I don’t scream. But dang…it hurts.
“Why there?” Cortéz asks casually.
“I like watching the blood run down the nose,” Aaron says cheerfully. “It’s like a tiny waterfall.”
“You’re demented.”
“Thank you,” Aaron replies sweetly. “Now, please step back. This toy has fluffy cheeks, and I want to see how deep I have to go before I hit bone. I can’t wait to start on his thighs. Though the tape will get in the way for cheek work… so I’ll start on his neck instead.”
The next cut slices my throat. Not deep enough to kill me, but deep enough to make fire explode under my skin.
My taped lips muffle the scream, but it rips out anyway.
My heart punches against my ribs and for the first time in my life…I want my body to shut down.
I beg for it silently…please, please just turn off, please.But it doesn’t listen.
Minutes drag like hours.
Aaron works with soft hums of pleasure, like this is some relaxing hobby.
Finally, he steps back.
My throat is raw from both screaming and trying to hold the screams back.
“It’s hard to tell with all the blood,” he says, tilting his head. “But I think it turned out lovely. Damian, can you see what it is?”
Cortéz leans in, phone recording the whole thing. “Is it… a bow’s arrow?”
“Yes!” Aaron beams. “Do you think we could get a table down here? I want to carve a landscape on his back. Maybe the Valley. Lots of detail. It’ll look beautiful peeled off.”
Aaron places his hand on the chair’s arm…right beside mine.
So I do the only thing I can.
I pinch him.
Hard.
“Ouch!” Aaron recoils, glaring at me. “That was NOT nice. How would you feel ifIpinched YOU?”
Is he insane?Actually insane?
“I think a table is doable,” Cortéz says, pocketing his phone. “We’ll make space.”
I glance over at Knuckles.
He’s on the floor. Completely still. Utterly silent. Eyes closed.
I hold my breath, watching his chest.
Nothing.
My throat tightens. Tears blur my vision at the injustice of it all.
But beneath the grief…there’s relief.
Thank you, God.
