Page 116 of Serpent & Saviors

He made quick work of things and shoved him from behind onto the floor. The idiot’s instincts kicked in, and he tried to brace his fall on his mangled hands. He writhed on the ground like a worm, screaming and kicking pitifully.

“What’s that? What’s he saying?”

Ivan grinned. “I think he’s begging.”

“Is that so?” I asked, kneeling next to his head. “You’re begging for more?”

Cameron shook his head frantically.

“Oh, he definitely wants more. Listen to him,” Pasha said, ignoring the obvious pleas of the man on the ground between us. Ivan sauntered over, and I stood.

“Class is in session,” he said, directing his attention to Pasha. I stepped aside. Ivan sensed I needed a minute. “There are plenty of thin, fragile bones in the hands. Not just the fingers. Like these.”

Passionlessly, he stomped on Cameron’s hand, smashing it again and again into the floor beneath the heel of his boot. Cameron’s scream gargled in his throat, and he quickly tucked his shattered hands beneath his body.

Suddenly, an unfamiliar shadow fell over him. Alek pushed his way forward and kneeled before the broken man. Nik sauntered over and dug into his pocket.

“Mother picked this up for me when her and Kinsley were in Paris last,” Nik said, pulling out a vintage collector teaspoon with an intricate design on the handle. The dim light glinted off the metal, and a sinister look passed between them. His eyes burned with a dangerous intensity.

“Yes, to add to your collection. I wonder if she’d approve of the usage? Oh well, she doesn’t need to know,” Alek said with a smirk.

“Alright, make room. I need to see this. Cameron, you’re in for a treat. The Reaper doesn’t often get his hands dirty anymore.” Sebastian moved closer. Alek shook his head and grinned at him.

“Did you like looking at my little kitten in her pretty black dress?” he asked, his voice soft as he ran his finger over the cupped portion of the spoon. Cameron mumbled something incoherent. “Oh, suddenly at a loss for words? Let’s recap, your tongue isn’t working.” He paused and smacked him on the mouth with the weapon. “Your hands will never work again, so what’s the harm in taking an eye?” He once more tapped him, this time on his left eye.

“Take both, brother. I didn’t appreciate it any more than you did,” Nik said casually.

The smile that spread across Alek’s face was sinister and yet full of pride.

“You could always keep them as souvenirs, Counselor. Take them out every once in a while. Let him watch you make Tori come over and over from the afterlife,” Sebastian crooned.

“I’m good.” I shook my head. Crazy fucker.

At Alek’s command, Pasha and Ivan hauled Cameron onto his back. His face had gone white, his eyes bulging with terror and pain. He barely looked human anymore. He was finally resembling the ugly, primitive creature he really was inside.

“A knife might be better,” I teased, but Alek’s demeanor only grew darker and more dangerous.

“Better for him, perhaps. But I’m not feeling very generous right now. It’s not my night with my girl and you know how grouchy I get.”

It took a great deal of effort for Pasha and me to pin down the squirming man and keep his eye open. The bastard squinted and clenched desperately against our attempt to get to his eyes. But when it came to flesh versus metal, metal always won, and Alek’s face was more determined than ever. Who knew he could make a freaking teaspoon look so dangerous?

He wedged the cutlery into Cameron’s eye, violently twisting it horizontally to pry the lid open. The fight had come back to him now. He bucked and kicked like a horse, even slamming his own head back onto the floor.

We had to stop him before he could knock himself unconscious. It took Pasha and me both to restrain him as Alek wedged the spoon deep beneath the eyeball. Alek didn’t flinch as he leveraged it, and with a single twist of his wrist, as if he had done this before, the eyeball bulged forward and popped free from the socket.

The glossy ball dangled, and the socket twitched frantically around the empty space.

“Want my knife now, brother?” Ivan asked casually.

“Nah, I’m good. I’m in the mood for nice and slow tonight,” Alek said.

“Oh, our girl likes it that way with you,” Nik retorted, and damned if Alek didn’t beam.

I shook my head at their ability to compartmentalize torture. He took his time as he sawed through the optical nerve with the dull edge of the spoon. Cameron’s screams sounded more like an animal now, his throat raw and voice pitched.

Tears and snot streamed down his face, and he choked on his own vomit as he threw up from the pain. We quickly rolled him to the side. Asphyxiation wasn’t on the menu tonight. As Alek promised, it was a slow process, and he absolutely took his time.

I studied Pasha’s face. Even though I was focused on revenge, one of my jobs was to ensure mentally he wasn’t breaking. Especially given this was his first actual experience with torture. Not an ounce of fear or compassion showed. He saw Cameron as we all did—deserving of this.