Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 62480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 250(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 250(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
“No.”
He grunts again.
“You’re bleeding,” I say, nodding to the scratch on his cheek.
He frowns and reaches for a tissue from the box on the coffee table. Then he carefully dabs at his face. My ex always had an ego. How he appeared mattered, and that hasn’t changed. I am glad Maggie marked him, and I hope he’s left with a scar. Even though the woman made some bad choices, she didn’t deserve this. Perhaps I can empathize more easily with her since we were in similar situations. Both of us believing, for a time at least, in the pretty lies he told us. Which reminds me.
“You told me once that the scratches on your arms were from me during sex.”
“And you believed me.”
I cross my arms over my chest and hold on tight. “I was an idiot.”
“Yeah. Those were the good old days.” He looks me over. “Still can’t believe you cut your hair.”
“Why are you here, Ryan?”
He stands and I take a quick step back. One of the dining table chairs nudges me in the butt. His slow smile spreading across his face is the worst thing I’ve ever seen. “I don’t want to hurt you, Sidney. But I will if you make a move.”
“You don’t want to hurt me?” I ask with disbelief.
“No. I don’t.”
“Do you really expect me to believe that?”
He just shrugs.
“So the night you got arrested when you tried to strangle me…that was just an accident? You slipped and your hands just somehow wound up wrapped around my throat?”
The manic grin returns. “I’d forgotten how funny you are.”
“Great.”
“This is going to be embarrassing to admit, but I panicked when they broke down the door. The idea that they were going to separate us was upsetting. That they would take you away from me.”
“You make it sound like you own me.”
“Don’t I?” he asks, voice oh so sincere. “I like to think it’s a mutual sort of thing. Don’t you think we’re perfect for each other?”
“No. Just no.”
As soon as he gets close enough, I’m going to attack. Target his vulnerable spots: eyes, nose, throat, temples, jaw, solar plexus, groin, and knees. Doubtless he’s thinking the same thing about me. How he wants to end me. But he seems so relaxed. His arms hang loose at his sides and the creepy-ass smile stays on his face. There’s no need for him to wield a weapon. Two strong hands have worked for him just fine in the past.
“Let’s see this study your cousin was talking about. I’ve been so curious about this.” He nods in the study’s direction. “Open the door and then step inside. Don’t do anything stupid. Just because I don’t want to hurt you doesn’t mean I won’t. Trust me when I tell you having your fingers broken one by one is not something you’d enjoy.”
I walk slowly around the dining room table to the study door. And he follows a step or so behind me.
I turn the door handle and push it open. And he grabs a fistful of hair from the back of my head and holds on. His grip is good and tight, and it hurts. I consider reaching behind me to grab his wrist and then pivoting around to strike him, but that would mean it’s game on. And I’m not sure this is the right moment to launch into an attack. Because I don’t just mean to hurt the man. I want to kill him.
“Let’s see what you’ve got here,” he says, walking me toward the map on the wall. The one of all the nearby parks. Brightly colored pins mark the fifteen sites we’ve been targeting so far. We’ve searched them on foot without finding anything, but we’re hoping the cadaver dogs can help us find the exact locations. He takes his time, leaning in close to inspect our work. “Looks like you’ve been trying to find my girls.”
I’m quiet for a moment, then I say, “I don’t think you have any girls. If there were, we would have found them. I think the reports of your being a serial killer are wildly overblown.”
He bursts into laughter. “Do you really think I’m stupid enough to reveal my kills because you’re playing to my ego?”
I shrug. “I just don’t think you have any kills. Tell the truth. You lost your nerve after poor Briana Petersen, didn’t you?”
“You don’t know shit.”
“I know you.”
“The funny thing is, you found Avery,” he says, moving several of the pins in my map around. “But you’re way off on the others. Here they are, not that your little murder map will do you any good after I start the fire in here. Make sure all of your research is destroyed and my girls stay mine. And if you don’t behave you’ll be added to the list. Does that make you feel special?”