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I don’t wait for him to talk, and I barely contain the rage as I grab a handful of salt from a nearby container before slapping it on the open wound on his cheek, reveling in the way he screams out in so much agony, I’m sure his fucking soul just left his body.
“Please! Stop!” he begs, tears streaming down his face as he struggles against his binds.
“Then give me what I want,” I insist, my heart pounding with anticipation. “Tell me where Nunzio is hiding.”
Caelian chuckles. “I told you that salt would come in handy.”
I glare at him with warning before rubbing my palm harder against Joel’s cheek, getting each grain of salt into his open flesh.
Through groans and cries, Joel stutters, “Bria…Briana.”
“Where is Briana?” Caelian asks with a giant question mark on his forehead.
“Not where. Who,” he says as he cringes, pressing his eyes tightly closed as he struggles through the pain. “Rumor is she’s the one he’s staying with. I don’t know where. I swear to God.”
My gaze shoots to Maximo with a silent demand, and he nods before storming out.
“Good,” I say, my voice cold and devoid of emotion. “You can die now.” I thrust the knife savagely into his neck, feeling fire race through my veins as a shudder courses through his body. His eyes pop wide open in shock before the life evaporates from him, the chains rattling one last time like a funeral bell before falling silent.
I turn away, my chest heaving as I take a few deep breaths to calm myself. My body aches from the exertion, but there’s no time to rest. With each interrogation more brutal than the last, my soul grows darker, but it’s a price I’m willing to pay for Mira.
“Finally, we’re one step closer,” I mutter. “We find Briana, we find him.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Alexius says behind me. “Like Joel said, it’s only a rumor.”
“It’s all we got, brother. How about some positive attitude, hey? If this Briana exists, Maximo will have her before the sun sets tonight, guaranteed.” I have all the faith in the world in my brother-in-law’s ability to find this woman. Like me, Maximo is fueled by his need to get his hands on Nunzio.
Alexius crosses his arms. “And how are you going to make her talk?”
I light myself a cigarette, inhaling deep, letting the poison reach the farthest corner of my lungs before exhaling and glancing at the dangling corpse. “The same way I made him talk.”
As I leave the room, the echoes of their screams linger in the air, a chilling reminder of what I’ve done and the monster I’ve become in the name of revenge. But the end is near, and soon Nunzio will know the depths of my wrath.
* * *
MIRA
My heart is poundinglike a wild animal in my chest, and I feel sweat beading on my forehead. I’m pacing the room, agitatedly rubbing my palms together until they burn with friction. Suddenly, the putter of a car engine rumbles through the silence. I look out the window, petrified, as a vehicle turns into the driveway. “He’s here,” I whisper, feeling bile rising up my throat.
“You need to relax,” Leandra says, and I glance at her sitting on the velvet chaise across the room. She offers me a faint smile. “This will be over before you know it.”
My eyes dart around the small room, stopping at the various monitors and machines lining every surface. I’m overwhelmed by the sheer amount of medical equipment piled up in every corner.
With a trembling voice, I ask her, “Doesn’t it disturb you that your husband has an entire hospital within this one tiny room?”
Leandra smirks before replying, “He was determined to be prepared for everything while I was pregnant. And after the twins were born, he thought it would be wise to keep all of this here.”
“Alexius likes to be prepared for any and every scenario, it seems.”
“He’s…ah.” She smiles. “He’s cautious.”
“You know your husband is going to freak the fuck out if he finds out the doctor is here to see you. Well, me. But the doctor thinks he’s coming to see you, which means it won’t be long before it reaches Alexius, and he comes charging in here like a—”
“Mira,” Leandra interrupts. “Take a breath. Everything is going to be okay.”
“I just…I need to make sure.”
“Of course you do. And we'll deal with it no matter what happens or whatever the outcome. Okay?”
