Page 1 of Kiss of Deceit
CHAPTER ONE
dani
Eighteen YearsOld
Darkness swallowed me, and shrill screams echoed through my skull as I kept my eyes squeezed shut. I stayed curled up as much as possible, my clothes slick from my warm blood that was seeping out. The knife was still lodged in the side of my stomach, and the pain was stealing my breath. But I kept it where it was, knowing I’d bleed out much faster if I pulled it out.
“Please. Stop. Please. I can’t take it. Stop?—”
Chrissy’s anguished screams had tears slipping out even as I kept my eyes closed tightly. I couldn’t help her. Just like she couldn’t help me when they’d stabbed me. It was supposed to be an uneventful night. We’d both moved into our sorority house on campus a couple days ago and tonight was freshman night where all the new girls like me got to know each other. There were only six of us in the house. And right now, there were only two of us still alive.
Two men had broken in wearing black ski masks with guns in their hands. We had all been lounging in the living room, and they’d shot the first girl who went for her phone. The shot was muffled because of a silencer, and they quickly took control ofthe room. My original fear of them wanting to have their way with us was soon replaced with a new terror.
They got off on torture. On pain.
“Stay still, sweetheart,” one of them murmured when Chrissy let out another ear-piercing scream full of pure fear. “I don’t want to nick the wrong artery. We still have so much time.”
My body shook, my heart violently ricocheting in my chest to the point of pain. Did they know that the other girls in the house weren’t supposed to come home until late? Was this planned? The small part of my brain that was still thinking rationally shut down when a hand grazed my cheek.
“What a smart girl,” a gruff voice said as fingers gripped my chin. “Keeping my blade in instead of trying to pull it out. That has to hurt. I’m touched. This must mean you want to survive longer to play with us.”
I clenched my teeth together, fear paralyzing me. His grip on my jaw turned painful, and he wrenched my neck back, making the blade move in my gut. I couldn’t bite back a cry, and I blinked my eyes open, regretting it the second I met his gaze. His mouth and brown eyes were the only things visible through the mask, and all I saw was cruelty.
“You are the only girl here who hasn’t begged for her life.” He tilted his head, studying me as if I were an intricate puzzle. “I can smell your fear. Why aren’t you voicing it?”
I ignored the tears running down my cheeks as I gave him the coldest glare I could muster. My gaze went behind him to where Chrissy was laying with another man standing over her. She wasn’t screaming anymore. Or moving. Bile burned my throat, the burger I had earlier threatening to come back up. The guy in front of me released my face and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a cigarette and lighter. Watching me, he put it to his lips before bringing the flame to the tip.
“You smoke?” he asked, holding the cigarette out to me. “It’s a vice I just can’t quit. Well, this and playing with beautiful girls like you.”
Loathing filled my eyes as I stayed silent at his taunting. He wanted me to plead. To scream. If I was going to die tonight, I refused to give them the satisfaction of what they wanted from me.
He laughed, showing his yellowing teeth before he took another puff of the cigarette. “I like you. You don’t break as easily as all the others.”
“And you’re a coward,” I spat out, my voice trembling. “Hiding behind a mask.”
His eyes widened with surprise, his grin turning into a sneer. My blood turned to ice when he ripped the fabric off, revealing greasy black hair that was messed up from being under the mask. Wrinkle lines covered his forehead, and he had a small tattoo on the side of his neck. I sucked in short breaths, my fear overwhelming when I realized my fate was already sealed.
I wasn’t leaving this house alive.
“A coward?” he questioned, tangling his hand in my hair. “I’m not the one crying.”
“Fuck you,” I snarled, my eyes tracking his movements as he plucked the cigarette from his lips. His grip in my hair tightened, and he smashed my face into the floor. My nose was crushed into the rough carpet, and I choked out a breath when the blade shifted again. A second later, a searing pain sprawled across the back of my neck.
I forced myself to stay still, not moving a muscle when he burned me with the cigarette for a second time. The pain was nearly unbearable, and when he did it a third time, I couldn’t stop the shriek that tore from my throat.
“Time to go,” a voice from across the room said, alarm in his voice. “There’s chatter on the scanner. Cops know something is happening here.”
“I hate when we have to cut the fun short,” the guy holding me muttered. He threw me to the side, making me flinch as I tried to protect myself to keep from rolling onto the knife.
“Kill her,” one of the other men ordered sharply. “Now.”
The guy stepped over me, grumbling under his breath. I tried slapping his hands away when he went for his knife, making him throw his fist into my cheek. I saw stars, my neck whipping to the side, and I screamed hoarsely when the blade was yanked out of my gut. I pressed my palms to the wound, feeling my blood seeping through my hands.
“Finish it.”
The voice sounded far away as I shook my head, attempting to get my bearings. Panic smothered me as I waited for the end to come, the next few seconds feeling like a lifetime.
“She’ll bleed out before help comes. Her suffering will last longer.” I recognized the man’s voice who had stabbed me, and I held my breath until their heavy footsteps retreated. A door slammed, and I let out a cry. And then a scream. I yelled my friends’ names. Begged for my mom. I didn’t stop until horrified voices surrounded me, and someone pressed something against my stab wound.
