They Know What She Wants のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 201 - チャプター 210

“Don’t… please don’t.” My voice cracked, small and thin, heat flooding my face. I hated it.I’d been so sure I could handle this. I’d glared at her, spat that she’d never have Gage, called her pathetic. Now ropes bit into my wrists and ankles, and Caroline stood over me with pliers, smiling like we were old friends catching up in her damp basement. And I wasn’t so sure anymore.She tilted her head, studying me. “Crying already? We haven’t even started.”The floral scent of her perfume clashed with the moldy earth smell rising from the concrete. The pliers clicked open and shut once, twice. The metal gleaming under the bare bulb.I bit down hard on my lip, blood blooming on my tongue.“Please,” I whispered. “You don’t have to do this. Gage cared about you. He trusted you for years. Don’t throw that away over me.”She laughed softly and crouched, bringing us eye to eye. The pliers hovered near my left hand, cold jaws brushing my pinky. “Cared about me?” The mockery in her voice cut dee

“Gage,” I called out my brow furrowing even as I tried to keep my tone neutral. “Is everything okay?”There was another short pause, and I could hear the faint sound of people's voices in the background. “Is Thea with you? I’ve been trying to reach her since yesterday and I couldn’t get through. I was hoping you might have talked to her.”“No,” I said, voice dropping lower. “I haven’t talked to her since she left my place. I can go check on her later if you want. Make sure she’s okay.”Gage let out a small breath. “There’s no need. I already sent someone over.”“I’ll try her too,” I insisted, already mentally planning the route to her place even though I knew Gage had already checked. “If she’s not answering, I’ll swing by after I’m done here. Just… let me know if you hear anything.”“Okay, Mia,” he replied, voice softening a little. “I appreciate it.”“Okay… bye,” I said gently, not wanting to drag this out any longer than necessary with Paul sitting right there watching me. “I’ll ha

NOAH°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･Where’s Thea? The questions looped in my head, ugly and insistent, mixing with the weed smoke still curling from the joint between my fingers and the soft, wet sounds coming from the girl on her knees in front of me—some random chick Lex had sent over because he thought I needed to “get my mind off shit.” Her mouth was warm and eager, working me with practiced skill, but I barely felt it. “Hey? Who’s that?” Ellis asked from the armchair across from me, voice lazy and half-interested as he took a slow drag from his own joint, eyes half-lidded from the high. The girl didn’t stop; if anything, she took me deeper, like she was trying to earn whatever tip she thought she’d get for making me forget my own name.“Just some bitch,” I muttered, taking a long, punishing drag from my smoke and exhaling it toward the ceiling in a thick gray cloud that hung there. “Mia. Calling about Thea or some shit.”Ellis raised an eyebrow, but didn’t push. He just nodded like that made perf

❁✿❀ I stepped back into my penthouse like a ghost haunting his own fucking life, the heavy door clicking shut behind me with a sound that always felt too much like a coffin lid sealing me in with all the mistakes I couldn’t outrun. The place had been dark and quiet since my housekeeper stopped coming, probably Gages doing. I dropped my coat on the floor because taking it off properly hurt too and I kicked my boots off in the foyer, leaving wet streaks across the polished stone that looked like blood in the dim light. The phone had started ringing while I was still in the elevator, vibrating against my thigh like an angry hornet, and when I finally pulled it out in the living room it was Gage’s name flashing across the cracked screen—Gage fucking Ashford, the old man who only remembered he had a son when something of his went missing. I let it ring out the first time, staring at the name like it was a bad joke I wasn’t in the mood to laugh at, because of course he’d call now, af

The words sank in slowly and sickening, and my stomach dropped like I’d been punched. No. No, no, no. No!I started struggling again, yanking at the ropes with everything I had left, my muscles screaming in protest. “Stay away! Stay away!!”Don’t touch me!He ignored me completely, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small knife. The blade glinted under the ugly dull light, and my heart slammed against my ribs so hard I thought it might burst. I thrashed harder, twisting my body side to side, the chair rocking dangerously beneath me as I fought with every ounce of strength I had left. “Gage!” I screamed, the name ripping out of me like a prayer and a curse all at once. “Gage, please—where the fuck are you?”The chair tilted back suddenly, the front legs lifting off the concrete with a screech. I cried out as it toppled over completely, crashing to the floor with me still tied to it. The impact knocked the air out of my lungs, pain exploding through my shoulder and hip where