’t turn to look behind me.

“Please!” Traci suddenly cries out. “Me! Just fucking do my hand!”

“N-no! Vanessa, m-my hand. Traci’s been bad-mouthing you since day one!”

Both of their voices are hoarse and interspersed with pained sobs.

“Let Paul die,” Slayer suggests, his voice a bit breathy, excited. “He’s been fucking up left and right for the past few months. He’s the reason that undercover cop had to die, Vanessa. It was all his fault.”

“No. Traci. She’s the one who pushed you down the stairs,” Damien says coldly. “Paul’s incompetent, but he didn’t hurt you.”

I squeeze my eyes closed, their words all meshing in my ears. They’re all talking at once, all telling me to do different things. Traci and Paul are begging for more torture. Slayer wants Paul dead; Damien wants Traci dead.

I try to think about it, but the truth is that neither of them deserves to die. No matter what they did, death is too severe.

But Giulio isn’t going to accept that, and I know it.

I slowly turn around, and bile rises in my throat as I survey the bloody scene before me. Traci is covered with blood, from her mouth down, and Slayer has her held to the floor with her hand stretched out. And Paul… Paul is bleeding from his leg and his hand, and there’s so much blood that I don’t know how he can even survive that bullet wound. I don’t think it should be bleeding as much as it is.

“What happens to Traci… after? If I save her?” I ask Giulio, my voice raw and anguished as I try to make the hardest decision of my life.

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