Page 19 of Our Tricks

Nodding, I grabbed the knife and slid it up just an inch toward his body. “Alright, playtime it is, Ghost. What you got in the bottle?”

“This little beauty is acetic acid and won’t burn the skin all that much. But if you put it on the softer tissue like eyes, the inside of your mouth, or down the nose into the lungs, it can cause some major problems,” Ghost explained. “I was thinking we see how much straight acetic acid it takes to burn an eyeball.”

Spotting a lever on the base of the chair that looked like it could cause it to tilt back, I kicked it. Instantly, the chair toppled backward so Ken was now on his back with his legs up in the air.

“Nifty,” I murmured, impressed with the thing. “I think I might need to get me one of these.”

Ghost handed me a small dropper that had the liquid already in it. “One drop at a time. We’ll count to see how many drops it takes to get to the candy Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop.”

“Really?” I laughed. “You had to go and bring a childhood favorite into this? Now I’ll never be able to eat one of those again.”

Ghost just shrugged as he lifted an apparatus that would keep Ken’s eye open. “Sugar is bad for you anyway. I’m doing you a favor.”

“Right…” I drawled, then got ready to fuck this guy’s shit up. “Last chance, Ken, you could save your eye. All you need to do is answer a few simple questions for us.”

“Go ahead. It will save me the effort of having to look at you,” he spat then tried to wriggle his head out of Ghost’s hold.

“Wrong answer,” I announced and shoved the dropper up his nose and squeezed, flushing the whole amount down his throat.

Immediately, he started to cough and wheeze while I went to grab the bottle when I spotted another sitting next to it—sulfuric acid. I knew for a fact that could burn the shit out of your skin if it came in contact with it. Snatching that up, I approached the spluttering man who was still coughing, trying to breathe.

“I suppose we can sit him up. We can’t let him think he’s going to die,” I reasoned.

Ghost shoved the back of the chair upright, locking it into place, and I gave my knife a good twirl in Ken’s leg. Amazingly enough, it helped to get him to focus on something other than the fact that acid was slowly burning his lungs and throat.

“Didn’t you say not to do anything that would affect him talking?” Ghost questioned.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “Just didn’t want him to think he was safe to talk like that. If he can’t say anything useful, then he should just keep up the silent act.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Tommaso shifting uncomfortably. Glancing over at him, I raised a brow. “Just so you know, you don’t need to be here if this isn’t your thing. I’ll make sure to tell you whatever I learn.”

“No, it’s fine,” he answered, his hands balling into fists. “This is the world I rule over now, and I need to know every aspect of it.”

I shrugged and turned back to Ken. Unscrewing the cap off the acid, I put the dropper into it and filled the small glass tube full of the clear liquid. “Ghost, can you remove his shirt?”

Quick as a flash, Ghost had the buttons of the shirt flying around the room. For an older man, Ken kept his body in good shape, making me doubt he was the real Ken. Those weren’t the muscles you got from going to the gym a few times a week. It was conditioning for a body that was a weapon. I placed the dropper over his stomach where his skin was free of hair.

Two small drops fell onto his skin and started to smoke and turn the skin black where they landed. Ken couldn’t keep his pain to himself this time and bellowed as the smell of burning flesh filled the air. It was a horrid smell that would make anyone vomit, but I gritted my teeth and held in there.

“Gah,” Ken screamed, thrashing in the straps trying to do anything he could to get free. “I’ll talk, stop the burning, and I talk,” Ken begged.

Ghost looked at me, waiting for the go-ahead, but I told him to wait a moment. “Tell me your real name.”

“Why the fuck do you need that?” Ken demanded as his breathing became more erratic. “I told you I’d tell you what you want to know.”

“That’s what you said, but what I want to know right now is… what is your name. If you can’t even tell me that, then I don’t see the benefit that I’m getting out of this,” I reasoned.

Ken glared at me. “If you don’t stop the acid, it’s going to eat through my skin then into my intestines. It won’t stop until it’s made its way all the way through me.”

“While I’m glad you understand the predicament you’re in, I’m still not hearing a name,” I pointed out. “All of that will hurt like a sonofabitch, but I’m pretty sure it’s also not going to kill you right away either. Time’s a wastin’, tell me your name, and I’ll let Ghost neutralize the acid. Keep this up, and it will be in your guts, and I’m not sure we’ll be able to stop it.”

Closing his eyes, he let out a frustrated roar of pain and anger before he uttered his name. “Milen.”

Not needing my approval, Ghost was sprinkling a powder over the skin that the acid was munching on. The smoking stopped, and Milen started to relax slightly until Ghost slapped the spot as if he was making sure the powder got into the wound well enough.

“Fucking son of a bitch cock-sucking whore, I’ll fucking kill you,” Milen raged.

Ghost pouted as he looked down at the man. “That’s not very nice after I just kept you from melting like the Wicked Witch of the West.”