Page 110 of Ricochet

“How very Hitler.”

“Yes! Though I’ll admit his execution was poor … the idea was sheer brilliance!”

“I thought I was crazy.” Much as I wanted to shake my head, I couldn’t. “You’re fucking insane.”

“I am. That, I am.” His eyes narrowed. “I understand that your wife and son were murdered on this day three years ago.” He glanced back to one of his men. “What were their names, Tony?”

“Lena and James.”

“Ah, yes. Lena and James.” His nod morphed into a shake of his head. “Now, if there’s one thing a sadistic, rotten bastard like me understands, its vengeance. I have it in spades. I’m sorry for your loss, my friend, but with big ideas come small sacrifices.”

Fury ignited in my veins and burned inside my muscles. Had to get loose. Needed to hear him howl with pain, watch his face twist with agony. Pain I yearned to inflict. I flexed against the binds holding me in place, the urgency to tear into the motherfucker dominating my senses, telling me to ignore the fire ripping through my wrists with every pull. “I’ll kill you! I’ll fucking kill you!”

His punch-worthy grin toyed with my last thread of sanity, and I yanked the rope, desperate to get loose—even if I’d have one less hand in the process.

“I’d like to make you a deal. I’d have loved to have a man with your talents and knack for evasion, but loyalty drives the engine and trust guides the ship.” Slapping his hands together, he steepled his fingers. “I’m afraid I’d have neither with you. So, how about this? You tell me where to find my wife? I’ll end your life with a bullet to the head. Quick. Painless. An act of mercy on my part, for all you’ve suffered.”

“I’ve already been there, fuck-face. And, I can tell you, it’s neither quick nor painless. So, why don’t you take your act of mercy, shove it up your ass, and fuck yourself with it.”

Another blow popped my lip, and the chasing burn told me he’d split it open.

“My, you have quite a tolerance for pain. Not so much as a grunt each time I’ve hit you.”

“If you were hoping to hear someone scream, you should’ve strapped one of these pussies to the bench.” I nudged my head against the stiff binds, toward whoever stood to the left of me. One of the men growled.

“It’s not my nature to be kind, and I must say … you make it fucking impossible.” Culling signaled one of the men beyond my periphery, and a cart was pulled alongside the machine to which I was strapped. On it, sat a small grinder with a wire wheel on one side, an abrasive grinding wheel on the other. “You’re lucky the lathe is completely out of order. I understand you have quite a sharp trigger finger.”

My hand loosened from the straps, and I drove a fist into the side of the fat fuck who tried to hold me down. Grappling with the second thug, I swung two more times through the air, before my hand was pressed into the metal platform of the cart, the weight of both men crushing against my bones. I struggled in their grip, using all the strength in my arm, but with the rest of my body confined, I failed to move them.

“I’m going to ask you one more time. Nicely.” Culling’s fake, plastered smile taunted my fists, and had they not been strapped, I’d have knocked those perfect fucking teeth right out of his mouth. “Where is my wife?”

“Okay, okay.” I took deep breaths. “If I had to guess … right now, your wife is … basking in the glow of ecstasy after my giving her what your small cock never could.”

The grinder flipped on.

Fire and ice tore through my hand, the sharp bite of electricity stiffening my muscles before they turned cold with creeping numbness. My curses were drowned by the hum of the machine, and the smell of burning flesh stung my nose.

“Ah! One moment. Please.” With a finger in the air, Culling lifted his cellphone to his ear.

The machine cut out, and the numbness crawled up into my wrists, my elbows, my chest, crushing each breath.

“Cox, how wonderful to hear from you. Where the fuck have you been?” Culling paused. “Aubree? Interesting. Bring her to me.” He pulled the phone away from his face then placed it back, his smug grin turning to a frown. “Loading dock. The Ironworks building. Atwater.” Tucking the phone into his jacket, his smile returned. “Well, that’s out of the way. I’d hoped to torture you a bit, into telling me the whereabouts of Achilleus X, but it seems Cox has discovered that as well as found my wife, and they’re on their way here. So, I’m afraid I’ve no use for you, my friend.” He rounded the machine and put his mouth to my ear. “I do intend to punish Aubree for fucking you. I’d hoped she was nothing more than a victim, but I should’ve known better. Once a whore, always a whore.”

I spat in his face. “This isn’t over. I’m coming for you, asshole.”

“I believe the only one coming tonight will be me. Having fucked you.” He kissed my forehead. “You put some excitement in my life, Nick. I’m truly going to miss you.” He glanced down at his watch. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, my wife should be here any minute.”

He straightened and gestured toward the men still holding my hand captive. “I want you to take it slow with this one. And when you use the drill, take a video, so Aubree and I can fuck to it later.” His gaze swung back to me. “Between her screams and your screams, I’m sure to get off.”

Culling spun around, two men from beyond my periphery at his heels, and the grinder flipped on again.

Searing pain left my entire arm trembling. I clamped my mouth shut, a silent scream splitting my skull, while jagged flashes of light burst behind my eyelids. My stomach cramped with the tension, my muscles so stiff they ached. In those moments, I thought of Lena, Jay, Lauren, Aubree—all the people I’d let down. The victims of Culling, and I’d be just another statistic for the sadistic motherfucker. My teeth chattered, as the grinder hit my bone and the vibrations zipped up my hands.

A thunderous crash shook the building, and my nerves exploded, jerking my hand.

An aftershock rippled down my spine, dispersing tiny trembles throughout my muscles. The flare of pain fizzled to a dull burn, and the grinding stopped. Plumes of dust and smoke drifted over me as my eyeballs shifted back and forth, searching the ceiling for signs of caving.

A rainstorm of shattering glass and the explosive thunks of crumbling brick sounded from behind. The two men beside me dropped to the floor like dead flies. On the fringes of my view, two other bodies smashed into one another in a flurry of movement.