Page 35 of Neverland

Chapter 9

NOW

“What the fuck is wrong with her?”

“Don’t be daft, Dominic. Even for you that’s a stupid question.”

He paced back and forth like a caged lion as Momma G rubbed my back in an attempt to soothe. It wasn’t working. Any attempt to placate and calm me was lost, memories of two unnecessary and brutal murders within forty-eight hours running continuously through my head. What I needed was to be as far away from Dominic Salvatore as possible, because as long as I was with him, he’d find more ways to hurt not only me but those I cared for. That list, however, had drastically thinned.

“Why is she rocking?” he asked, seemingly inconvenienced I couldn’t pull myself together.

“Your world and her world don’t align, Dominic. Not everyone is a cruel, heartless bastard like you.”

Only Momma G could say such a thing in such a tone and get away with it.

“Tomorrow I have a very important meeting that’s taken months to organize and Diamond is coming. So do whatever you have to do to fix her up. Re-stitch that shoulder and get the bitch coherent again.”

“Perhaps you should have kept the meeting in mind before you committed to slaying those closest to her. She’s not a robot. The girl has feelings, Dominic, and you’ve pushed her to the brink. Find someone else to go with you to the meeting. Nothing I do will be able to help the poor girl. She needs time. And more time now that you stuck your fucking finger in her shoulder.”

His agitation was manifesting, and a heavy glass paperweight became his next victim. It smashed against the wall causing us both to jump with fright. “Gina,” he asserted. “Go check on the others, make sure no one’s talking.”

She slowly turned to him. “I’m not leaving Diamond here with you.”

“You’ll do as you’re fucking told.”

Momma G rose to her feet and stood protectively in front of me. “She can’t handle anymore, Dominic. You’ve gotta leave her alone.”

“Diamond is fine,” he bit back, patience running thin. “She’s tougher than you think. Now go.” His last two words carried a warning which were promise enough for Momma G to back down.

“Don’t you lay another hand on her. I’ll be back in five minutes to re-stitch her shoulder. I don’t wanna have to repair anything else.” Momma G bent down and whispered in my ear, “Don’t even give him an inch, baby girl.”

When she left, I wanted to run after her, but there was no willing my body into action. It had gone into shock along with my mind.

Dominic stepped in front of me, my eyes trained on his snakeskin shoes. They were the same ones he’d worn when he killed Blaze. And now, he waited and watched. “Stand up,” he finally ordered, voice void of any care.

I willed myself to move, but I simply couldn’t. “I can’t,” I mumbled, blinking a fresh wave of tears.

“Bullshit you can’t. Stand the fuck up now, Lucy.” The more I tried, the more I failed, and the more desperate I became. I could feel the hysteria from earlier coming back. “Stand. The. Fuck. Up,” he yelled, wrapping his hand around my throat and pulling me to my feet. He shook me like a child would a ragdoll, reckless and without care, before dropping me to the floor. I collapsed in a sobbing heap, wishing he’d just end me like he had Blaze and Jonny.

“Just kill me. I beg you to just kill me.”

Dominic laughed manically. “Why the fuck would I kill you now? Things are just starting to get interesting. Or maybe it’s me you want killed.” He fell to his knees next to me and I looked away, not wanting to see the crazy in his eyes. Demanding my full attention, he gripped my chin, pulling my face to his. “Maybe you want to hold a gun to my head and feel what it’s like to pull the trigger. Maybe you wanna see how good it feels to be in control of taking someone’s life. Yeah, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

I swallowed hard, unable to acknowledge his taunts.

Reaching for his Glock behind his back, Dominic took my trembling hand and wrapped it around the grip, both his hands encasing mine. Holding the Glock to his forehead, he looked more amused than ever. “Now’s your chance, sweetheart.”

The idea of destroying the crazy motherfucker like he had Blaze was beyond tempting. The problem was, I wasn’t a monster like him, despite desperately wanting to be one in that very moment.

“Pull the trigger and you’ll get your wish,” he cajoled.

Dominic crawled on his knees until his body forced mine to the floor, all the while keeping the barrel of the gun dead center on his forehead.

“We could end it all right now, baby,” he said, straddling my waist. When I didn’t respond, he dug his fingers into my cheeks until I squealed.

His brows furrowed. “You have the perfect chance to put a bullet through my brain, to get revenge for your friends, to make me pay for all I’ve done to you, but you can’t. Why is that, little Lucy?” Dominic backhanded my cheek, coercing me into his game.

When I recovered from the sting, I turned to face him. “Because killing you with a single bullet to your brain would be far too quick and far too kind for what you deserve.”

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