“The girl is cold,” Issac comments.
“I can see that. But who cares? You just told me to leave her alone.”
“She might die down here. If she dies, then Gabriel can’t use her. He needs to give her something to keep her alive.”
“I’m right here,” I snap, unable to help myself. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not.”
“Just be quiet,” Chip snaps in return. “You’re such a bitch.”
“How am I bitch?” I push myself to my feet, not even caring they can see my entire naked body. “I was the one who was kidnapped. You’re the asshole here.”
Chip storms over to me and grabs my face. “I told you to be quiet.” I can’t stop the squeak of fear that leaves me. I’m trying to be strong but I can only pretend for so long.
“Chip,” Isaac warns. “Let her go. You don’t want Gabriel to see you like this.”
With a sneer in my direction, Chip lets me go.
“You’re not man enough to stand up to Gabriel?” I taunt.
That was the wrong thing to say.
Chip’s hand connects to my face before I can even react. I fall to my knees from the impact. “That’s what you get, bitch.” He walks over to Issac, who only stares at him. “What? Let’s just get this body out of here. It stinks down here.”
Both men leave.
I remain on my knees, shivering, my face on fire from Chip’s hand.
Time passes after that. How long, I’m not sure. I can only go by the light from outside the tiny window and even that isn’t reliable. I was never good in school. I can’t tell how many hours pass from just the sun.
But it feels like forever before Gabriel comes back into the basement.
He stops when he sees me on the floor, shivering like crazy. “Why aren’t you on the mattress?”
“It’s covered in blood,” I manage to say through my trembling.
He kneels down beside me and smirks, like he wants to taunt me, before his eyes settle on my face. “What’s this?” He places his fingers on my cheekbone from where Chip had hit me. “You have a bruise here. How did you get it? I know for a fact you didn’t have one before.”
I wrench away from him. “Like you care.”
“I don’t,” he says in a flat voice, removing his hand. “I just don’t want my merchandise to be ruined. You’re my bargaining chip, Susanna. If you’re dead, then anything can happen.”
“You really want to know? That asshole, Chip, hit me.”
“What?” His tone is deadly serious. It makes me hesitate on whether I should tell him or not but frankly, I hate Chip. If this gets him killed, then so be it.
“Yeah. Chip. He smacked me across the face.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Ask him.” A hard shiver wracks itself over my body.
“Your lips are turning blue.”
“Because it’s cold down here and I have no clothes. No thanks to you.”
“If you’re going to keep up with this attitude, then you can stay down here longer.”
“I might,” I say. It comes out more as a whisper, which I hate myself for.
