Page 13 of Beautiful Scars: Unshakeable

They drag in the security guard from New Dawn. Young guy, looks barely old enough to drink. Already sporting a split lip and black eye. It's a good start.

"Where do you want him?" Z asks, voice flat. Clinical.

I gesture to the chair bolted to the floor. "Tie him."

While they secure him, I cross to the workbench. The irony hits as I grab the case Z found when we first moved in. These tools belonged to my father once. It’s his monogram that’s engraved on the leather.

"Please," the guard whimpers. "I just work security. I don't know anything."

"Everyone knows something." I select a pair of pliers. They feel so right in my hand. "The question is how much pain you're willing to endure before sharing."

Z moves to the corner, arms crossed. Watching? Judging? No, assessing. Making sure I don't go too far before we get what we need.

"Tell me about the basement." I drag another chair over, metal legs scraping concrete and take a seat beside him. "The real one. Not the one in the blueprints."

His eyes widen. "I—I don't..."

The pliers snap shut on his pinky and twist. He screams as the bone snaps out of place.

"Wrong answer." I lean in close. "Let's try again. The basement. Where they keep the girls. Where is it?"

I have to give the guy credit for his loyalty. He managed to keep his secrets through all ten fingers and the loss of five teeth. The left canine was his breaking point.

"There's... there's a sub-level." He pants through the pain and blood. "Elevator... behind the supply closet on the first floor. Keycard access."

"How many guards?"

"Four... four per shift. Armed."

I twist the pliers and pull. Another scream, another tooth gone. "And Garrett? When was the last time you saw him?"

"Yesterday!" Tears stream down his face. "He... he came through with a girl. Blonde. Real pretty. She was unconscious."

My vision goes red. The pliers clatter to the floor as I grab his throat. "Where did he take her?"

"Levi." Z's voice cuts through the rage. "We need him breathing."

I release my grip. The guard gasps, sucking in mouthfuls of air.

Blood drips from my fingers and the tool in my hand, pattering against the concrete. One drop. Two. Three. How much more will I spill before I find her? Cities could drown in the stuff and it wouldn't matter. Nothing matters except getting her back.

"There's... there's a private wing." His words tumble out. "Basement level. Only Coleman has access. Please... that's all I know."

I step back, hands trembling. Not from fear or regret. From the need to hurt. To destroy. To tear apart everyone between me and her.

"Z." My voice sounds foreign to my own ears. "Get what else you need. I need air."

I take the stairs two at a time, leaving the guard's screams behind. They blend with the ones in my head. Sunny's screams. Past and present colliding until I can't tell which wounds are fresh and which are scars.

Once upstairs, I collapse on the couch in the living room. I press my fingers to my temples, trying to keep myself anchored to the here and now. To find some semblance of control again. But all I can see is her face. All I can hear is her voice.

The screams from below get louder. Z must be working now. Good. Let him get the details. The security rotations. The access codes. Everything we need to tear New Dawn apart.

I'll be ready. And this time, Garrett won't walk away.

This time, I'll finish what I should have seven years ago.

Zane

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