Page 103 of Fighting Shadows
Grunting, I stop in front of him and push my thumb into the words carved into his chest, “I wish she did more to you.”
“She loves me,” he says, still delusional as ever.
“She loved the idea of being loved. You promised her the world when she had nothing, and all she wanted was to be saved from the monster who called herself Mom,” I say, my voice rising with each word.
He opens his mouth to reply but my I cock my hand back and swing for his face; the crack of my fist against his already swollen jaw settles something in me, and I swing again, and again and again.
Footsteps behind me have me pausing, my fist mid-air.
“You’re turning into me more by the day,” Dominic says gleefully. Charlie groans at the sound of his voice, and I smile down at him even when he can’t see it.
“I think Charlie here is scared of you, Dominic.” I laugh.
“Oh, he’s terrified, and if he could piss himself, he would,” Dominic says, picking up his knife from the table and moving to Charlie's exposed back, “Are you ready for more, Charlie?” he taunts.
“I can’t. Please don’t,” he begs.
Dominic doesn’t listen and carves a large chunk of skin from his back over his shoulder blades, holding it up like a proud kid showing off his newest drawing.
“When are we finishing this?” I ask, my knuckles aching as I flex them.
Charlie’s face is swollen, almost unrecognizable, and he slumps forward in the chair as unconsciousness pulls him under once again.
“Tomorrow,” Dominic states, his eyes shadowed from becoming the person he needs to be down here, “I have the perfect plan.”
Dominic
Ididn’t have him for as long as I would have liked, and while I want to pout about it, we’ve all done what we needed to do. The most important one is Autumn, who got to say her piece to the bastard who haunted her nightmares for years after he abused her.
The words she carved into his chest have now scabbed over, and I get my knife. I go back over my Cupcakes words, getting them perfect for my plan.
Charlie groans, the new gag in place, his festering penis being the perfect mouthpiece for what’s next. He gags around it, but he’s so messed up from everything we’ve done to him that it’s weak.
The other all join me, eyeing the work I’ve done to the first and final monster in our girl's life.
“I didn’t think he’d make it to the end of the week,” Atlas grunts, seeing the hollow eye sockets for the first time.
The freshly carved wound bleeds down Charlie's chest, and I grin proudly to myself that I left it even when I wanted to peel his skin back to reveal his heart for the final part of the plan.
Autumn decided that she didn’t want to be here for this part and, with her new freedom, wanted to see Chase.
“Do you have the stuff?” I ask, more excited than a kid at Christmas.
“What do you need buttermilk and honey for?” Zander asks, handing me the large tub of honey first.
“Scaphism,” I say, not elaborating further as I mix the buttermilk and honey, remove his cock from his mouth, and make Charlie drink the mixture. He attempts to turn his head to the side, avoiding the rest, but I nod to Tobias, who yanks his hair back and forces his mouth to open.
He gasps for air as I pour the final droplets into his mouth, the mixture covering his torso and face, but I’m not done.
We drag Charlie out to the woods, and I lay him on the ground between two trees. I would have done this on the lake, but the idea of him being close to Chlo’s grave makes me angry. I tie his hand and his legs to the trees on either side of him, then pour the rest of the mixture over him.
I read about this years ago in my research. The Greeks used this as a form of torture, hanging the prisoner over water that would attract insects, flies, and rodents to eat the body alive, and I can’t think of a more fitting end for Charlie, who fights against the bindings. Thankfully I put his penis back in his mouth before we left; the sounds of his shouts muffled enough to attract the coyotes and other animals that roam around here.
“Is it finally done?” Sebastian asks, his eyes fixed on Charlie.
“I’ll come back in a few days, retrieve the body, then burn it,” I say, walking back to the house with the others.
Brenn and Aidan walk slightly ahead, their hands linked with one another, and Noah hovers near us.
