Page 134
“Sweet, innocent, Carly,” he muses, tapping the spine of the knife against his hands. “We’re not going to kill you.”
We?
“Who’s we?”
His lips stretch into a grin that makes my heart stop. “Wouldn’t you like to know? Don’t worry, you’ll find out very soon.”
“Fuck you,” I spit. I’m done with these games. His smile grows and he steps closer, reaching up and dragging his fingers down my arm.
“So beautiful when you’re angry. I can almost see the appeal.”
“Get your hands off me,” I hiss, my skin growing clammy as memories rush back, things I’ve never remembered before about that night twelve years ago and I squeeze my eyes shut like I can somehow stop them.
The boys circling me…
Their taunts as they closed in around me…
Austin smiling as he pulls out his phone…
“I won’t hurt you, Carly. As long as your sister comes back to me,” Julian assures, his voice cutting through my memories. I shake my head and open my eyes.
“She won’t.”
“Oh, I think she will. You are the one person in the world she would do absolutely anything for and I’m counting on that.”
Without thinking, I grab the rope above my head and grit my teeth as I pull myself up enough to kick my legs out in front of me. I hit Julian in the knee and he roars as he goes down, the knife clattering to the floor next to me.
Fuck.
Now what?
He howls in pain, clutching his knee but recovers faster than I thought he would. I jerk back as he lunges to his feet and lands a fist to my belly. As I gasp for breath, he wraps his fingers around my throat.
“You stupid little bitch,” he snarls, his fingers constricting more. His face is flushed and his nostrils flare as he stares me down. I can see the ideas churning in his gaze, all the things he wants to do to me and I start to tremble. “You’ll regret that.”
Releasing me, he leans down and grabs the knife before placing the tip against my chest. I close my eyes and he pulls down, cutting open my t-shirt as I suck in a breath, my eyes watering.
Oh, God.
No.
No.
No.
My lip wobbles and I gulp in air, trying to focus on anything other than what he’s about to do to me when white hot pain blooms from my chest. Crying out, my eyes fly open and I glance down, watching the blood stain my shirt. The cut isn’t deep, not enough to worry about but just enough to burn like hell and stain my shirt red.
“Such a gorgeous sound,” he rasps, reaching down to adjust his cock and my stomach rolls. “Do it for me again, sweetheart.”
He drags the knife over my skin again and I whimper as I bite down on my lip in an act of defiance. I won’t give him what he wants. Dropping the knife on the floor, he frowns and grabs my face.
“Why do you have to be so difficult, Carly? Just give me what I want.”
A few tears slip down my cheek and he grins before leaning forward and licking them off my skin. My stomach rolls again and I gag. Releasing my cheeks, he trails his hand down my face and neck until he gets to the first incision. He drags his finger along the side of it and I bite back another scream as it burns. When his gaze meets mine again, he growls.
“So fucking stubborn but we’ll break you eventually.”
“No.” I shake my head and he laughs, stepping away from me.
