Page 73 of Brutal Captivity

“I was already planning to kill you anyway, but I will let your son live if you give me your sex trafficking operation. It's one small thing in exchange for his life. You will die knowing that you saved him. Your business will be left mostly intact, ready for him to take over. If you don’t, then I will kill him and tortureyou until you do as I ask. This is the least harmful scenario. I’m trying to be nice to an old friend.” Peadar’s smile is syrupy sweet.

“Kill him. I don’t care. He is useless to me anyway. He doesn't want the business.” Altieri gestures toward Callisto as if he is nothing more than a wart that needs to be removed.

Callisto looks crestfallen, tears welling in his eyes at his father’s words. He takes a deep breath, looking down at his feet, the tear on his cheek falling to pool on the hardwood floor. Oxygen turns to glass in my lungs. Callisto fights like hell for control, but raw, unfiltered betrayal mars every sharp line of his face.

“You’re bluffing,” Peadar says, but I’m not so sure. I hope he is. I hope for Callisto’s sake his father isn’t prepared to let him die to keep his disgusting business alive. How could someone be so evil that they choose their money over their child? I suppose my own father chose something even more worthless over his own child, his pride. I understand how Callisto feels. This is his version of the door slamming in his face. I itch to comfort him.

“I’m not. Go ahead and shoot him. It doesn’t matter to me. His mom will be upset, but why do I care? I’ll be dead, according to you. My business will go to her, and she will plan accordingly.” Altieri finally looks at Callisto, but there is no love in his gaze, disappointment. At his look, familiar white hot flames lick at my skin. What a horrible fucking human. Both of them are. Any person would be lucky to have someone as pure as Callisto as a son.

“Leo. Shoot him,” Peadar commands, not taking his eyes from Altieri, like they are in a staring contest. Then the order sinks into my consciousness. Fuck. No. No. No. I can’t. I won’t.

When he doesn't hear a gunshot following his demand, Peadar’s head snaps to me, his dark eyes squinted in anger. “I told you to shoot him.”

“Can’t we come to some other agreement?” I ask, my voice weak even to my own ears. There are no other agreements. Peadar wants what he wants, and Altieri will continue to refuse to give it to him. One will eventually win, but the whole world will be taken down with them.

“Shoot him, Leo. That is an order.” The demand comes out sharp, cutting me to the bone. I am frozen to the spot. Callisto shakes beside me. His subtle sniffs cut through the quiet, a fragile defense against the tears he’s fighting to hold back. No. I can’t do this. I need Callisto to survive. Fuck.

“I knew you were developing a soft spot for him. I knew you were going soft on me in general. I thought I taught you better than that,” Peadar tsks, and I try not to allow the disappointment in Peadar’s voice to affect me. I try not tofeel bad for displeasing Peadar after I had looked up to him for so long and did everything I could to make him proud. I tell myself I don't care that Peadar is disappointed. I do, though. I still care somewhere deep inside of me.

“If you knew, then why did you even bring me along?” I ask, the question leaving my lips before I even have a chance to stop it. I can’t take it back, though; it’s out there for all to hear.

“I wanted to give you a chance to redeem yourself. You’ve always been like a son to me, and I didn’t want to have to kill you.” Peadar actually sounds hurt. A chill runs up my spine. I almost choke on the word ‘son’. It feels like it stabs me in the chest. I’m not anyone’s son. Not anymore. I never have been, it seems. Peadar doesn’t care for me. He probably never did. Peadar only ever cared about himself, that much is clear to me now.

“Kill me? Kill me for what?” I ask, even though I know the answer. I want Peadar to say it, though. I want to hear the words that I know to be true.

“Your betrayal to me and the organization.”

“What betrayal?” I try to feign confusion. Act like I have no idea what Peadar is talking about. I crease my brows, getting ready to say that before Peadar rolls his eyes.

“Don’t lie to me, Leo. I know you didn’t kill your sister like I ordered. I know you jeopardized the entire organization because you couldn’t kill a fucking girl that means nothing to you. A girl who didn’t even look for you after you were gone. I brought you here in hopes that you could redeem yourself. Show me your loyalty once more. Kill him right now. I’ll even find your sister and offer her a care package of sorts. She will never need anything again. I can offer her safety and money. All you have to do is kill him.”

My finger trembles against the cold metal of the trigger. I have never trembled holding a gun. My gun no longer feels like a part of me, but a foreign object my body wants to reject.

Violet. My sweet sister, safe and taken care of forever. Something I wasn’t able to do for her. A clean slate for the only real family I have left.

But to buy her life, I have to pay with his.

I look at Callisto, finding that he has turned to face me, the barrel of the gun now pressed to his forehead. Unlike the first time I had my gun to his head, his eyes are closed, and tears are streaming down his face. He’s waiting for me to pull the trigger. He’s not fighting me. He’s accepting it. And that breaks me completely.

thirty-four

“Don’t! You don’t have to do this! You don’t have to hurt him!”- Leo

“No.Fuckyou.”Iturn, training my gun on Peadar. He looks surprised for a split second, his tiny black eyes widening. I don't trust Peadar. Not even a tiny bit.

Peadar has proven time and time again that he’s manipulative. He will say whatever it takes to get me to do what he wants. He won’t protect Violet. She would be his hostage, like me. No more. I will not do this. I will not kill Callisto, and I certainly won’t stand by Peadar as he takes over a sex trafficking operation.

“Leo, think about what you’ll be losing,” Peadar says, eyes traveling from the gun, to my face, then back again. I don’t give a flying fuck what I’ll be losing. I don't have anything to lose anymore. I don't have my family. I don't have the family I created. I won’t have Callisto. I have nothing to lose. Peadar will kill me, but I refuse to be the reason that Callisto dies today. I won’t.

“You never planned to ransom Callisto, did you? You probably never even sent the ransom letter. This was your plan all along. You knew he would be home when you sent us to his house. You knew he would interrupt our break-in, and we’d bring him back. You never wanted money or art. You wanted power. You wanted to use him as fucking bait to kill your enemy.” My voice gets louder with each accusation.

“Leo, put the gun down, or I will blow your boyfriend up,” Peadar threatens, but he doesn't deny the accusation. I hate him. I hate him so much, I itch to strangle him.

Peadar shakes the detonator at me, smiling because he thinks he has the upper hand. His thumb is on the button.Can I shoot him before he presses the button? No, I can’t take that chance.

Peadar’s body could fall on it. It wouldn't take much pressure to set it off, and then Callisto is dead. I can’t let that happen. No. The very idea of seeing the light leave Callisto’s eyes makes me want to scratch my body until it bleeds.

A fist explodes against my jaw. The world blurs, white-hot pain jarring my skull. Dammit—I was too distracted by his thumb on the button.