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Without him, she would get nothing but pain and then eventually death.
Striding over to her, he hooked an arm around her waist and yanked her up against his chest.
“That’s enough of that,” he said firmly. He was in charge here, and while he might tolerate a small amount of bad behavior because he knew this was all new and shocking, he wouldn’t accept this kind of nonsense indefinitely.
The girl continued her wild struggles.
“Enough,” he ordered loudly. “Enough.”
With the last sob, Avery fell silent, her body going limp in his grip.
“I can make your time here better or worse. It’s entirely up to you. If you choose to be obedient, to follow the rules, to do as I tell you, then I’ll treat your wounds, set the breaks, and give you drugs for the pain. If you can't manage basic manners and obedience, then you will get nothing.”
He let the threat hang in the air, and he knew it had sunk in when he felt a shudder ripple through her, then she tried gently to stand on her own two feet. He released her, and she stood, straightening her spine. He appreciated that she hadn’t thrown a barrage of questions at him about why he’d taken her, and why he was doing this to her, and pleading and bargaining with him to let her go.
“There is no way out of this room.” He wouldn’t tell her that Taylor had indeed managed to escape. There was no need to; it wouldn’t be happening again. “This is your life now. Be smart. Don’t make this harder than it has to be. Go and lie down, the drugs will still be in your system for a while longer. I’ll be back later with some food.”
He waited to see if the girl would obey.
He was pleased when she did.
Already he knew she was going to be better than all the others.
He may have taken Avery, he may even be thrilled to have her as his, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to get Taylor Sallow back.
DECEMBER 20th
9:33 A.M.
“He didn't wait long before taking his next victim,” Chloe said as she and Tom walked up the drive of the Ormont family’s property.
She’d been surprised when they’d received a phone call saying that a nineteen-year-old girl had gone missing and that it was believed she was a victim of The Breaker. The killer never waited too long between killing one girl and taking the next, but it had only been a little over twenty-four hours since Taylor Sallow had escaped, and already, he had moved on.
Chloe had been disappointed that Taylor hadn’t been able to give them a name. She’d spent nineteen months with this man; it seemed like a given that she would be able to lead them straight to her abductor. But that obviously wasn’t going to be the case. So far, it didn't seem like Taylor knew anything that was going to help them catch this guy, which did not bode well for Avery Ormont.
“No, he didn't,” Tom agreed.
He sounded a little confused. She pulled her coat tighter wishing she’d worn a beanie. She never wore the reindeer one when she was going to a crime scene or an interview—it seemed too unprofessional—but she should have gone with something because her ears were freezing. “You thought he would make a play at getting Taylor back?” she asked her partner.
“Yes. We profiled him as a control freak and a perfectionist. That she managed to escape must be driving him crazy. I'd think he’d want to get her back.”
“Maybe he does. But if he’s as smart as we think he is, then he’d know that he won't be able to just walk up and take her.He’d have to know that we’d be making sure she was protected. Maybe he’s going to wait a while, then when he thinks we’ve let our guard down, he’ll try to get her back,” she suggested.
“So far, he’s managed to remain reasonably patient. He works methodically through breaking his victims’ bones; it doesn’t seem like he’s rushing. But how long can that patience last?”
She didn't bother to answer her partner’s rhetorical question.
They both knew the answer.
It was unlikely that his patience would last forever.
Assuming they were right and his goal was to break every bone in someone’s body before killing them, then he was bound to eventually get frustrated when he kept failing.
When he got frustrated, he was likely to become even more dangerous.
And when he did, they could expect the body count to rise, and quickly.
“Hey, Savannah,” she greeted her friend at the door to the small guesthouse at the back of the property where Avery lived.
