“I told you you’d die for taking my sons from me,” he whispers, leaning in close and nibbling at my earlobe. “I never said you’d stay dead. That’s much too kind.”
I swallow thickly, meeting his gaze as he moves away from my ear.
He tips his head back and laughs, a long, booming noise that rattles my chest and makes me want to scream.
“Oh, Julie,” he says. “You’re in my world now. You know what they call a man who can take life and give it, too?”
I stare at him, guessing what he’s about to say. And true to form, he doesn’t disappoint me.
“They call him a god.”
I would laugh if I had anything in me, but I’m empty and cold.
I close my eyes again. “So, what?” I ask. “You’re just going to keep killing me and bringing me back to life? I don’t think it works like that. My body will give out eventually. And then you’ll be left here all by yourself with nobody to hurt.”
He shrugs. “You’re young and healthy. I think you’ll last awhile.”
“Whatever,” I snap, opening my eyes and staring at the ceiling. I don’t want to look at him, and I’m so goddamn tired I just want to sleep, but I need to keep him in my field of view in case he does something.
In case? Huh. More like for when he does something.
“I’ve spent so long daydreaming about all the ways I’m going to make you suffer. And now we’re finally here, and you know you’re never getting away from me.”
I got away from you once, I think. But he’s right. I am never getting away from him this time.
“Who’s going to save you this time?” he asks. “The rookie cop who happened to stick his nose in where it didn’t belong? I don’t think so.”
My entire body freezes as he mentions Elliot. Holy fuck.
“I’m going to find him, Julie. Your little boyfriend thinks he can hide from me, but I’ll find him soon. And when I do, I’m going to make you watch while I gut him like a fish.”
He knows about Elliot. What else does he know about? Does he know about Jase?
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say stubbornly, staring at the ceiling.
He laughs, a deep, throaty chuckle that shakes me from my scalp to my toenails. “You’re a terrible liar, baby girl. You should’ve stayed in Nebraska with Grandma. I’m gonna find her too, and I’m gonna make her die slowly for hiding you away from me. Everybody will know. You. Are. Mine.”
I blink back tears as he falls silent for a while. I don’t care about me. This is what I deserve for playing with fire. To burn and suffer. But Elliot? Grandma? Kayla? The thought of Dornan hurting them is too much to bear.
His cold fingers fidget with mine. I don’t even have the strength to pull my hand away. “You understand, don’t you, baby girl? That I’m just cleaning up your mess. These people are going to die because you’re a selfish bitch.”
A wave of anger builds inside my chest. “You want me to understand you?” I bite out. “I’ll never understand you. I’ll never understand the things you’ve done.”
His voice is a gravel whisper, a rock tugged along my bare nerves. “That’s where you’re wrong, baby girl. You’re just like me. I killed your father, I ruined your mother, and you tried to wreak your revenge on me.” He pauses, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “But I’m smarter than you, better than you, more depraved than you, little girl. You ventured into my playground and now I’ve got you in my web.”
I turn my head to the side, my eyes boring into him, and if looks could kill, he’d be convulsing on the ground right now.
“What do you get when you cross two vengeful beasts?” His teeth gleam in the dim light the naked bulb throws off, and I imagine him cutting my heart out and devouring it whole. I can’t help but ponder his question. What do you get? You get him and me locked in a battle of wills, trapped together in this place of torture and pain. You get two animals fucking and killing and biting and tearing each other apart in pleasure and pain. You get blood and agony and ultimately, one of you ends up dead.
I just didn’t think it would be me.
“You get a war,” he answers his own question. “And I’m the fucking winner.”
“Really?” I murmur. “Body-count wise, I’d say I’m winning.”
He smacks the smile right off my face, a mighty backhand that rattles my cheek and leaves a metallic taste in my mouth. I’m so used to tasting my blood now, it’s no longer foreign. It’s just part of my existence. I’m glad I affect him, glad my words cut him the way his knife cuts me every day.