Page 14 of What Remains

CHAPTER 4

Easton

ESPIRITU SANTO, VANUATU

I spit blood onto the concrete. It mixes with the stench of piss, sweat, and rust—a cocktail that clings to the damp air.

Jezebel paces around me, the sound of her whip snapping against the floor echoing like gunfire in a tomb.

Another lash cuts through my back, and I bite down hard enough to taste copper. She has no idea how high my pain tolerance is. These torture tactics have nothing on the agony of those days in the hospital waiting for Gwen to wake up.

When the twined rope cracks across my back again, I close my eyes and mentally remove myself from the cabin. I’m decent at tricking my mind into believing reality ain’t all that real.

Unfortunately, I end up in the one place guaranteed to screw with my head even more. At The Sapphire and with Gwen. My brain latches on to memories of her, all the way back to when I was first asked to watch over her.

“Dad didn’t say you need to glare at me twenty-four seven. Sheesh.” She side-eyed me from her desk, and when I reached for her laptop, she gently swatted my hand.

I wanted to swat her ass right back. Gently, of course.

Then she warned, “Touch my rig again, and I’ll code a virus that makes your mobile play Nickelback every hour on the hour.”

Our age difference had been painfully obvious then. I happened to like Nickelback. And don’t get me started on the fact she’d never heard of Savage Garden before me. I still can’t believe I’m the one who introduced her to “Truly Madly Deeply.”

But to say we butted heads from the beginning is an understatement. We argued about everything. From the correct way to load a dishwasher to how much caffeine is acceptable (she drinks way too much). Then there was the more serious shit—her safety, her boundaries, and the ones she bulldozed for sport. Like walking into my bedroom uninvited. Side note, I never gave her a key. She hacked her way in.

“One of these days, you’re going to regret walking in on me, and⁠—”

“And what? Accidentally see you naked?” She flopped down on my bed, acting way too casual while I was in nothing but a towel, especially with her dad in the hotel that day. “It’s not like you ever have a girl over and I’ll catch you having sex.”

I quietly flicked my wrist, telling her to get out. She loved to drive me insane, but I usually gave it back just as good, which she figured out fast. Not that it stopped her from being a daily pain with that smart mouth of hers.

Even now, blood streaking down my back, I can hear her like she’s standing right beside me. And I almost smile—right as another lash tears into my skin.

“I’m starting to think you enjoy this.” Jezebel’s voice slams a roadblock into memory lane, and I force open my eyes.

I’ll save the rest of the Gwen-reel for later. When I’m lying awake, unable to get comfortable because I’m used to sleeping on my damn back.

Jezebel crouches in front of me. I flex against the ropes biting into my wrists, which are bound behind my back. “Are we done? Or are we just getting warmed up?”

This isn’t my first trip to this hellhole. It’s my second time now in the last four weeks. Her version of an employee review. She likes her men loyal and broken.

Two days of waterboarding and sleep deprivation. But my least favorite is the psychological stuff. She has me repeat self-loathing mantras until the words dig trenches in my brain, temporarily turning me into my own worst enemy.

I lean close enough to smell nicotine on her breath. “I’m not dirty.”

She brushes my cheek before fisting my hair to yank my head back until the tendons in my neck holler for mercy.

“A priority package is coming in tonight,” she says flatly. “You’ll deliver it tomorrow.”

She lets me go and cuts the ropes, and my arms fall dead to my sides.

“Where am I going?”

“You know the drill.” She offers her gloved hand like we’re dance partners instead of torturer and victim. “Details once you’re airborne.”

I hesitantly accept her offer to stand. “When do I finally meet the boss? The man pulling my strings?”

“Who says my boss is a he?” She starts for the door, only to pause and spin around. “Clean up. Have a drink. Pull yourself together before zero seven hundred. Maybe fuck your wife while you’re at it.” Her gaze slides down my torso. “You look like you could use the release.”