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Wrath of the Reapers
Author: Jessa Halliwell
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Page 1
CHAPTERONE
The air is different in this place. Stagnant and thick. Laced with this
underlying scent of decay that only years of neglect could bring. It’s hot and
impossibly humid too. I woke up a few hours ago with a parched mouth and
nearly every inch of my body coated in a thin layer of sweat.
It’s dark. So purely pitch black that it's almost impossible to see anything in
front of me. It's the kind of darkness nightmares are made of. The kind of
darkness you can’t stare at for too long, not without panic setting it.
What is this place?
From what I can tell, I’m not injured, and aside from the tight ropes biting
into my ankles and wrists and the pounding headache that still hasn’t gone
away, I feel little pain.
I have to give it to them. Whoever tied me to this chair knew what they were
doing. I’ve been testing the binds since I woke up and all I’ve managed to do is
rub my skin raw.
I’m not sure how long I sat here drifting in and out of sleep before I came to.
Minutes? Hours? Days? My memory is hazy and the longer I sit here, the
harder it is to keep track. I don’t know what Dimitri wants from me or why the
hell he’s left me [Link] I really know is I need to get the hell out of here.
***
The next time I wake up I try to search the darkness again, but there’s still
nothing discernible about this place. Just four dark walls cast in even darker
shadows.
Staring out into the void feels like I’m drowning. Like I’m sinking beneath the
depths of thick, murky water and no matter how hard I try to claw up to the
surface, I can’t. There’s no light to guide me. Just darkness. All-consuming,
inescapable darkness.
I should be used to this feeling.I think bitterly as I give up on the search and
close my eyes once more.
I’ve been drowning for a while now. In guilt. In fear. In emotions I was never
really equipped to handle. And being in this place only seems to amplify that
feeling. Almost as if the dark solitude is forcing me to face everything I’ve
been trying to avoid.
I’m not a good person.I used to think I was, but after everything I’ve done,
how can I possibly still believe that?
My little sister is dead because of me. Ezra may have been the one to pull the
trigger, but Alex would’ve never been on his radar if I didn’t selfishly put her
there.
Same with Melanie and Charles. They were the closest thing I had to friends,
and they died trying to save me from a lunatic I stupidly lured in. The Reapers
warned me about Dimitri and I always knew there was something off with
him. I was just too selfish and bullheaded to see how dangerous he was until it
was too late.
I’ve hurt the people closest to me and if my dad were alive, he would be so
fucking disappointed in the person I’ve become. Cold. Ruthless. Deceitful.
That’s not the kind of woman he raised me to be. Then again, maybe that’s the
biggest problem in all of this.
I’ve spent my whole life trying to be good and live up to the standards my
father set for me. But maybe I’ve just been fighting a losing battle all along.
Maybe hurting others is in my [Link] all, I’m not just his daughter, I’m
hers too.
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Page 2
CHAPTERTWO
A few days later
I’m drifting. Floating somewhere between being asleep and awake when I
hear the distinct sound of the lock on my door shift. It’s a tiny disruption. One
I probably shouldn’t notice. But I’ve always been a light sleeper and being in
this place has trained me to stay vigilant.
I keep my eyes shut as the overhead lights flicker on and the door slowly
creeps open. Pretending to sleep never stops them, but I’m greedy for any
moments of reprieve I can get.
“Good morning.” A chilling voice calls out, cutting into the silence that
normally fills the room. Even without looking, I know who it is. Dimitri’s right
hand man, or as I like to refer to him as, The Zombie.
I’m sure he has a real name, one Dimitri’s called out on more than one
occasion, but I refuse to learn it. Fuck humanizing the enemy. Besides,
learning anything else about him feels a little morbid considering I plan on
slaughtering him.
The Zombie’s footfalls are slow and methodical as he approaches me, almost
as if he’s purposely taking his time to scare me, but I stuff the fear down
before it can take [Link]’s not worth it.
“I know you aren’t sleeping.” He taunts, stepping deeper into the basement.
“If I’m honest, I couldn’t sleep either. I stayed up all night thinking about
you.”
His little confession makes me want to gag. Having him visit me is bad
enough, but just the idea of this sick fuck thinking about me on his downtime
makes me want to scrub my skin off.
He stops moving, and for a moment; the silence is deafening. I try to listen for
him, but the only sound coming through is the rhythmic pounding of my own
heartbeat.
“Open your fucking eyes.” He snaps, reappearing within inches of me.
Before I can even think about following his orders, he latches onto my the
back of my head and pulls. Yanking my hair back so violently that it feels like
my scalp is literally being ripped off.
I don’t scream, because fuck giving him the satisfaction, but the sudden burst
of pain is blinding. I have no choice but to move to relieve some of the
pressure.
I try to inch closer to his hand, but the ropes around my wrists keep me
practically glued to the chair and I have no choice but to sit and wait until he’s
done for the pain to stop.
I’ve lost count of how many times he’s greeted me like this in the last few days.
Three times? Five times? Nine? It’s hard to discern one memory from another
in this place.
“You have no one to blame but yourself for that.” He says as he finally loosens
his hold and relieves some of the pressure. “Now how about you be a good girl
and do as I ask?”
Begrudgingly, I force my eyes open and glare at the monster standing above
[Link].I don’t think I’ll ever get used to seeing him this up close. I
nicknamed him The Zombie for a reason. The man looks like Dimitri ripped
him out of a fucking horror movie, and not the psychological thriller kind, the
gory, gives-you-nightmares kind.
His shiny bald head gleams under the fluorescent light and his sickly pale skin
is so thin it’s almost transparent. He has over-exaggerated features that only
add to the air of otherworldliness about him, with cold, lifeless eyes, a
prominent nose, an oversized mouth, and jagged, silver scars covering nearly
every inch of his skin. He cocks his head as he takes stock of me, a cold chill
instantly climbs up my spine.I hate the effect he has on me.
“I said good morning.” He hisses, gritting his teeth as he glares down at me.
“It isn’t very polite of you not to say anything back.”
I almost scoff at his words. He wantsmeto be polite? He can’t be serious.
I blink at him, like he’s the stupidest person I’ve ever met, because, well he
just might be and his lip curls in response.
Wow… he isn’t kidding.
I guess it makes sense considering how deranged his boss is.
Dimitri swears his intentions are pure. That he orchestrated all of this, not to
punish me, but to help me see howgeneroushis offer is. He’s convinced I’ll
come to thank him for this in the end. Now, if that doesn’t speak to how
delusional the man truly is, I don’t know what will.
“What’s the matter?” The Zombie asks, grabbing ahold of my face and letting
his hot breath dance across my skin. “Cat got your tongue?”
He painfully squishes my cheeks together, using his filthy fingernails to dig
deeper and deeper into the skin until I have no choice but to pry my mouth
open and relieve the pressure.
“Nope.” He says, staring at my tongue with a smirk. “Still there.”
He runs his thumb across my bottom lip and I dig my nails into the arms of
my wooden chair to stop myself from repelling. “It would be a shame if your
bad attitude forced me to cut out that pretty little tongue of yours.”
He’s bluffing. Dimitri lets him get away with a lot, but he’d never let him cause
me any permanent damage. Not because he cares about me, but because if I
agree to his offer, I’ll need to look like I’m doing so willingly. Cuts and bruises
can heal in a few days, but anything more severe will raise some serious
redflags.
I can’t smell much of anything, thanks to the mixture of blood and sweat
permeating in the air, but I make a show of dry-heaving from the stench of his
breath just to fuck with him. It’s juvenile, but part of surviving means doing
whatever I can to get under his skin. After all, every second I’m in his head is a
second he isn’t beating into mine.
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Page 3
“You think you’re funny?” He snaps, practically snarling the word at me, as if
doing so will somehow scare me into answering him.
I can’t help but laugh as I lick at my cracked [Link], yeah.I think I’m
pretty hilarious. All things considered.
He cocks his head at me, like he’s actually expecting an explanation, and my
laughter only [Link] part of I’m not fucking cooperating are you not
getting?
I feel the sting of my lips splitting, but I can’t stop. It’s just so fucking
[Link] at me.I’m bruised and beaten. Covered in a mixture of dried
blood and my own filth because I’m refusing to comply with their demands.
What the hell makes him think that this interaction is going to be any
different?
Without warning, his fist strikes out, smashing into the side of my face with
enough force to break skin. My head painfully jerks to the side and a familiar
burn ignites across my cheek as the fresh taste of copper fills my mouth.
Fuck.
He continues his assault on me, like a rabid fucking animal, and I wish I could
say I’m surprised at how hard he’s hitting me, but I’m not. After spending so
much time in this place, I’ve learned there’s nothing Dimitri’s men love more
than making me bleed.
I know I should stop this. I should just give in and avoid all of this pain. But I
can’t let Dimitri win.I won’t.
After a while, his blows lull to a stop and he backs away to assess the damage.
“My, my, my…” He says, smiling down at me. “That looks like it hurts.”
I can’t see the damage he inflicted but I can feel it. The left side of my face is
throbbing and I can already feel my eye swelling shut, but it’s my head that
I’m really worried about.
The torture sessions with him are always bad, but they never leaving me
feeling like this. I must’ve really pissed him off this time and if I don’t do
something to stop him, he’s going to kill me. Intentionally or not.
I release a whimper and force myself to start crying, doing what I can to
attract his attention. It’s calculated, but it’s the first sign of defeat any of them
have seen since the torture sessions started. Instead of being suspicious, like
he should be, he looks at me and his face is practically beaming with delight.
“Are you finally ready to agree?” He asks, cutting right to the chase. “We’re
just getting started, but it doesn’t look like you can handle much more.”
I give him a small nod and keep my head low, playing up my defeat to the
fullest.
He immediately jumps into action. He whips his phone out and when I see
him dial a number and press the phone to his ear, a hint of a smile plays on
my [Link] boy.
He mumbles out a few Russian words I don’t understand as he paces back and
forth. And just as quickly as he started the call, he ends it.
For a while it’s just the two of us, and even though my head is down, I can still
feel his eyes on me. Studying me, like he’s still not quite sure if he believes me.
It’s too late for him to change his mind. The call’s already been made.
A few moments later, the door slides open and another person enters the
room. They don’t say anything as they take their position behind me, but their
notable silence tells me everything I need to [Link]’s Dimitri.
Dimitri and his men have been trying to break me for days. Rotating shifts
every few hours to torture me, feed me, and escort me to bathroom in that
order. Ironically enough, Dimitri only shows up to feed me, so the fact that
he’s here now means my shitty acting actually worked.
“Speak.” The Zombie says, his voice laced with pride. “We don’t have all day.”
I slowly nod my head and gesture for The Zombie to come closer. Like the
coward he is; he looks to Dimitri for permission before making a move. It’s
hard not to laugh at the irony. He wants permission to approach me, but
beating the shit out of me without so much as a warning is a-okay.
Dimitri gives him a firm nod and, like the perfect little lap dog he is, The
Zombie eagerly approaches. As I watch him move towards me, I can almost
see his thoughts written all over his face. He thinks he’s won. That all of his
violence has finally forced me to comply, and damn, does it make me giddy
just thinking about how wrong he [Link] this moment of bliss, you stupid
fuck.
As soon as he’s perched beside me, I make a move to speak. I can even feel the
phantom words dance on the tip of my tongue, but instead of uttering the
words of agreement both of them are desperately wanting to hear, I gather all
the blood in my mouth and spray it, splattering bloody saliva all over the side
of his face.
I watch with wild amusement as he implodes. His entire body vibrates with
the need to hurt me and it’s obvious he’s seconds away from losing it.
I laugh, because I can’t help it, and the sound of my laughter only seems to
fuel his rage. His head snaps up and the look on his face is the most sub-
human thing I’ve ever seen. He wants to kill me, I can see it in his eyes and
fuck, it feels good to know I’m the one who’s pushed him there.
Looks like I broke you first, asshole.
Within seconds, Dimitri is between us, acting as a human shield as he shoves
his rabid henchman away. To anyone else, his actions would look heroic, like a
small part of him cares and wants to protect me. But that’s just another one of
his illusions. I’ve spent too much time in this place to mistake his interference
as anything other than an act of self-preservation.
“I’m sorry to waste your time, boss.” The Zombie huffs, speaking to Dimitri as
he continues to glare daggers at me. “I thought I had her.”
Dimitri shakes his head slowly before palming the man’s blood-splattered face
in his hands. “You did good, Ivan.” He assures, releasing his hold as he leads
him towards the exit. “This one just needs a little more convincing than most.
But she’ll break. Eventually, they all do.”
I narrow my eyes at him, but say nothing as I watch his henchman quietly exit
the room.
The door closes, and part of me knows I should feel better. The Zombie was
on the verge of killing me, and I should be relieved that he’s gone. But when I
look at Dimitri and see the strange gleam in his icy blue eyes, I know the real
torture is only beginning. I’m not sure what he’s planning, but one thing’s for
sure…this is going to be a long fucking night.
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Page 4
CHAPTERTHREE
“Kroshka, why must you be so difficult?”
Dimitri cocks his head as he perches beside me, almost as if he actually
doesn’t understand my logic. “This could all be so much easier if you just
agree.”
I stone my features and stare off into the distance. We aren’t having this
conversation again. What Dimitri wants me to dowillhurt The Reapers. I don’t
care how I left things between them, no amount of “convincing” will ever
make me agree to that.
Like the manipulative asshole he is, Dimitri whips out a silk napkin from his
pocket and starts dabbing at the fresh blood seeping from my cheek.
He’s showing me kindness and a week ago, I would’ve eaten that shit up. I
would’ve searched his eyes for some sign of remorse and when I saw some
intangible sign he cared, I would’ve excused his behavior. Brushed it off as a
weird miscommunication. But the veil over my eyes has been lifted, and now I
can see Dimitri for who he truly is. A fucking monster.
Dimitri places his hand over mine and looks up at me with pleading eyes. “All
I’m asking for is your hand in marriage.”
He drops to one knee beside my chair, and I have to physically restrain myself
from showing the repulsion that surges through me.
“I want to give you a beautiful life. Is that so wrong?”
It’s a lie.
“You will want for nothing,” he continues, squeezing my hand tighter, “and I
will protect you and yours better than The Reapers ever could. I know the
situation is not ideal…” He pauses, mostly for dramatic effect.“But what
beginning ever is?”
He looks deeply into my eyes and the fact that all I see is emptiness staring
back at me makes my skin [Link]’s such a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
“Think of your sister…” He continues, moving his hand down to my thigh
before squeezing my knee. “Don’t you think after everything you’ve been
through, she’d want you to be happy?”
Happy.I think, shaking my head with a bitter [Link], does he really think
I’m going to buy this?
He always does this, acts as if he’s done nothing wrong. As if he has my best
intentions in mind and his altruistic approach is simply being misunderstood.
I watched him brutally murder Melanie and Charles with my own eyes. That
doesn’t just go away. When I can sleep, the image of blood pooling around
their lifeless bodies still creeps into my nightmares.
He can try to disguise his intentions all he wants, but it’s clear that this
proposal has nothing to do with me. It’s abouthimand his incessant need to
one-up The Reapers.
I haven’t spoken a single word since arriving here, but I’m so sick of his
manipulations. Of his lies. And just hearing him talk about my sister so freely
like that pushes me over the edge.
“Fuck you.” I snap, narrowing my eyes at him. My voice is rough and scratchy
from the days of misuse, but the message is clear enough. “You don’t get to
speak of my sister. Not now. Not ever.”
My words waver from all the pent up rage, but I don’t stop. He needs to get
this through his thick fucking skull and if I have to spell it out for him, so be it.
“I will never agree to be your wife.” I add, looking him up and down in
disgust. “You could offer me the world and I’d still say no. You and I both
know where my loyalty lies.”
Dimitri’s nostrils flare as he takes in my venomous words. It’s obvious he
wasn’t expecting such a harsh refusal, but that just goes to show how little he
knows me.
“Your loyalty.” He scoffs, flinging his soiled napkin to the ground. “How could
I possibly forget about that? All they’ve ever done is cause you pain, and yet
there you are, clinging to their sides like a pathetic puppy.”
Dimitri paces, glaring over at me as his anger intensifies. “There’s a fine line
between loyalty and stupidity, Kroshka. Tell me, what has all of your loyalty
given to you? Hmm? You have no friends. No family. No one left that gives a
single fuck about you.”
His words hurt more than I expect and, as numb as I want to appear, I can’t
help but avoid his gaze.I don’t want to think about that.
“Where are your men, Kroshka?” He taunts, looming over me like he’s
seconds away from biting my head off. “By now, they know of Melanie’s death.
My people had time to discard the footage of our unfortunate encounter, but
once they found the bodies, it would only take a quick surveillance search to
see you were there with her. They know you’re missing, yet they haven’t
bothered to look for you. Why do you think that is?”
I feel my throat bob and the sudden urge to run barrels into me. I don’t need
to hear this. He’s just trying to manipulate me.
“You don’t actually believe they still care about you, do you?”
The silence that falls between us is deafening, and I can almost feel the heat of
his stare as he scrutinizes my expression. Trying my best to remain perfectly
unaffected, I continue staring off into the distance. I know him. If he sees any
signs of my pain, he’ll pounce.
“You do.” He says flatly, glaring at me like the mere sight of me makes him
sick. “Don’t you understand? You were nothing to them. A toy. Nothing else.
Those men are incapable of loving anyone but themselves. Their absence
alone proves that. I am the only choice you have left.”
Dimitri could be right. In fact, a big part of me fears he is. But that doesn’t
change how I feel about [Link] I’ll always feel about them.
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Page 5
Love is funny that way. Once it’s there, it's almost impossible to get rid of it. It
doesn’t matter what was said, or how badly the ties were severed. When you
truly love someone, you love them for a lifetime.
I love [Link] of whether or not it’s reciprocated. Regardless of what
happens next, I love them, and a part of me always will.
“You’ll never be my choice, Dimitri.” I say simply. “And you’re right, they may
not want me. But that doesn’t change the fact that I’ll never want you. You can
try to manipulate the truth all you want. How I feel about you will never
change.”
Dimitri stares at me, holding my gaze for longer than anyone should. I feel
uncomfortable under the weight of his stare, but something about the look in
his eyes keeps me locked in place.
“It’s a shame it had to come to this.” Dimitri murmurs, shaking his head with
a sigh. “I thought with enough force, you’d agree and I could spare you, but it
seems you’re too stubborn for your own good. I offered you another option
out of the kindness of my heart, but in truth, I never needed your hand in
marriage. You’ve only been gone a few days and already The Reaper’s crowns
are tarnishing. It won’t be long until their loyal subjects turn on them and
they lose everything. Congratulations Kroshka, you’ve finally accomplished
what dozens of men have tried and failed to do. You crumpled their
kingdom.””
Whatever he has planned won’t be good. I can sense it in the way he looks at
me. Like deep down, he pities me for what he was about to do.
“Sleep well, Kroshka.” He calls over his shoulder as he heads for the door.
“Something tells me you’re going to need all the rest you can get.”
