"I don't know who else to turn to," Cen chokes out. "Can you help me?"
She moves forward as she speaks.
But nothing happens.
And I stop holding my breath. "Of course." I take her hand without hesitation. "We can keep you safe here, I promise."
Chapter Twenty-Eight
No hospitals.
No doctors.
And absolutely no calling her parents because he is watching them, and calling her parents would be as good as killing them.
Cen is so adamant, almost hysterical even, at having me agree to all of these things that I reluctantly give in and ask the driver to take us straight to Dark Rose House instead of the clinic.
"What happened to you?" I ask tautly as soon as we're inside the car.
The other girl's face pales, and her gaze turns haunted. "It was horrible, Halyna. He was horrible."
"Who's he, Cen? Do you know him? Do you know his name?"
A shudder rocks her body. "He has red eyes. That's all I know. I've never seen him before he took me."
It's my turn to feel my face whiten, and a stricken expression crosses Cen's face when she sees this. "Y-You've seen him, too?"
I force myself to nod. "Weeks ago, I was in a club, and he stabbed me."
"I'm sorry."
I gesture towards her, saying lamely, "I think I should be the one telling you that."
A ghost of a smile cracks over her lips. "I think you're right."
"Are you sure you don't want medical attention?" I press urgently. "Because I can—-"
"No!"
She says it so violently that I recoil slightly, and in the corner of my eye I also see the driver take a wary look at us through the rearview mirror.
Cen, however, appears appalled by her outburst, and her eyes have started to water again. "I'm sorry, but...I d-don't trust doctors. He told me he was studying to become a doctor, and he has f-friends."
"Not everyone's like him—-"
"I know. I just...please. Just not tonight, please? I just want one good night's rest, after..." Cen visibly swallows back a sob. "Please, Halyna. I know I don't have any right to ask..."
"It's okay." I take her hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. "You can just rest for tonight, I promise."
We reach Dark Rose House, but the moment the driver starts to step out of the car, Cen suddenly lunges forward, and something shiny flashes—-
No. No. NO!
The blade of Cen's knife slides neatly into the side of the driver's neck, and I don't wait to see what happens next. I quickly turn around to open my door, but my fingers have just grasped the handle when Cen yanks me back by the hair.
"Not so fast, bitch."
She pinches my nose and waits until I struggle and gasp for breath before spitting directly into my mouth. "All done," she says cheerfully, and I've just started to gag and thrash when she uses my hair to yank my head back...and then slamming it back down on the door.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
"That should do it, hm? I'm not going to make you sleep this time, don't worry. This time I want you to enjoy the whole fucking show, but...I also don't want you to do anything stupid."
Cen pulls me off the door to stare into my eyes. "Are you okay?"
She slaps my face.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
"Oh, look. Your lip has started to bleed," Cen coos. "Can you feel it?"
No. I can't. And the bitch knows it.
The other girl's lips twist in a vicious smile. "Your eyes are telling me to fuck off. But...that's all you can do from now on. You can look and listen, but you won't be able to say a damn thing or move a single muscle. Fun, right?"
I'm not sure if I'm doing things right, but I try it all the same. I look into her eyes and hope that my gaze tells her what I'm thinking: FUCK YOU, BITCH.
Cen starts arranging my limbs and snaps me into place with the seatbelt. "Now that you're taken care of..."
She gets out of the backseat, and my heart breaks when I see her do to the driver what she's done to me. Only this time, she doesn't stop until one side of his face is completely smashed open.
"Just making sure he's dead," the other girl sings out to me, and I can't remember feeling so much hatred for another person. I hate her, I hate her so fucking much, and I hate myself almost as much, for causing another person to die for no reason at all.
"Now..." After shoving the driver's blood-drenched body to the passenger seat, Cen settles herself behind the wheel and starts the engine. "You're probably asking yourself how it came to this." She speaks like we're two best friends, her tone so damn casual that I just know she's lost her mind.
"It's all about hate, of course. I hated everything about you. That's all."
The car starts to move, but it's hard to make myself get past my own hatred to care about where Cen's taking me.