Page 78 of Corrupted Memories
Narrowing his stare, he disregards Rian’s question and nods at me to put the speculum in place.
“W-wait I told y-you,” Arthur cries.
Chuckling, I forcibly open his eyelids and leave the metal device in place that keeps them from closing. Arthur’s eyes shake as he struggles to fight the need to close his lids. “I’m sure you can think of more. Let’s see if this motivates you,” I say with a smirk.
I step out of the way for Luca to take my place, glancing away as he presses the top of the hot knife into Arhtur’s right eye. Blood splatters out on Luca’s glove and Arthur’s face as the eye implodes immediately. His scream echoes in the room, the harrowing sound settling deep in my chest. I’ve never been one to enjoy this type of stuff. Luca finishes with the second eye, and the room falls silent. Arthur is passed out, his face a mess, but the bleeding has already slowed.
Rian lets go, letting the hanging man’s head drop. “You got smelling salts?”
I nod, waving toward the cart as Luca puts the knife back on the stove and pulls off the gloves. Stepping out of the way, I watch as Rian takes the salts, shoving them under Arthur’s nose to jerk him awake. He tries to look around before his mouth opens and releases a sobbing plea.
“You’re going to tell us everything they asked for, every man you met, every person you ever talked to,” Rian says, grabbing the same hammer Luca had used. “And every time you hesitate, I’m going to break a bone in your body.”
Leaning against the wall, I cross my arms and let Rian work. Luca eventually moves to stand next to me; apparently taking someone’s eyes was enough punishment for him. I don’t know how long we stand, absorbing the information a crying Arthur confesses. It only took two broken kneecaps and a few more ribs to get him going. When Rian aims to crack his skull, I tsk my tongue.
“Ah, ah. The final blow is by my hand,” I say.
Rian drops his arms, panting before throwing the hammer on the cart. “By all means.”
I hold out the tongs for Rian, and grab one of the knives. “Pull his tongue out.”
A grin stretches on Rian’s lips and he obliges. Arthur’s muffled cry is music to my ears as I movecloser.
“This has been a long time coming. You will not be missed, you will not be remembered, your name will disappear, and you’ll be forgotten. Your legacy isnothing.” I slice through his tongue, making Rian stagger a step before he tosses the severed flesh to the ground in disgust. I yank Arthur’s head back by his hair, holding it there as he gargles the blood pooling in his throat. His body jerks as he struggles for air, and I relish the sound until it stops and I let go. I ignore the splashing blood that falls to the floor when Arthur’s limp head rolls to the side, and I toss the knife onto the cart before taking a large breath.
It’s silent for a moment, then I turn, glancing between the two men who are enemies at worst and potential acquaintances at best. “We good?”
Luca and Rian look at each other, and Luca is the first one to shrug. “For now.”
Rian nods. “For now.”
Chapter 27
Gianna
I scrollthe homepage of the streaming service again before groaning and rolling over to shove my head back into my pillows. It’s been more days than I’ve counted since the disaster that happened in my brother’s house. I turned off my phone the same night and have ignored every knock on the door since.
Turning over again, I’m starting to get restless being in my silent apartment alone. I haven’t even opened my laptop to work. I’m thankful for the space Sebastian and Matt both gave me, but my mind and emotions aren’t any clearer. Pushing the blanket off my bare legs, I pause as I get a whiff of my underarm and sniff to confirm.
“Jesus.” I groan, deciding enough is enough and it’s time to shower. I need to talk to Jeremy and break itoff officially. The no contact since who knows when is more than enough, but I don’t want to leave any room for assumptions. Then I need to speak with Matt alone for more information about our past and to find out if our… father wants to meet me. I’m not even sparing Sebastian a thought because I’m not sure how I want to deal with him yet. He’s determined to keep me and things do feel different now that I know the truth of everything. It just feels… like I’ve given up to accept him, especially when he just wants me as the perfect wife. He asks me to be patient with his feelings, but would it kill him just to give me a little reassurance?
I barely remember going through the motions of washing and drying, shucking on a thin pair of cotton shorts and tank top. The wet tips of my hair drip down my back as I force myself to eat a bowl of cereal. Sighing, I turn on my phone, letting it vibrate on the counter for a few minutes as texts and voicemails flash across the screen. I stare at the device, tempted to delete all of it without even looking. While I feel better today, I still don’t feel ready to talk to either of them. It’s hard because I understand where Matt is coming from about being discreet, but also finding out my brother has been lying to me for more than half my life weighs heavy on my heart.
A knock on the door has me frowning, rubbing my forehead as I stare at it. You’d think they wouldeventually give up. The click of the lock and turning of the handle has me tensing and I grab my phone, ready to call…. who? Matt? Sebastian? I’m not even sure anymore.
Jeremy’s mop of light brown hair peaks around the door, and I exhale, loosening my grip on the phone. It’s like a single thought of the man summoned him, and it annoys me.
He steps in with a sheepish look, closing it behind him. “Hey babe,” he says softly.
“What are you doing here?” I barely withhold the flinch from the endearment and cross my arms over my chest, suddenly uncomfortable being braless in front of him.
“The restraining order was resolved. They said it was a clerical error. And they rehired me after the misunderstanding.” Jeremy chuckles, running a hand through his hair as he continues to stare at me.
I raise an eyebrow. “So you’re allowed to check on your girlfriend now that your career isn’t on the line.”
“What? No! I—” He tries to step closer, and I hold out my hand for him to stop.
“You haven’t bothered to check on me in weeks, Jeremy. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be with someone who can go a day without talking to me so easily.”
