Page 10 of Whispers of the Dead

The lock to the cell block clicks, and the heavy metal door groans open. I work to calm my breathing and my racing heart.

A moment later, the same dreg from this morning stops in front of my cell. He leers at me behind massive, bushy eyebrows. His mere presence makes my skin crawl.

“Reconsidered my offer yet?” His gaze drops, slow and lecherous. I hate it. I want to gouge his eyes out and roast them over a fire. Make the worlds saddest s’more. Too bad he didn’t give me a fork for my food. Even a spoon would work.

I swallow my revulsion and straighten my spine. “Um…still thinking about it. In the meantime, I have to pee. Can you please take me to the bathroom?” I throw in a saccharine smile that makes me want to vomit.

He hesitates, and his eyes narrow before glancing behind me. “No bucket yet?” He grins, making those bushy eyebrows seem even more massive. “Guess we’ll have to fix that.”

A shudder runs through me. No. No, no, no. There’s no way I’m using a bucket in the open like some caged animal. Escape is happening now.

He slides a key from his belt loop. “But sure. I’ll take you. Maybe keep you with me a little longer, too.”

Another shudder crawls up my spine, and I fight back the broccoli that tries to make a reappearance. I don’t think the dreg notices it, but I do. There’s movement from Cole’scell. A shift. A scrape of metal. Maybe if I hadn’t eaten the bread, I could have shoved it up this guy’s nose.

The dreg presses the key to the lock. I inch closer to the door, but he holds up a hand to stop me. “Hands behind your back.”

A smile twitches the corners of my mouth. Perfect.

I obey. I snake my hands behind me and curl my fingers around the smoothness of the glass cup. A low warning growl rumbles from Damon’s cell behind me, but I ignore it. I’ll show these guys that we can escape this place.

My pulse pounds so hard, I wonder if the dreg can hear it.

The cell door creaks open.

With a sharp pivot, I swing the glass toward his head. A loud crack rings out. The impact is sickening, but effective. The sound of shattering glass echoes through the cell block. Blood sprays, and the dreg staggers back with a roar of pain.

For a second, I think I’ve done it.

Then his hand shoots out. Fingers clamp around my arm like a vise. He pushes forward, twisting us both until I’m slammed against the bars separating me from Damon’s cell. Pain explodes through my back, stealing my breath. My vision blurs for half a second. Then I see it. The moment he moves back into the light. The streak of blood that drips down his face from a fresh gash in his forehead is one thing, but it’s his eyes that make me gasp for air. They’re dead inside, but ignite with a fury and cruelty that immobilizes me.

“You little bitch,” he snarls. His breath is hot against my skin. “You think you’re so smart? You think you can take me?”

The grip on my arm tightens, threatening to crush the bone beneath his bare fingers. A sharp, pained gasp is the only response I can give when words fail me.

His grin widens, and he leans in closer. His voice comesout in a low, vicious whisper. “Try that again, and I’ll make sure you regret it.”

Before I can respond, Damon’s arms explode through the bars and wrap around me, knocking the dreg’s hand away from my arm. Damon crushes me against the bars until I can feel his strong chest against my back. His grip is firm and protective as he yanks me back and drives his fist into the dreg’s jaw with brutal precision. The sound of impact echoes through the hall, and the dreg staggers back with a curse.

Damon’s voice is low and venomous, filled with a fury that sends a shiver cascading down my spine. “Touch her again, and I’ll break your goddamn neck.”

The dreg glares with blood dripping from his mouth. I expect him to whip out some sort of weapon, but then he steps back and spits blood onto the floor. “You’ll pay for that.” His lip curls into a sneer before he slams the cell door shut. His heavy footfalls echo when he storms away down the corridor.

Damon’s hands linger on my arms a second longer than necessary before he pulls away. “What the hell were you thinking?” he growls out. His voice is sharp and raw with anger.

I whirl to face him. Frustration and embarrassment war in my gut. “Well, I was thinking I don’t want to die in here, so I might as well try to get out. I was trying to?—”

“To what? Get yourself killed?” Damon snaps. I can’t see him, but I imagine fire in his eyes. I almost wish I still had the water to put out the flames. “You think you’re the first one who’s tried to fight back? You think they won’t make it worse for you next time?”

My voice rises. “It was better than nothing. It almost worked.”

“‘Almost’ doesn’t cut it here, Zoey,” he growls. I picture him as a really large dog, with all the growling he does. “You make a mistake like that, and they won’t stop with threats. They’ll make an example out of you.”

Benji sighs from his cell, his usual humor absent. “I hate to admit it, but he’s right, Zoey. These guys don’t mess around. You can’t go off half-cocked and hope for the best. You gotta be sure you won’t be overpowered like that.”

My chest heaves when I spin around to glare at the darkness in all directions. I hate not being able to see them. All I’m doing is arguing with voices in the dark. “At least I’m trying. All you’re doing is sitting here, rotting away.”

“You think that was trying? That was suicide,” Damon says, his frustration boiling over.

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