Page 261 of Quinlan

“I hate his voice.” Rome’s lip curls in a derisive smirk. “How’d you stand it?”

“I didn’t.” Damien tugs on one end of the cloth, pulling it toward the floor, then the other, then back again. Wiping Aria’s face like one would a bowling ball, rubbing the gasoline into her pores. Grinning as he keeps talking. “Some days I wonder what was worse, listening to him or having him cut me. Hmm.”He gazes up, wondering while he’s wiping, wiping, wiping Aria’s face. Back to Rome. “The voice. That was worse.”

“Was never a fan of it, either.” Quinlan’s grin widens. She fishes the Zippo we bought in a rest stop on the drive over, flicks it open. We got one for each of us, and they’re heavy in my pants pocket.

I don’t miss the one I left on my office floor. Don’t miss it at all. I’m getting my revenge with or without it.

“So, what’s the plan?” She snaps the Zippo shut, taking a step toward me. Our chests brush. I can practically feel her heart beating. “Are you going to drown her some more, or is it time to light a fire?”

Aria yells, “Noooo,” choking and coughing as the gasoline burns through her throat.

“Fire.” I grab a lock of Aria’s hair, raise it in the air between the four of us, much like I did to Ginnie all those years ago.

It disgusts me now, to touch another woman. To touchher. I do it anyway. One last time. Making sure she dies a slow, agonizing death is what we’re here for.

“Help!” Aria thrashes, doing her very best to free herself.

It’s a wasted breath, telling her it’s impossible. We tied a rope around her neck, tied the other side of it to one of the legs of the chair. What’s more, we’re in the middle of nowhere. Her strangled cries for help will be heard by no one.

There’ll be no getting out of this.

She’s trapped.

Just like she trapped me.

I pull my rest stop Zippo out of my pocket andflick.“Who’s in the dark closet now, bitch?”

“You were always a bastard,” Aria grumbles. Her body straining against the restraints, and I can see the rope digging into her neck. Wonderful. “You burned your own goddamn self. You’re a joke. Let me go, you freak. I don’t deserve this.”

“I have to disagree.” The flame catches her gasoline doused hair. “You deserve nothing.”

I release the soaked strand before it reaches my fingers. Damien releases the cloth to keep himself out of the racing flame’s path. It sneaks higher and higher toward her scalp.

She screams and yanks her body left and right. Pushing against the restraints. A futile fucking attempt.

The heat must scorch her. The pain of fire meeting flesh is agony.

I should know.

I felt it once, what I put Aria through now. Flames lick her cheeks. Her ears. Her mouth.

In a sick sort of way, the sight of her being eaten alive by the fire doesn’t trigger me. Doesn’t take me back to that day.

The smoke. The smell of my burnt flesh.

That’s closure.

Besides, I couldn’t get upset when Quinlanooohs andahhhs at the sight. The flames eat up Aria’s hair, her face, and my little flame pulls at my arm, sneaking smiles my way.

My monster still has some area on her body where the flames haven’t reached yet.

My finger tilts Quinlan’s face up to me. “You want to play?”

“Please. I need it.” Embers flicker in Quinlan’s eyes. She told me once she saw embers in my eyes, and I didn’t get it. Looking into her hungry eyes, I finally do. “Can the three of us go?”

Adorable, how she’s asking for my permission. Especially when the answer is obvious.

“Of course.”

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