Page 66 of Psycho Sinners

The brownies were still warm as we devoured them, the herbal undertones making my head swim pleasantly as we sprawled out on the couch.

I wasn't sure how it happened, but he managed to wrangle me onto his lap, his chin resting on my shoulder as I sat on him.

"It's nice to let go sometimes," he murmured. "To let the chaos rage instead of fighting it."

I tensed instinctively, but then forced myself to relax back against his chest. He was right, there was a strange freedom in embracing the pandemonium, it was something I'd done all my life.

"You burning down that bar, now that, my little kitten, was bold and wild. True chaos at its finest," he chuckled. "Good for you though, not giving two fucks about the consequences. Showing that cheating prick what happens when you hurt someone, especially someone you love."

My breath caught at that, and I slowly turned to face him. He shifted me so that I fully faced him, straddling him now instead. I stared into those dark eyes, a strange contentment in them that didn't deserve to be there. "You've been hurting me this whole time."

To my surprise, he didn't even attempt to deny it. He simply shrugged, utterly unapologetic.

"I never said I wouldn't, kitten. I'm not gonna make false promises like Tommy did. I keep my word - even the ugly parts."

His thumb stroked over my cheekbone, an almost tender gesture at odds with his words. Then he leaned in, pressing a lingering kiss to my forehead before slumping back, his eyelids growing heavy.

"That's the beauty of chaos," he slurred, already fading out. "Never knowing what'll happen next..."

I stared at him, at how his throat was on full display, and a part of me wondered if I could bite deep enough to make him bleed out. Unlikely, but the thought was tempting.

I sighed as I wiggled free of his arms around me, a soft snore escaping him.

He'd really dropped his guard tonight.

I moved to the kitchen, eyeing the mess that had been left, my gaze shifting to the knife block. It would be far too easy to kill him, and I wouldn't mess it up this time. The thought was tempting, to just end this nightmare once and for all. But his brothers would never have let me go free. This wouldn't be over, but his craziness would never plague the world again.

I would be on the run forever, always looking over my shoulder if I did such a thing, and I sighed. I had only had another two weeks left of this hell. I could do this. I had been holding my own so far, staying strong despite everything they put me through.I glanced back over at Cristian, his head lolled back over the couch, the gauze on his pec now harboring a bloody mark. I guess his stitches had split or something. I'd take some delight in that.

I tidied up the kitchen, waves of contentment washing over me as the wicked brownies got to work on my senses. My mind whirled as I cleaned. Who was Tess? The name had lingered, making me curious despite knowing I shouldn't have let it bother me. But I had been getting so bored here, day in, day out, doing nothing but staring out the windows and pondering my life and the shit-show it had become, binging TV shows and snacking.

What would I do once they finally set me free, like they promised? Move in with Noms probably, but would she even keep her job here knowing what had transpired? I wanted to leave this damned city altogether, to put it in my rearview mirror and never come back to the place that had brought me so much trauma.

I was sure she'd go with me, that we'd leave Starwin behind, move to the other side of the world even, and start fresh. Forget this hell, bury it.

By the time I finished cleaning, Cristian had now curled his arms across his chest, having slumped onto his side as he slept on the couch. I sighed, knowing I was going to kick myself for it later, but I fetched him a blanket and tossed it over him anyway. He stirred briefly but then stilled, a soft snore leaving his lips. Like that, you wouldn't have thought he was a raging psycho with a tendency for mutilation. He looked peaceful, almost innocent.

And fractured by the death of Tess. Just who had she been to him? His partner?

Now I had a mystery to keep me occupied here.

I wandered to my room, picking up the puzzle book Tyrone had gotten me along with some puzzles. I wasn't tired, so doing a few crosswords and word-searches sounded like a good idea as I snuggled into my bed. Besides, I was still trying to wrap my head around the enigma that was Cristian. Kenny joined me as per usual, hopping up onto the bed and purring softly as I absently stroked his fur. After an hour of mindless puzzles, where I was stuck on one damn crossword word that was killing me but I refused to google, the door opened and Tyrone appeared.

"How are you doing?" he asked as he leaned against the doorframe.

I shrugged. "As good as possible for a sex slave, I guess." I wasn't about to beat around the bush. That was essentially all I was here.

That seemed to rub him the wrong way as his jaw tightened, but he didn't rebuke me. "I got some proper food for dinner, it’s late, but it’s something. Chinese."

"Do any of you actually cook?" I found myself asking curiously.

"Julian and I do on occasion," he said after a moment. "Not Cristian though. No, he just bakes."

My brow furrowed at that as I recalled the pot brownies earlier, the effects of which had long since worn off. I'd hoped they'd put me to sleep, but I hadn't had enough of them to get that sleepy high apparently.

"Come, eat," he said, not leaving room for refusal as he strode out.

I sighed, stroking the now curled up Kenny before rising and heading after him. Sure enough, Cristian was still passed out on the couch, snuggled under the blanket I had draped over him.