“Um, no…just wanted to grab something out of the truck, and it’s locked.” My lies were useless. It was obvious they were playing with me, but I refused to admit anything.
“You never answered me. Where’s Lacey?” Geo asked again.
“Don’t know,” I mumbled almost incoherently. I could not break down right now.
“You mean you didn’t see what happened in the basement and then push a chair up against the door to lock my brother down there?” Geo asked in a cocky tone. I glared daggers at him as he smirked. Niko went rigid as he kept his eyes on me.
“Not sure what to say now? You know our brother is outside looking for you right now. He thought you somehow got out.” There was no remorse in Geo’s voice for what they’d done to Lacey. Anger began to smother my fear, and I decided right then that I wouldn’t let them get away with this. I’d do whatever I could to get out of this house.
“What now? You keep me in here until Alex finds us?” I hissed, glancing around, even though the door they were blocking was the only way out.
“Of course not. You can leave the room whenever you want,” Niko spoke up, his arrogance suddenly mirroring his brother’s. Geo looked a bit surprised by Niko’s answer but then nodded in agreement.
“Then move out of the way,” I demanded, sounding much braver than I felt.
Geo stepped closer. “In a minute.”
Shrinking away from him, I gripped the truck keys tighter. Niko moved into the room, standing next to his brother. The small amount of remorse I’d thought I saw earlier was gone. The twins were a unified front. About everything. In the years I’d known them, I’d never seen them bicker once. They had each other’s backs for anything.
“You can at least say please.” Geo raised an eyebrow.
“You said I could leave. Move,” I forced out through gritted teeth. I tried to shove past both of them. Geo reached for me, but Niko caught my arm first. He twisted me around, away from his brother, and pushed me farther into the room.
“That wasn’t necessary, Sage,” Niko told me, his tone dangerous.
“Let me leave,” I pleaded, unable to keep the fear out of my voice.
“Let’s drop the act,” Geo said as Niko kept his hand wrapped around my arm. “We know what you saw.”
“You’re part of it now.” Niko shook his head. “But because you’re the girl our brother loves, you have a chance to accept it. And live.”
“But if you decide you don’t want this life, there’s always another option…” Geo trailed off as his eyes went to my hair.
“Join your family, or what? Be murdered?” I asked, my voice shaking. They couldn’t do this. They didn’t just get to choose the rest of my life for me.
“That’s not what we said. But I think you’ll make the right decision,” Niko said, releasing my arm and stepping to the side. The doorway was finally free. “By the way, if you think you can get out of this house, think again.”
“I just want out of this room, away from both of you,” I snapped.
“But we have what you need to leave. If you think you can get it.” Geo grinned and pulled out a key ring with three keys out of his pocket. “These keys open the doors and bars on the windows. Maybe if you find Alex, you can try to convince him, since he has a set too.”
“Why don’t you just toss yours here?” I asked, knowing full well it was useless. It was all a game to them.
“I don’t think so. That would be too easy,” Geo said as his grin widened. The gleam in his eye dared me to try to get the keys from his hand.
“You get these from me and they’re yours. Wrestling around could be fun; just don’t tell Alex.” He slid the keys back into his pocket while Niko stared at me with interest as he kept quiet.
“Fuck you,” I spat out in disgust. It would be impossible to get the keys from him. I stalked past, fully expecting them to stop me. Neither moved, and I picked up my pace as I got to the doorway. I jerked away when I felt my phone being pulled out of my back pocket.
“You don’t need this. Don’t worry, I’ll hold on to it for you,” Geo said, sliding the phone into his pocket.
I glared at him but didn’t say anything. Stepping into the hallway, I breathed out a short sigh of relief. I wasn’t close to being safe, but at least I wasn’t with them anymore.