Soulless The Girl in the Box - By Robert J. Crane Page 0,63

need to point out how screwed up that is?” he asked.

I cocked my head at him. “I’ve yet to touch another human being for more than ten seconds without killing them. Just because I wanted you badly doesn’t mean I unconditionally trust you. My life is on the line here. Respect that, and we can see what Omega is up to together.”

“I’m afraid I can’t respect that,” he said, one of his hands coming to rest on the railing. His face was calm, still, almost a mask compared to the sly, seductive man that had been unable to keep his hands off me for the last two days. “It hurts, Sienna.” He turned his face away, clutching the railing with both hands. “It really hurts.” He looked back at me and I caught a glimmer of something that scared me. “But not as much as it’s going to hurt you.”

The railing snapped off in his hands and he whipped it at me. I fired, missing him twice before the metal rail hit me in the hands, jarring my gun out of them and sending it spiraling away. The end of the rail hit me in the side of the face as I tried to dodge, drawing a cry of pain and causing me to fall down, landing on my back, the metal of the catwalk clattering as I landed.

I felt the pain running down my spine, but I only had a moment to feel it before he was there, grabbing both my arms and forcing me down. He was strong, and his face was twisted with rage. All the handsomeness that I had admired was gone as he put his weight and strength into holding me against the catwalk. He slammed my head into the hard metal and I felt the room spin. “You should have stayed with me in Eau Claire.” He was spitting as he said it, little flecks dropping onto my face.

“I can’t tell you how glad I am that I didn’t,” I said as I brought my leg up and hit him on the side of his thigh. I aimed for the groin but he had angled himself so that I couldn’t. He grunted and slapped me, hard. I gasped at him in surprise and bucked my entire body, flexing the muscles in my abdomen, bringing my forehead up fast. I felt it make contact with his nose, and I heard the break, felt warm blood wash down my face as he rolled off, shouting and cursing.

“You bitch!” He was clutching his face, a splatter of red smudging his mouth as I struggled to my feet. He rose, a few feet away, glaring at me, his eyes on fire with rage, a world of difference from when he had been kissing and caressing me only the night before.

“So, you’re with Omega?” I kept my distance; my right shoulder still in agony, my leg hurt unbelievably and was slowing me down. In addition, I had a host of aches and pains that filled my body, and made me want to just lay down and die. “They sent you to sleep with me?”

“No, they sent me to recruit you,” he said, holding his nose with one hand while he watched me. “The sleeping with you would have just been a bonus. I usually don’t get to take my time with a woman, you know. They all die so quickly, and it’s not much fun then. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the rush from the absorption is amazing, it’s like a drug, but when that’s done they just lie there—”

“You’re quite the disgusting pig.” I felt a shudder of revulsion run through every part of me. I wished I could parboil my skin off and replace it with a new set. For all I knew, I could and it would just grow back.

“I preferred the sweet nothings you whispered to me last night,” he said, jumping at me, swiping out with his hand to grab me. I dodged and maintained my footing, just barely, but my leg screamed in pain. He came at me again, grasping with his hands, and I caught one of them and pulled, taking him off balance. He started to fall and dragged me down with him. Had I been in peak condition, I would have been able to avoid it; as it was, I just tried to land with a knee in his belly. He grunted and slapped me again. I felt a