Tears roll down my cheeks, dripping onto my legs.
Evan is slumped over in the seat after the last blow from Owen. They’ve been taking turns hitting him for what seems like hours. I don’t know if he’s alive. Blood trickles steadily from his nose.
“Help him,” I cry. “Please help him.”
“Shh, Piper,” Caleb says, crouching down beside me. “Let’s see if he gets up.”
“W-What? This isn’t a game.”
“On the contrary, sweetheart. Life is a game; you just have to make sure you’re in control.”
I turn from him, the smell of whiskey strong on his breath. It reminds me of Christmas when my dad would have a couple of whiskeys after dinner.
“You’re sick. Is he breathing?”
Caleb chuckles. “I do admire how you can insult me and ask me to check on your boyfriend in the same breath.”
I ignore his boyfriend comment; there’s no need to address that.
“And I admire your ability to sleep at night after everything you’ve done and continue to do.”
“Thank you, Piper,” he replies.
I don’t look at him, but I can hear the smile in his tone.
“Caleb, check him.”
“Ooh, she’s bossy,” Matt says. He’s leaning against the far wall, his legs crossed at the ankle, holding the gun.
Seriously, we’re tied up, so what’s the point?
“She is getting very bossy,” Owen chimes in. “I like it.”
“We all like you, Piper,” Caleb says. “So I will check Evan for you.”
“He’s breathing,” Owen says. “I can see his chest from here.”
I sigh, my muscles loosening.
Owen is sitting opposite Evan, watching him like a hawk. I don’t know why Owen feels he needs to watch Evan so closely when Evan’s all tied up.
“There you have it, sweetheart,” Caleb says. “He’s all good.”
“Why?” I ask.
Caleb laughs again, and the dead tone to it sends a shiver down to my toes. “Why not?” he replies.
There is no point in me pursuing this. It’s not going to get me anywhere. I’m not suddenly going to get any satisfactory answers. They’re doing this because they can and they want to. It’s as simple as that.
They all need a lot of professional help.
Evan splutters beside me and his back shudders.
“Evan!” I whimper. “Evan.”
He turns his head, and I gasp. His eye is swollen, lip cut, and nose steadily dripping blood.
“I look that good, huh?” he rasps.
“You still look good to me.”
My face is on fire. Why did I say that?
“Well, that’s nice to hear,” he replies. Then he looks at Caleb. “Finished, or do you still have something to prove?”
He’s provoking them, and usually I wouldn’t talk back in this situation, but he’s weak and clearly in pain. He doesn’t need them to start on him again.
“Matt, ensure Evan and Piper get back okay.”
“I don’t think we’ll get lost,” I snap.
Caleb laughs and cracks his knuckles. “See you soon, Piper.”
Owen unties us while Matt moves the barrel of the gun between us, making sure we don’t try to do anything to Owen. I don’t have a death wish, so I have no plans to aggravate Matt while he’s holding a gun.
We’re so close to the door. I can see the outside world through the windows. The trees look greener than they did before. I long to walk outside there and feel the breeze on my face.
If Matt didn’t have a gun, we could try running. With Caleb gone, we’d have a chance. But there’s no point in letting those thoughts in; Matt does have a gun and we can’t get out now.
The rope around my wrists drops to the floor with a thud.
I flex my fingers and roll my hands.
Owen moves behind Evan. I keep my eyes on Evan. His eyes are tight, and he pants when he breathes.
Owen steps back with Matt, and I push myself to my feet. I grab Evan the second we’re free. He’s unsteady on his feet, his body weak from the beating, but he doesn’t lean on me. Even though he’s in pain, he still won’t lean on me.
“It’s okay,” I tell him, stepping closer.
The metallic smell of blood stings my nose. God, he’s in a bad shape.
With his pretty eyes staring ahead, he gently shakes his head.
“Always the strong one,” I say as we walk through the door, me a lot steadier than Evan. He won’t accept help, so he is shuffling along with one eye almost completely swollen shut.
I place my palm on his back because I know that’s about as much as he’s going to allow me to do. “Are you all right?” I ask as he braces himself against the wall with his hand.
“Yeah. Are you? They didn’t hurt you, right?”
“They didn’t,” I reply. Not physically, but watching someone you care about being hurt is difficult. Evan’s grunts of pain and the twisted expression on his face will stay with me forever.
I follow a step behind him, and as we walk through the clothes room, I grab us both a bag. My clothes are fine, but I don’t want to wear the same things I have on now. Evan’s top is covered in drops of blood from his split lip.
“We’re both okay. That’s great,” I say.
He smiles. “We’re the same, you and me.”
“Hurry it up,” Matt mutters from behind us.
I push the door open and the next and the next, being sure to slam them behind us. Then we’re back.
Hazel is on her feet the second she sees us. “Oh my God! What happened?”
Theo stands stiffly, his eyes wide and fixed on Evan. Evan’s face is shocking; what they’ve done to him is brutal. He’s going to be in pain for a little while, with his eye in particular.
“Get some wet towels,” Theo commands.
“His lip might need stitches,” Priya says, walking over from the kitchen where’s she’s microwaving something.
They take over completely, which I am grateful for because I feel like I’m holding on by a thread, my heart thudding in my chest too fast.
Evan could have died. I thought he had at one point.
I take in a deep ragged breath and let go of him.
“I’m fine,” Evan grunts, hating the attention.
“Sit still, they’re trying to help. You look awful, bro,” Theo says.
I stumble backward and grip the edge of the counter. Evan is getting looked after now, so I need to take a minute away. My ears ring.
Hazel’s hands grip my upper arms just as my head feels light. “Are you okay? You’ve turned pale as a ghost.”
My vision blurs the way it does when I stand up too fast. My blood pressure has always been low, and at times when I find eating hard, like when Penny died and when I was kidnapped, I’m even more prone to dizzy spells. “Hazel, I thought they were going to kill him,” I whisper.
“Oh, Piper.” She pulls me in for a hug, and for the first time since we got in here, I want nothing more than to hug my best friend. I want the same comfort she gave me when I lost my sister. She never let me lie down and wallow for long. I lay my head on her shoulder and hug her back. “He didn’t die, though. He’s here and the others are going to fix him up.”
“The deepest scars are the ones you can’t see, Haze. How is he going to get through all of this?”
“The same way the rest of us will, with help from each other.”
I nod against her shoulder, for once being the pessimistic one, and I hate it.
“What happened to you guys?” I ask, still holding her tight.
“We woke up groggy, and minus you and Evan.”
“I’m glad you were here.”
“Where did they take you?”
“To their game room. They tied us to chairs and beat Evan.”
She pulls back and her wide eyes stare into mine. “But they didn’t hurt you, right?”
“No, I’m good.”
Her pupils home in on my cheek. “There’s a mark.”
“I was slapped. It’s nothing, Hazel.”
“The bastards,” she grinds out.
“Drop it. Let’s focus on what’s next.”
Dropping my arms, I step back, and Hazel lets me go. “You’re really okay?” she asks, moving her head closer to judge my reaction.
“I’m okay. I promise.”
Something in my voice or my expression makes her believe me. This is the first day in here that I feel helpless. I want to know why they took only me and Evan. What was the point in hurting him? Why force me to me to watch? It doesn’t make sense that it was only us. Like it doesn’t make sense that Theo and I were let out. We were always the first ones up, so they had to know it would be us.