It gives.
The door swings open.
And I scream.
Strung up to the ceiling by hooks through his hands, causing blood to drip down his body, is the man we tailed earlier today.
And Eli?
Eli is cutting out his tongue with a smile on his face. That same innocent smile that causes butterflies in my stomach every time I see it. A smile that now has me hunching over and vomiting up the small amount of breakfast I managed to eat before his friend, Tyler, got here.
His head whips towards me at the sound of my puke hitting the black concrete floor below me.
He freezes, then steps towards me. “Angel—”
I hold up a hand, pausing his movements.
My chest heaves as I try to regain some semblance of control.
My lower lip trembles as I straighten, and tears moisten in my eyes. “What… What are you doing?”
I know what he’s doing. It’s pretty obvious. But still, I ask.
Eli looks between me and the man, then down at himself, taking in the blood staining his arms, his t-shirt, his shoes.
He takes a deep breath, holding his hands up as if I’m the dangerous one. “You know what he was doing, Angel.”
It’s not a question but I nod anyway, unable to speak.
“This was an interrogation,” Eli states.
I lick my now dry lips. His eyes track the movement.
“How can you interrogate someone without a tongue?”
“Well, I’ve gotten what I need from him. Now I’m just cleaning up.”
“Cleaning?”
“Getting rid of evidence.”
A horrifying thought comes to me.
“Is this where you brought Tom? Did you kill him in here too?”
Eli closes his eyes, then those grey irises fix on me. “Yes, this is where little Tommy got what he deserved for touching what didn’t belong to him.”
Bile rises, threatening to spill again. “Me? I’m what didn’t belong to him?”
Eli smiles as if pleased with my words. “Yes, Angel. You belong to me.”
I shake my head, backing up. “I don’t… I don’t belong to you, Eli. I’m a person, not something you can own.”
I turn to flee, needing to get away.
But the door I came through is now locked.
I spin.