Page 169 of Ignite

Chapter 60

CONAN

“Anything keeping him alive, rip them out,” I order Finn the second I step through the doors.

Ben’s face is still swollen, but he’s awake and looking at me like the devil just walked in.

I drag a chair to the side of his hospital bed and straddle it.

“Ben. Does it feel good to still be breathing?”

He tries to smirk. But his busted mouth won’t let him.

“Struggling there, pal?” I smack the side of his head.

Finn removes all the cables from his arms. The monitor screams for a second before cutting to silence.

“Scalpel.” I hold out my hand.

“It’s like I’m a kid playing doctors and nurses. Except, this time, it’s real.” I lean in closer, whispering. “And I don’t have a fucking clue what I’m doing.”

I chuckle as Finn drops the scalpel into my palm.

“Hmmm. Where to start? Shall we test how good it cuts first?”

I rip off the bloodied gown clinging to his skin, revealing a mottled mess of bruises. Just the lightest touch draws blood.

“Nice.”

I drag the blade down, slicing straight through to his stomach.

“W-what do you want?” Ben stutters.

“Now isn’t the time to play dumb.”

“Doctor, would this cut through bone? Or do I need something more substantial?”

Finn’s mouth twitches, but he keeps his cool. He heads to the cabinet and returns with something far less surgical. A saw.

“Damn. You got everything here.”

“Would you like some pain relief, sir?” I ask Ben.

“I want you to stop.”

I shake my head slowly.

“Okay. I’ll take that as a no. Now take a deep breath for me and relax, Ben. This will probably sting.”

I grab his hand, crushing the bones until he whimpers, and flatten it to the side table.

Then I saw two fingers clean off.

His screams rip through the room, but I barely hear them. I’m focused on the flesh. The way it peels. The way it splits.

“Oh. There’s the bone,” I murmur, hitting resistance. I press harder. They snap off.

“Fuck!”

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