She seethes with hate and anger. Her breath is rushing out. Her hair is covering her face, blowing out a little with each exhale. “Do it,” she growls. “Take whatever you want, you stupid coward. My father hired you to save me! And you left me there!”

“I thought that was the best thing that ever happened to you?” I clamp the second shackle on her ankle and look up at her. Caught. “I thought he was your dream guy. I thought—”

She spits on me. It lands on my forehead.

“You’re gonna regret that.”

“I don’t think so,” she says, her words low and her tone gruff, like she’s exhausted. “I’m not gonna do it, Case. I’m not gonna do any of it anymore. I’m gonna piss you off so much you’ll have no choice but to kill me.”

“I can torture you, ya stupid bitch.”

And then she laughs. “No, you can’t.” She laughs again, louder this time. Wilder. Like she’s losing touch with reality. “You can’t torture me, Case. I’ve been through anything you can think up and more.” She sneers at me. “And I have a secret. I have lots of secrets, actually. But this one takes away all your power.”

I know what she’s gonna say before she does and I stand up quickly, trying to cover her mouth with my hand. But it slips by me.

“Hush,” she says. “All I gotta do is tell myself to hush and no one can hurt me.” She looks up, through the strands of hair that are still wet from the bath and probably soaking up the sweat that is running down her face, even though this room can’t be anywhere near warm, let alone hot.

“You’re a sick bitch.”

“Says one psycho to the next.”

I grab her throat. “Let’s pick up where we left off and see if we can’t tip the scales in my favor.”

“It’s your party, Case. I’m just along for the ride.” Her eyes blaze with expectations. “Fuck me. See how far it gets you. The hard fuck, you say? That’s what you think will teach me a lesson? You think the hard fuck is something new for me? Ha!” She laughs again. The crazy laugh. The laugh that says, We’re done here.

I step back. The soles of my bare feet are cold on the concrete floor as I walk away. When I get to the fire I turn my back to it, letting what little is left warm me up. “I think you’ve misunderstand what the hard fuck is.”

“I’m gonna make you weep, Sydney,” she says in a fake voice. “I’m gonna make that fuck so hard you’ll weep. Well, I’m not sure why this is a newsflash, since you said you’ve been watching, but newsflash, asshole—I always weep.” She spits in my direction, but I’m too far away to hit this time. “Your game is old. Your methods are tired. Your knowledge is lacking.”

She’s like a little demon chained to a wall. That’s how she looks right now.

“You want me to tell you what I know?” She pauses, but I don’t say anything. This is not going at all how I planned it. “I know what you’re looking for. I know where Garrett is. But it’s locked up in that place I keep all my secrets. The dark place. Take me there, Merc. Meet me there in the dark and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Her use of my trade name brings me back to my senses. She’s a small girl chained to a wall. I’m a six-foot-something assassin. One of the best in the world. She’s proud to be able to take the violence. I’m proud about how I dish it out. But what she’s saying is the rambling of someone who has lost touch. I’m not sure anything I get will be reliable. “How?”

“Drugs,” she says, her voice suddenly soft.

I walk forward until I get right up next to her naked body. “Been there, done that, cowgirl. We’re gonna try something different this time.” I lean in and kiss her. Her teeth are there as she tries to bite me. But I calmly hold her head with both hands and force her nose to bump against mine. “I’ll meet you in the dark. But we’re gonna get there my way this time.”

“Those other ways?” she questions back, her voice still soft. Even her breathing is soft. “Those were my ways?” That makes her turn so she has space to laugh. “I’m pretty sure you’ve been driving this car, Merc. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the one pushing drugs in me for the past few days.”

“Weeks,” I correct her. And it works, because that revelation throws her.

“You’re lying. It’s only been a few days.”

“Versed, sweetie.” I lean down and kiss her. This time she holds still for it, but she doesn’t respond. “It’s a drug. Versed makes it all go away. I’ve had you for two weeks. Your man, Brett, he never even looked for you. You’ve got no one who cares, Sydney. So be a good girl and tell me what you know. Then I’ll drug you again. Walk out of here. And never look back. And when you wake up you’ll find all the gear you need to start over. How’s that for a deal?”

“You lie.”

“Or we can do the hard fuck first.” I smile at that. And then I dip my fingers between her legs and push one against her entrance. She’s slightly wet. “You want me to relieve you of that pesky v-card? I’m pretty sure Garrett fucked your pussy. I never saw it, just the assplay. But he’s not the kind of guy who saves shit for later.”

“Until he is,” she quips back. “He has patience you’d never understand.”

“Sticking up for him again?” I smile. Because her leverage over me is gone now. “Hmmm? He’s still your guy? The man in your dreams? Taking you fishing? Giving your code words to trigger your brainwashing? I bet he fucked you plenty of times while you were under. Right?”

She stares up at me, squinting. “Kill me. Just do it. Kill me and let me go.”

I push my leg forward until my thigh rests against her pussy and press my chest against her breasts. “I plan on it, Syd. Just not the way you want me to. Because the hard fuck, wildcat, isn’t hard because I pound the shit out of women and choke them unconscious. That’s someone else’s version. My version is hard because you have to beg for it.”

She spits again, this time hitting me on the mouth.

I kiss her and give it back. She catches my lip this time, biting down hard, drawing blood. But I just push her off me and smile. “I like the taste of blood, Syd. Haven’t you figured that out yet? You don’t call yourself a killer and not like the taste of blood. It turns me on, bitch. Now beg for it.”

“Fuck you.”

“Oh, I’m certainly gonna fuck you. But you’re gonna beg for it. And you’re gonna tell me what I want to know. Because I’m gonna retrain you, Sydney. I’m gonna retrain that fucked-up mind of yours.” I tap her on the head a few times to illustrate my point. “I’m gonna reprogram you. Take you down into that dark place you love so much and turn the fucking lights on.”

“Sometimes it’s the thing you’ve been running from that can help the most.”

– Sydney

I close my eyes so he can’t see me, but his mouth is back on mine, his tongue searching for the things I’m hiding. He knows where to find them, too. I know he does. Of all the secrets I’m keeping, that’s the only one I need to keep. I need to do whatever it takes to keep that secret.

“I can find Garrett,” I say. “I can find him. Just tell me to hush. Tell me to hush and start asking questions.”

“No,” Case says sternly, but in a low voice. “It’s a lie, Sydney. He’s pumped you up with so much misinformation you have no idea what’s real. But every trigger has a release. And that’s the first thing I need from you. Once I get the release, we can try this all again. You know the release, Sydney. You’ve heard it many times. All I need is for you to remember. And if you tell me what that word is, I’ll back off. I’ll let you keep that dark place. Feel free to go there for an extended visit. Hell, never come back for all I care. How’s that for a deal?”