Chapter 14

Ifound the knife with no help.

There were a few in their kitchen and I settled on a carving knife with a wooden handle.

I tossed another pound of flesh to the side of me, then went back to meticulously cutting my way through the young man’s stomach.

Had I known it would be this hard, I would have just followed the damn doe instead.

But this would prove to my mad, beloved Elijah that I was willing to do anything for him.

I sat up for a moment and blew out a breath as I glanced over at the whore. Her I would just section off and toss into the fire that had been keeping them company for the evening.

Someone would find her, but they wouldn’t find him.

Or me, I thought with a small smile as I went back to the task at hand.

One more–got it!

After I finally managed to make a big enough hole in his stomach, I moved to hover over him slightly, then dug my hands into the open cavity.

The sounds were glorious.

Wet, sick, putrid.

All of the things they had tried to paint me as.

I rolled my head on my shoulders as I blew out my breath. My fingers burrowed upward until they grazed along the bottom of his ribcage.

Planting my feet firmly against the wooden floor, I slid my fingers through the small gaps and began to pull with all of my might.

No matter how much rage washed over me at not being able to break them free, I couldn’t do it.

With a sigh, I got up and wandered around the cabin, hoping to find something more profound than just my hands to use.

In and out of the rooms I wandered, with my hand gently resting against my nose.

I could smell the whore no matter how far away I walked.

Their scent hung in the air like a humid blanket of sin, and I knew that if I didn’t hurry, it would make me sick.

Just when I was ready to give up, I wandered back into the kitchen and began to sift through the cabinets.

And that’s when I found the hammer.

I smiled as I retrieved it from its resting place, then tapped it gently against my leg as I walked back to tackle the task that had been giving me so many issues.

I laid down on his body and turned the hammer upward so that I could slide the claw into the slivers of the cage, then began to meticulously snap them back, one by one.

It was still harder than I had hoped.

Took longer than it should have.

But when I was finally able to break the fucking thing open, I took a moment and eased myself back on his thighs. My arms were bloodstained, but it didn’t bother me.

It was knowing Elijah was still waiting that made me move faster.

Shaking my head quickly, I laid my body down with my chin resting just above his whore-stained dick, and reached into his body again.

I began to break the bones of his rib cage as quickly as I could, cursing under my breath at how much it hurt, but I was determined to make sure that I got the prize.

After another twenty minutes of snapping and burrowing, my fingers finally wrapped around what I wanted.

My teeth bit down on my slightly protruding tongue as I slid up his body a little further, grabbed the knife and then plunged my hands back inside.

I moved the blade quickly against his lungs, slicing them enough that they wouldn’t be too much of a problem, or in the way.

After fifteen tedious minutes, the task had been completed thus far, and I closed my eyes for a moment.

I hoped I wouldn’t cut myself, but I couldn’t see what I was doing.

I had to go in blind to get what I needed.

Besides, there hadn’t been a cut yet that I’d done to myself that Elijah hadn’t been able to suture.

The good thing about having a body as stunted as mine was being able to fit into small spaces.

I opened my eyes, then went back to work.

“Found you,” I murmured.

My hands finally located what I needed, and I very carefully kept one on the right side as I used my left hand to steady the blade.

Squinting, I peered into the bloody concave as I did my best to meticulously cut the muscle away with as minimal damage as possible.

Fuck.

I nicked one of my fingers, which means I had cut too deeply, but then again, Elijah always did love flaws. He once told me they were his favorite, because things that were too perfect seemed like a lie.

And it was.

After Mama and Papa chased him out of the house, they presented the three of us as a happy, loving family to anyone who came to visit.

Don’t think about them, Maisie. They aren’t important.

I continued to cut away at the tendons in a tedious fashion until I was finally able to pull the fucking thing free.

I let out a sigh of relief as I gently pulled it out. Settling back down on the young man’s thighs, I brought it close to my eyes, turned it slightly, and then sighed when I located the nick.

It would have to do because I didn’t have time for hers too.

Getting to my feet, I glanced around the room until I located a bag, tossed the muscle inside, then grabbed the young man’s legs and dragged him toward the door.

I left him there while I retrieved the axe, then went back to his whore.

Her, I would make quick work of.

I didn’t have a choice.

I had to go back to Elijah as soon as possible.

___

Raindrops fell against the top of my head as I dragged the young man by the ankle behind me.

I had secured the bag across my chest, and my other hand was wrapped firmly around the plastic handle and the axe.

I paused for a moment to glance around, then nodded to myself when I saw the path that had led me to them.

With a grunt, I gave his ankle a tug and continued on my way.

I knew no one would spot me, because I made this path myself on the way to slay Elijah’s demons.

It seemed to be an untouched part of the property, and I was counting on the animals that I knew must have been lurking to take care of the rest of this problem I had created.

It was a gamble, but one I was more than willing to take.

Mostly because I knew I wouldn’t be able to drag him along for much longer.

I dropped his ankle when we came across an incline, then moved to the other side of him. I put all of my strength into pushing him over the side, then watched as his body tumbled against the sharp rocks before disappearing into the hell below.

Standing up, I grabbed the plastic handle and axe again, and waited.

More tense moments passed as the sky continued to darken, when I finally heard a low growl, followed by the sound of something beneath me crashing through the woods.

Eat well, I thought as I finally turned on my heel and continued back the way I had originally come.

Tonight, he would sleep soundly.

There would be no voices that I couldn’t hear.

No monsters that I couldn’t see.

It would just be us.