Page 20 of Missing Piece
“Then why is your heartbeat so hard right now?” Vincent smirked as he leaned towards Adam, his eerily beautiful eyes drifting down to Adam’s face, lingering on his lips before settling on the same part of Adam’s neck where he had alreadybeen bitten.
Shit, he’s going to bite me again.He wasn’t sure he was ready for that again. If he could just distract him, that might work. But if the blond could hear his heartbeat, he needed to be careful. “Because I like them.” Adam slammed his hand over his mouth, his eyes wide as he realized he once again allowed the first unconscious thought to explode from his lips without the filter of the rest of his mind.Okay, this is as much as you say on the matter.
Vincent straightened up a little, blinking a few times as though he were trying to process the information. “What?”
Make it seem like you’re beginning to like him, just don’t mention the weird dreams.
“Your eyes…I, uh, like them when they’re like that,” he said as he lowered his hand from his face. His palms were sweaty. Why was he so nervous? This was part of the plan. He needed to get this guy’s trust, and it seemed like going the ‘I’m falling for my kidnapper’ route might knock Vincent off balance.
It seemed to have the opposite effect. Vincent’s jaw tensed, something flickering across his features—uncertainty, maybe fear—before his expression hardened completely.
Pain exploded out from Adam’s left side. He doubled over, his fists clenched at his sides as he fought the urge to lash out and hit Vincent right back. “What the fuck?” he wheezed.
Vincent’s hand wrapped around his throat, slamming his head back into the headboard so hard he was certain he heard his brain sloshing around in his skull. Adam forced his eyes open, blinking away the blurriness of tears as he continued to try to catch his breath.
The blond was nose to nose with him again, his stare burning with intensity. “What are you playing at?” hedemanded in a low, harsh voice. “What do you think you’ll gain by saying things like that?”
Adam reached up to grab Vincent’s wrist, but even as his head throbbed and spun, he lowered his hands before making contact. “P-please…” He opened his mouth, trying to get his lungs to inflate, but they just burned. Blinking away more tears, he locked eyes with Vincent. “Please.”
Vincent’s cheek twitched as he stared back at Adam, his grip tightening for a second. “Fine,” he snarled, pulling his hand away from Adam’s neck.
He managed to take a deep breath in before his chest spasmed into a series of coughs, each one like a cluster of needles through his esophagus. He wanted nothing more than to reach into the pillowcase and grab the pen shim, free himself, and run the hell out of there and never look back.
But running physically was not an option.
“What the hell?” Adam gasped as he found his bearings, slowly pulling himself back up. “Why did you do that?”
“Why don’t you tell me what you think you’re doing?” Vincent grabbed his chin, running a hand through his hair as though he was trying to regain his composure. “Do you think flattery will somehow earn my favor? That I’ll let you go?”
Adam tried to calm his breathing, but his body wouldn’t cooperate. It still wanted to gasp, to fold inwards toward the pain radiating from his ribs where Vincent struck him. He could try being entirely honest. He could admit he really did think Vincent’s freaky eye trick was upsettingly beautiful. And how sometimes when he fell asleep, he dreamed about those cool hands stroking his hair and forehead. And about how good Vincent’s lips felt against his own when he kissedhim.
And how he didn’t want to be alone again.
But if his rib wasn’t broken now, it definitely would be if he said any of that to Vincent.
“Are you here to feed?” Adam asked, changing the subject. “I won’t fight you, but I want to do it somewhere else.”
Vincent raised an eyebrow at him, the taut muscles in his face relaxing in an instant. “Where else would you have me bite you?” he asked, the animosity gone from his voice.
Man, this guy might need a therapist more than you do if his mood changes that quickly.“You can bite me anywhere you want, but I want to go outside,” Adam insisted.
“Go outside?” Vincent echoed as he let go of Adam’s chin. “Why?”
So I can figure out where the fuck I am.
“I don’t know how long you’ve been like this, or if you were always like this, but humans need fresh air every so often or we lose our minds,” he said. He kept eye contact with Vincent as he slowly raised his hand to his side, certain that his last remark would get him hit again.
Vincent let out an amused huff, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m aware of what humans need, and what you described is a want. You don’t need fresh air to survive, and honestly, I imagine you’d be quite fun if you lost your mind,” he said.
Maybe it was Vincent’s appearance, or the closeness, but not a single thought entered his mind. No retort. No smart ass comeback.
“Okay,” Vincent said suddenly, breaking what seemed to be an impromptu staring contest. He stood up and flung back the sheet Adam had been using to obscure his legs.
Adam reached for the sheet, heat flushing his face as he tried to hide his stump beneath his other leg. “What are you doing?” he snapped as he scrambled to cover it again.
Vincent grabbed his ankle, squeezing the limb hard enough to make Adam suck a pained breath in through his teeth. “Stop making an idiot of yourself before I change my mind.” Vincent glared as he pulled a key from his pocket. “Or do you not want to go outside anymore?”
Adam froze. Was Vincent actually going to take him outside? Or was this some sort of strange game that was going to end like one of those torture movies? He almost wanted to say that he had changed his mind.
