Page 100 of Heathens

I take a step toward her and she breaks into a dash, straight for the door at the end of the hall. A door that leads straight down to the lobby. This time I don’t rush, I don’t chase. I merely saunter after her.

The game is almost over.

No way to win.

No escape.

DOMINIC

Duncan Towers

BythetimeIstep into the lobby, she’s already using the mallet in a feeble attempt to smash the glass. Grunts of effort bounce off of the walls as she gets nowhere, barely making a dent, yet even in all her chaotic flailing, she manages to look stunning.

“It’s vampire-proof glass.” I flex my still-healing fingers, the bones sliding back into place with a series of satisfying pops. “Which is just a fun way to say shatter-proof. I must have told you that.”

She turns to me, panting, eyes wide and rabid. Her body is taut, fully primed for a fight.

“No more bullshit. You let mego!”

“Bullshit?” I ask, taking a step forward. “You think this is all bullshit?”

She backs up and raises the tenderizer above her head.

“Get back!”

“I think you’re the one who’s bullshitting. I can smell you from here, Sofie. You like to be chased, don’t you?”

She spits at me, pressed up against the glass. I can see condensation forming in an outline around her body, like a halo. I chuckle and take another step forward.

“I saidback!“ She shouts, her voice trembling.

This is getting exhausting for the both of us. She should stop kidding herself and just give in.

“See, we were having so much fun, but now you’re starting to piss me off again. You run, you smash me in the fucking head, you break my goddamn hand, and all I’m trying to do is protect you!”

“You’re a fucking monster!”

She charges at me, her eyes wild with frenzy. She takes another swing at my head, teeth bared. I put my hands up, and the weapon connects with my forearm, cracking straight through my bone. A pained grunt tumbles from my lips and I stumble backward, raising my good hand to block another. There’s a horrible cracking sound, and two of my rings slip off of my mangled fingers and clatter to the ground.

Her strikes are primal and vicious. It makes me so fucking hard.

I pull my arm back just in time for her to smash me in the side of the head again. That’s it. I can’t just keep letting her get away with this.Thatwas the final fucking straw.

In an instant, I have her up against the window, my good hand around her throat. She grunts and gasps, taking another swing at the side of my head. I grin, blood pouring down my face as I snatch her arm and squeeze until I hear bone splinter. The weapon falls to the floor and I kick it across the room, leaning right up to her with a snarl.

“You want the monster? You’ve got him.”

She laughs, her beautiful green eyes wide.

“What’s so fucking funny?”I ask.

“You are. You’re so fucking desperate for control.”

She’s breathing hard, her throat bobbing beneath my grasp as exhaustion finally takes hold of her. I can feel her arms go limp as I run my lips along her jaw. She doesn’t know it yet, but I’m going to ruin her.

“You don’t have to live in a cage forever, little dove. This is all temporary.”

“I fucking hate you,” she rasps. “You and your pathetic little empire.”

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