Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 108721 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108721 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
I hear one of the guards chuckling softly and stop just outside the entrance.
The first guard nudges guard two and points at the cameras. Quietly, I creep closer to get a better look. They are pointing at an upper hallway, where on the screen the video plays, and I spot Ely in the frame. She tiptoes into the spare room with a bundle of blankets in her arms.
What the hell? I lean against the wall and listen as the first guard laughs again. “She's been doing this for a while now, and the other day, I got curious and went upstairs to check what was going on. I thought she was sleeping in the room, but nothing was out of place when I walked in. The closet door was cracked, so I opened it, and that’s when I saw all the blankets piled up. It looked like a damn bird was roosting in there with how she had it all arranged.”
The other makes a humming noise and laughs, too. “What a fucking weirdo. Why stay there if she has her own room down here? Wouldn’t having an exit make her feel safer?”
I consider what they are saying. Ely is sleeping upstairs in the guest rooms? How did I not know about this? And in the fucking closet, no less. I’m both pissed off and concerned. I’m angry with myself for not noticing. For not knowing about it. Yes, I saw the change in behavior, but I didn’t realize other things were going on.
I've been so wrapped up in my own shit and in trying to keep away from her that I missed the biggest sign that something is going on.
“She's weird, sure, but I'd definitely fuck her. Did you see how tight that ass is?”
I lift my gaze and lean my head back against the wall. I concentrate on their words, listening a little bit more intently. I'll let them finish before I fucking destroy them with my presence. Let's see how deep they dig their own graves first.
There’s some typing, and I slowly peek around the corner, watching as the first guard points at something on the camera. “But yeah, you're right. They say the craziest ones are the hottest in bed. Any of the women in this house...”
I snap, like a string pulled too tight, and step into the room before they sign their death warrants in earnest. “If I hear either of you utter another word, I'll cut out your tongues.” The weight of my knife rests in my hands, and I blink, trying to recall when I pulled it out.
It doesn’t matter.
Both men spin in their chairs to face me, bracing their backs against the computer console table. “Sir, you...we didn't…”
“Well, obviously, you fucking didn't know I was here, or you wouldn't have been so damn stupid to talk out of your asses.”
The guard on the left gulps, his worried gaze ping-ponging between my face and the blade. I step closer and lean in a little bit. I want to make certain that both of these fuckers know that Elyse is off-limits to them and everyone else in this house.
“Keep Elyse's name out of your mouths, or I'll ensure you don't speak again. And if you so much as glance at my sister, no one will ever find your bodies. Are we clear?”
Both men nod frantically.
It's starting to feel like I can’t trust anyone in this house.
I release a sigh of frustration and fight against the desire to sink my knife into their guts. I need to think rationally and not with murder hazing my mind. I take a step back and weigh my options. Attacking them won’t fix the issue, nor will it give me the information I need when it comes to figuring out what the fuck is going on with Elyse.
“I’ll deal with Elyse. Your jobs are to find actual threats and make sure no one that isn’t supposed to be here gets in or out. Elyse isn’t a fucking threat, so forget about her. Put your efforts into other shit.”
I’m past the point of annoyance now, and I can’t tell if it’s because of these fuckers and what they said about Elyse or if it’s because she’s been sleeping on the floor in the guest room closet. If I’m being honest, neither of those things should evoke such a strong emotion out of me, but when it comes to her, I don’t know what’s up or down.
Elyse has a chokehold on my emotions and my heart in her tiny little fist.
“I’m sorry, sir. It won’t happen again.”
“Damn right it won’t happen again because if it does, you’ll be helping each other put your intestines back in your bodies.”
My phone buzzes in my pocket, interrupting my thoughts, and I fish it out. I check the message, noting it’s from Bel.