“Soon.”
This word enrages me, but I don’t have the energy to argue with him anymore as I lie back to take a few deep breaths.
It’s only when I hear the sound of metal scraping against metal that I look up to find Dante has attached a metal chain from the cuffs around my ankles to two rings in the floor.
My heart thuds painfully in my chest as I realize he’s tightened them to the point that I can barely move my legs.
“Please, please don’t do this,” I beg as he moves to do the same to my hands.
Again, he says nothing as he attaches the chains and loops them through two metal rings somewhere on the ceiling. He begins to slowly pull on the chains, nearly lifting my entire body up off the floor in the process until I’m literally star-fished in the air in front of him before securing my restraints.
With what little strength I have left, I struggle to wriggle free, but even throwing my body I can barely move more than a few inches.
“Try not to move,” Dante says, his voice deadpan and his eyes glazed over.
“Please, don’t do this. I don’t know what I did wrong, but I promise not to do it again,” I plead.
Dante’s brow furrows momentarily as he starts to reach out to caress my cheek but stops himself. He forces his expression to blank as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a switchblade.
“No,” I whimper, tears welling up in my eyes as I realize this is it. I’m about to die a horrible, painful death ... and for what reason?
I search my mind, but the fog is still too thick for me to recall anything that I might need to atone for.
“Breath,” Dante orders, his voice dropping to take on a biting edge as he presses his fingertips to my neck. “Slowly, now.”
Despite my panic, my body obeys his command. My breathing slows, and I feel my racing heart gradually calm, though my tears continue to flow freely.
“Please.”
“Evi,” Dante says, his voice strange and his eyes glazed over, “this is going to hurt, but I need you to trust me.”
I shake my head, but nothing I can do as Dante steps closer. I imagine kneeing him, biting him, clawing his eyes out, but of course, I can do none of this as I wait with bated breath to see what he does next.
Maybe this is just another test, though I don’t see how.
Dante bends, touching the tip of his nose the base of neck before slowly trailing it along the length of one outstretched arm. His touch is so light, it sends slightly ticklish shivers of pleasure racing up and down my spine. Pauses half way to my wrist, his brow furrowing as he reaches up to grab my arm and press his nose more firmly to my skin.
Pulling away, he carefully slices the switchblade across my arm.
I blink in shock, but before I even have time to register the pain or see a line of blood, he’s pressed his mouth to the cut.
I cry out in pain as he sucks once, hard, against it before drawing back to spit the blood on the floor. Dante then licks the cut he made before pressing a thumb to it briefly. I’m surprised to find no signs of damage when he releases his hold on me.
This surprise is short lived as Dante dips his nose back to my skin, and I’m forced to endure the whole process again as he slices the blade across the base of my shoulder this time.
“Why?” I gasp, as he presses his thumb to the new cut.
“Quiet,” Dante commands, his voice low and cutting.
I don’t know if he meant to silence me completely, but either way I find I’m unable to cry out the next time his blade cuts across my skin. Enduring the pain in silence is somehow so much worse, and I can’t help but stare up at the ceiling as tears spill out over my cheeks.
Dante finishes with my arms before dropping lower on my body, his nose trailing over my chest and my right breast where he pauses.
No, no, no.
I squeeze my eyes shut as if that will somehow make things better.
I feel the blade this time, this part of my body far too sensitive not to. Tears prick the back of my eyes, and silent screams burn in my throat as Dante’s mouth closes over my breast. He sucks and I suddenly snap back into focus, my body straining against the chains as it tries to get to him.