Page 32 of Dark Surrender

Not because I shared my history with a woman I don’t know.

Not because I’m going to die.

It’s so much worse than that.

When Iris came to my room last night, I was thinking of her and wishing she was here. Then it was as if I blinked, and she appeared like an angel in the night. Her mere presence is a balm I sure as fuck don’t deserve.

Something about her terrifies me.

No. Not something.

Everything.

The door to my room opens, letting out a low morning groan on its rusted hinges. A dark head of hair peeks inside to find Iris asleep on the cold floor. Frowning, her sister swings her gaze to me and snarls. It’s silent, but I see the flash of teeth and the curl of her upper lip. The hatred brewing. The disgust.

And I don’t give a fuck.

I’m not afraid of her.

As long as she’s nice to Iris, I don’t care how she acts toward me.

Holding a finger to my lips, I flick my gaze to her sister, urging her to keep quiet for Iris’s sake.

Something in the woman’s eyes flashes in surprise before she flips me off and closes the door just as gently as she opened it.

Sagging against the wall, I sigh in relief.

Thank fuck for small miracles.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

A terrified scream jolts me awake. Gasping, I sit up quickly and rub my eyes to see Maxim pacing back and forth. The chains of his shackles jangle with each movement. His bare feet slap the floor. His soft cock swings, and his ass and pecs jiggle with every step. The spot on his chest has two red, crusted-over dots from where I stabbed him.

Another scream erupts from next door, sharper than the last.

“Dee,” I whisper to myself. She’s up and already at work, yet she left me here. There’s no way she woke up this morning, with me gone, and didn’t look for me first.

“She’s killing her,” Maxim announces the obvious.

Fresh blood seeps through a small gap at the bottom of the wall.

Maxim threads his cuffed hands behind his head, his biceps flexing with the movement. “Fuck.”

“Do you need to say goodbye? I can ask her to stop so you can,” I offer.

“No. No.” He shakes his head. “I… I just don’t like hearing women in pain. Even her.”

“Maxim!” Penelope’s screech is like nails on a chalkboard.

“Fuck.”

I snap my fingers to take his mind off the noise, to do anything to help. “Hey, look at me.”

“No.”

“Maxim. I… I…”

“Oh, God!” Penelope wails.