Page 62 of Reign of Psychos

“I hope he enjoys it when I bite his cock off,” I replied.

“Don’t worry, troia, he likes his girlsfeisty.” His lecherous gaze slid down my chest. “Maybe I should ride you before I send you to him. Test the goods, so to speak.”

“Try it. I dare you,” I snarled, baring my bloody teeth at him, but he just laughed while flicking the safety on and off.

“Maybe I will,troia.” Bile crept up my gullet as his hand moved to his belt. Fuck. I really needed to keep my mouth shut.

Just as he was about to unfasten his pants, his phone rang, the shrill ringtone jarring. He swore and moved away to take the call. Rapid-fire Italian followed. Something about a drugs deal, but I tuned out. The window of opportunity for escape was closing rapidly.

My eye snagged on the pile of scrap metal a foot away. The last time I was here, I’d lost my knife. My head throbbed as I trawled back through my memories. I remembered the knife sliding from my fingers. Was it still there, buried under the discarded scrap?

I shuffled closer. Eden watched me, a questioning look in her eyes. At least she wasn’t panicking or checked out. I tried to smile at her, letting her know I had a plan, but I wasn’t sure if she received my message.

Torrance stood in the doorway, still preoccupied with his drug deal gone wrong. When I was close enough to the scrap, I reached back with my fingers. It was awkward with my wrists tied. Something shifted, making a noise. Torrance glanced back and I let my body fall sideways, as if I’d passed out. He stared at me for a moment, then looked away again, apparently satisfied I wasn’t any threat. Since he was the one with the gun, he felt safe.

I pushed back, trying not to grimace at the thought of touching spiders and rat shit. Even now, I still hated spiders. Too many hours spent locked in small spaces with skittering critters.

Something furry brushed past my wrist and I flinched. Jesus. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Eden’s hands move and then she nodded. She was free. Thank fuck.

My fingers touched something sharp. I stretched further, feeling the strain in my shoulders. Outside, thunder rumbled as the rain fell harder. Water dripped through holes in the room, puddling on the filthy floor, activating the stench of decades-old animal excrement.

I curled my fingers around the smooth handle of the knife, the one I dropped the night Torrance beat me as a punishment for failing to bring him Roberto Pesci. It took some effort, but I managed to twist the handle until the blade rested against the plastic cable tie. Blood trickled down my wrist as I sawed through the plastic, cutting myself in the process.

Just as the zip tie snapped in two, Torrance turned around.

He must have read something in my face. Some hint of what I had planned. The smug smile he’d worn since he dragged me in here dropped, revealing the true monster within. The evil creature who liked it when I screamed.

Time slowed down as he raised the gun and pointed it at my knees.

“Like I told you, Thea, Marku doesn’t care if you’re injured. As long as you don’t bleed out before I deliver you, we’re good.” Then he looked at Eden. “Or maybe I should start with the Kelly bitch,” he mused. “Perhaps you’ll think twice about escaping if I remove some of her body parts. I bet she won’t mind if I slice off a few fingers.”

Eden’s eyes widened in panic.

“Leave her alone. We’re both tied up! We’re not going anywhere!” I hated the thread of fear in my voice, but the thought of Torrance hurting my friend was too much. I’d grown to like her.

“I’m not sure I trust you, Thea,” he said, shaking his head. “I trained you, after all, which means I know what you’re capable of.”

He reached into his jacket and pulled out a vicious-looking switch blade. As he took a step forward, lightning lit up the place, followed by a crack of thunder so loud it sounded like the heavens had ruptured.

It was enough to distract Torrance.

I leaped forward at the same time as Eden dived sideways and grabbed a metal pole. Torrance tried to shoot me, but I was too close, and the bullet went wide. He slashed at me with his left hand. The blade caught my arm, slicing through my thin jacket.

Eden swung the metal bar, hitting him behind the knees. He lost his balance and dropped the gun, falling forward into the mud. Before he could recover, she smashed the bar across his head.

Blood splattered all over her and me.

“That’s for hurting my friend!” she shrieked, slamming the bar down again and again.

I watched as she split open his skull like a ripe pumpkin.

“I think he’s dead,” I announced eventually.

She dropped the bar and peered down. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

We looked at each other and started giggling like demented serial killers.

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