Page 10 of Love of the Egoist
KUON OPENED HIS EYESbut didn’t want to move. Warmth and darkness wrapped around his heavy limbs. The bed welcomed his body with softness and smelled fresh. He let himself sink into the sensation. In the days of captivity, he’d gained blue bruises on his sides caused by the roughness of the floor. His bones and muscles ached, and his whole being screamed for pillow softness. He opted to rest—dozing off, basking in the comfort—but his returning consciousness flashed the memory of the recent events in front of his eyes, alarming him within seconds.
He propped himself upon an elbow, peering through the darkness, but his vision failed. He couldn’t make out anything and lifted a weak hand to his ponderous head to make sure his eyes were fine.
Trembling fingers discovered three stitches on his swollen left brow. It pulsed and felt feverish under his pads.
Greg didn’t hold back…
His hand traveled lower, touching his smooth cheek.
What the hell? He shaved me while I blacked out? Fuck!He blinked, then smiled. His handcuffs were gone; he clearly had been underestimated.
His vision returned or adapted to the darkness, Kuon couldn’t tell. The silhouettes of a table and some furniture bled through the gloom.
Fighting his numb body, he placed his feet on the cool wooden floor and stood up. The blood rushed from his head. The room swam smearing black fog all over his vision. He made an unsteady step forward, then pressed his hand against the smooth surface of the nightstand for support, knocking something off. His eyes were dry; they burned and something behind them pulsed. He closed them for a second seeking relief.
His head throbbed, and he felt like all the blood vessels in his body had shrunk. They vibrated and buzzed with pressure like high-voltage wires.
“Finally awake?” The voice leered through the darkness, assaulting Kuon’s ears. It wasn’t hard to imagine the impudent face and thin lips curved in a lopsided smile.
He spun to face the voice. His eyes wide open, every nerve in his body alert.
The soft click preceded bright light. Kuon winced and shielded his eyes with his palm.
This is probably how vampires feel when they come into daylight.He almost smiled at the ridiculous thought. Several seconds later, when the first shock had passed, Kuon lowered his hand and shot a cursory glance at Yugo. Confirming the man hadn’t move, Kuon switched his attention to his surroundings.
He was half naked. Only a thin stripe of white trunks and a white terry cloth bathrobe without a belt covered his flesh. A thin scratch from the knife on his side dried up without any signs of inflammation.
He frowned. His body looked too clean for the short shower he’d taken. He closed his eyes and tried to shake off the haunting feeling of being violated in some way—overthinking things wouldn’t change anything.
Despite a severe headache, his brain didn’t lose the ability to think, analyzing his surroundings and looking for anything that could be used as a weapon or a possible escape route.
Furnished with carved hardwood and tall mirrors reflecting the bed, the room looked cumbersome with a medieval castle theme. A stone fireplace gaped in the wall opposite the bed, and a fluffy wolf rug with a bare-teethed head and four hollow legs stared right into its black mouth. It looked too big to be made of only one pelt but still proportional. In front of the fireplace, in the middle of the room, stood a dining table. It was covered with a white silk tablecloth and silverware. Real silverware, not plastic you couldn’t even use to scratch skin. Kuon smirked, pleased with what he saw.
The man, sitting in a beige leather chair on the opposite side of the room by the fireplace, cocked his head examining his prisoner. He raised his hand to his mouth, hiding a toothy smile with a drag on a cigarette. Sweet, heavy smoke clouded his face for a second before melting in the air.
His raven hair, usually slicked back, free-fallen on his face framing his high cheekbones with soft half-waves. Intense, almond-shaped eyes penetrated Kuon with a weird, almost intimate gaze. That gaze made Kuon shudder.
Sinking deeper, the man rested his head against the back of the chair. A silk black shirt wrapped loosely around his wide shoulders, revealed his collarbones and a muscular, smooth chest.
“I am glad you’ve accepted my invitation,” the man murmured, trying to control his exuding smile, but the mockery in his voice was obvious.
Kuon froze. He wanted to ask so many questions. He wanted to know what Yugo wanted and why he needed Kuon, but the surfacing memory of the blue rectal syringe and Greg’s haunting words left him speechless.
He glanced down again. Washed, undressed. His gaze traveled to the table and unlit candles. There was no point in asking questions. The answers lay in front of his eyes. This meeting hadn’t been set to talk through the terms of his release and cooperation. This was meant to humiliate him, to make him suffer. To make him pay for every ounce of heroin he’d seized.
“Join me,” the man motioned to the table, purring in a honeyed voice. “You must be hungry. Help yourself.”
Kuon blinked, elated, and a genuine smile touched the corners of his lips. A hope that he could still fight sparked in his chest, syringing adrenaline into his blood.
He knew this man, knew his passions, interests, and lifestyle. He had spent months getting to know him, to start thinking the way he thought, to become his shadow.
Bastard, you wanna play? Let’s fucking play.
His glance darted around the room before returning to the table. Strolling around, seeking for a weapon was stupid, when knives were laid out for him to use. He relaxed his shoulders, trying to make his movements fluid and smooth, then moved for the table. The room shuttered, and he blinked as his knees gave way, and the horizon tilted.
What the hell?As he stumbled forward and grabbed the back of the dining chair for balance, Kuon accidentally brushed the robe aside, exposing his thigh. Fearing losing the advantage, he threw a glance at Yugo to make sure the man remained where he was.
No. Fucking. Way.He smiled when the hard stare of the gray eyes followed his hand and glued to his lower part.This really might work..?
