"Well, looks like the gang's all here." She muses. "Now the real fun begins."
I still my wrists when her gaze turns to me, cold and deadly calm.
"Now Victoria," she says. "You get to choose who I kill first. Your best friend, or your boyfriend."
The word no tumbles weakly out of my mouth as I shake my head vehemently. It's all I can manage, and this only seems to irritate Eleanore further.
"I think you seem to have forgotten how persuasive I can be." She turns to look at Allan, waving him over. "Untie one of her hands," she orders.
Though my fear is a real living, breathing thing at the moment, it's overshadowed by a small glimmer of hope. If Allan unties my hand, I may have a shot at getting the gun.
Like a good little soldier, Allan stomps over and nimbly undoes one of my binds. He strings the rope back beneath me, dangling my bloodied wrist in front of Eleanore.
At the site of it, Gabriel snaps. "What the fuck do you want Eleanore?" he pleads. "I'm sure whatever it is, we can work something out … " his voice trails off and his eyes fill with desperation. "Just please don't hurt her any more."
Eleanore shoots him a stone-faced glare. "There is nothing you have that interests me. This … " She waves her hand around the room. "Is what I want. And as long as you play along with my game and follow my instructions carefully, I won't kill her just yet."
Allan kneels down on my free arm, effectively holding it in place as Eleanore hands him a giant metal tool that looks somewhat like a wrench. My stomach churns as I try to stay calm, taking in large gulps of air.
"Now." Eleanore focuses on Alanna and Gabriel. "This is what we are going to do. I need you to listen carefully to my very simple instructions. I will ask you a yes or no question, and you will respond with yes or no only."
Alanna glances nervously at Gabriel and then back to me, tears streaming down her face.
"If you say anything else, and I do mean anything else, even so much as one word," Eleanore continues, "I will break one of Victoria's fingers."
Gabriel glares at her as Alanna sobs, trying to control her rising panic.
"Is that clear?" Eleanore asks.
Alanna nods meekly and Gabriel simply grunts before looking down at me with his most reassuring expression. I know he's trying to tell me he won't hurt me.
"Okay." Eleanore smiles. "Let's get started then, shall we?" She pulls a chair from over by the door and sits next to me.
"Alanna," she hisses, "we'll start with you. Victoria's best friend. Someone she relies on and trusts with her every secret. Someone I'm sure she has come to think of as a sister." She glances down at me with an icy smile. "What do you think Victoria here will think of you once she has learned of your betrayal?"
My face contorts in confusion as Alanna shakes her head violently.
"Let's talk about Dallas, shall we?"
Alanna tries in vain to bury her face in her shoulder, blocking out everything around her as Eleanore's voice rings through the room.
"I believe it was in Dallas four years ago, that you sold out your best friend for a little fix, wasn't it?"
Alanna remains silent in response, and my whole face goes clammy. I don't want to believe it, but she isn't saying anything to defend herself.
"You were so desperate for your fix," Eleanore continues, "that you willingly gave away Victoria's information to the first bidder. But, by the time I had gotten there, like the true junkie you are, you had reneged on your side of the bargain. I wonder exactly what it was you told Victoria to get her to leave with you that night in such a panic."
My entire body numbs as I recall the night in Dallas when Alanna came back to the hotel in a cold sweat. She told me that she had been recognized by her husband's friend and we had to leave right away. How could Eleanore possibly know about that … if it isn't true?
Eleanore grows tired of Alanna's sobbing and claps to get her attention. "So junkie whore, tell her it's true. She needs to hear it from you to understand what kind of friend you really are."
I glance up at Alanna, tears brimming my own eyes.
"Yes, but … Victoria … " Alanna sputters.
"Tsk, tsk." Eleanore wags her finger. "I told you, Alanna, very simple rules. What kind of friend are you exactly? Now I have to break one of her fingers."
Alanna starts to blubber uncontrollably, but it's no use. I turn my head away as Allan clamps the cold metal against my pinky. I'm sure nothing could hurt worse than the betrayal I feel right now, but I'm wrong. Faintly, deep in the haze of my own agonizing screams, I hear Gabriel swearing as he watches my finger being snapped in two.
After a few moments, the pain begins to numb courtesy of the adrenaline racing through my veins. I dare to hope that I can stay numb if this is going to be the kind of game Eleanore wants to play. Numb might be the only way I will survive.
"Now, Gabriel," she says spritely, "I do believe it's your turn. You seem much more intelligent than your female counterpart there, but we shall see."
I don't want to hear whatever it is she's about to unleash on me. Not Gabriel. I try to block everything out as I tell myself he would never do anything to hurt me.
"So it's quite funny," Eleanore begins, "the other day while I was waiting outside of your apartment, at six in the morning no less, that I ran into Anya Petrovski as she was leaving your place."
Gabriel's jaw grows rigid, his eyes pleading silently with mine.
"Well, anyway, I had a nice little chat with Miss. Petrovski. She was quite forthcoming, actually. She seemed to have no qualms about disclosing the fact that she had stayed at your apartment the night before."
My chest constricts as I wriggle beneath Allan's forceful grip on my arm. I want to run. Far away from this place, from all of it. I can't even bring myself to look at Gabriel as a fresh wave of tears runs down my cheeks.
"So?" Eleanore asks. "Yes or no, Gabriel."
"Yes," he says flatly.
On some level I secretly wish he had explained, even if it meant more broken fingers. But it doesn't matter now. What explanation could there possibly be for Anya staying at his apartment? Especially given he knows exactly how I feel about her.
"So, Victoria, there you have it." Eleanore sighs. "Your best friend and your boyfriend. Both have betrayed you. Now you must choose who will live, and who will die."
I glare up at the twisted face hovering above me, wondering how she ever came to be this way. "I won't do it," I say resolutely. "You'll never turn me into you, Eleanore."
She just laughs at my response as though she knows better. "Always so stubborn. Shall I continue to break your fingers then?"
"Go your fucking hardest," I encourage. What's a few broken fingers if it buys me some more time?
"Fine," she smirks. "Then onto plan B."
She walks over to Alanna and unties her from the chair, all while humming a cheery tune. She grabs her by the hair and shoves her into Gabriel's lap with a satisfactory smile. Alanna whimpers and tries to pull away, but Eleanore just pushes her right back into place.
"Kiss him," she demands. "Or I will break every one of Victoria's fingers."
Alanna glances back at me, her face stricken with panic. I close my eyes and burrow my face in my hoodie, knowing I can't bear to watch this.
"Wait!" Eleanore stomps back across the room and presses her heel into my neck, effectively bringing my gaze back to Gabriel and Alanna.
"If you don't watch them, I will make her keep going."
My stomach lurches as my eyes rake over Gabriel. He's stiff and his eyes are cast down to the floor. Completely out of control, and out of his element. Alanna pecks him on the cheek quickly before pulling away.
"Oh, you can do better than that," Eleanore says. "Kiss his neck, slowly. Keep kissing him until I tell you to stop."
"Don't," I plead.
Alanna looks both relieved and sick as Allan moves the wrench towards me again. I close my eyes and tense up as I prepare for the pain. A quick snap and acid burns my stomach, urging me to empty the meager contents onto the floor. I breathe through it and try to stay calm as Gabriel curses and rocks in his chair.
Eleanore lets out a disappointed sigh and pushes Alanna onto the floor.
"Get down on your knees in front of him, and pull down his pants," she says.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I scream. It's guttural and agonizing and I don't even know where it came from. "Please, Eleanore … anything but this. You can break every bone in my body if you want to."
Gabriel is shaking his head and glaring down at me. He doesn't want me hurt. But I'm hurting too much already.