“I won’t tell you anything,” the heavily accented man spits in my direction.
“I didn’t ask you anything yet,” I say, aiming for his hand and shooting a nail into it. He cries out, and I pause, watching him squirm. After a few minutes, I shoot one in his other hand. If I don’t kill him today, the infection will eventually. It’s easier to kill him, though, and get rid of the body now.
I shoot eleven nails into his arms before I aim for his kneecap. I shoot one into his knee, and he screams. If it bothers anyone outside of this room, there’s no way to know. Our workers know not to interfere.
“Are you ready to get started?” I ask with a smug smile.
He looks at me with anger, fear, and pain in his eyes as I aim for his other knee. “We can do both your legs. I don’t mind.”
I move to squeeze the trigger, but he shouts, “No! Please, Jose will kill me if I say anything.”
“We’ll kill you anyway, and he hasn’t sent a rescue party, so either I can spend the next few days torturing you, reviving you, and torturing you again, or I can give you a merciful death.”
He looks up at me. The defiance is back, so before he says anything, I put a nail through his other knee. He shrieks in pain, rocking back and forth. The problem is the nailsdon’trock back and forth, so they tear at his flesh.
He whimpers, hanging his head.
I get the blow torch next. “I doubt you’ll need both your eyes. I love the look of a runny eye after I’ve had eggs. It reminds me of breakfast. Most important meal of the day, you know.” I turn the blow torch on and approach him slowly.
Chapter 22 - Sofia
After Dominic storms off and I finish my food, I wander around the house again. I’m bored. I should ask Dominic for a phone so that I can contact my family.
I make a mental note to speak to him once he calms himself down. Jesus, living with him is going to be unbearable.
I explore the rooms upstairs and find one with a study and a laptop. Curious, I boot up the computer to find it’s just a standard laptop with nothing installed. It must be brand new. There’s no login, so I’m able to get on and access the Internet.
I immediately browse my art school's website and look at its courses. I’ve already sent in my application and been sent my student login details, but now I need to register for my classes. I also have to update my residential details in case they want to post information to me, though who uses post in this day and age, I don’t know. That’s what email is for.
I start to complete all the information, and I’ve just finished updating my address when I hear someone open the front door and call, “Hello?”
Frightened, I sneak out of the study and peek over the landing railing. Two women stand there, one older and one younger. The older one looks around curiously. “I think her name is Sofia.”
“It is Sofia, Mama,” the younger woman says before calling, “Sofia? Are you here?”
I take a deep breath and step to where they can see me. “Hello?”
“Oh, hi,” the younger woman says. “I’m Arianna, and this is my mother, Helena. My brother Alessandro thought you might get bored being here all day by yourself, so we’ve come to take you shopping and to lunch.”
I swallow hard. I don’t know if I should trust them. I move down the stairs, and as I approach Arianna, I see Dominic’s features on her face, and she has the same eyes. “Is it safe to do that?”
“We have our own guards,” Helena smiles. “Would you like to join us?”
I blush, realizing I’m not dressed to go out. “Maybe I should change first.”
“We’ll wait,” Arianna says with a grin. “We’ll be in the living room once you’re ready.”
I hurry up the stairs and into my room. I quickly throw on a pair of jeans, a tube top, and my sneakers. I grab my handbag and head downstairs. I don’t know if my father has put any money in my account, but there should be some left.
I go to the living room, where the women chat quietly in what I assume is Italian. “I’m ready.”
“Great,” Arianna helps her mother up, and they lead me outside to a car with tinted windows. I’m hesitant to follow them, and Arianna seems to notice. She smiles and takes out her phone. “Here, I’ll phone Dominic so you can get his clearance.”
She holds the phone to her ear, and once he answers, she says, “Hello, Dom. Sofia is a bit nervous about going out with us.”
He says something that makes Arianna pull a face. “I don’t care. Just reassure her so we can go have fun.”
She hands me the phone, and I press it to my ear. “Hello?”