I heard his voice after I got hit and fell to the ground. The hard thud of heavy boots against my wooden floor filled my ears as I lay there, slipping into unconsciousness, but I couldn’t see anybody. Then I heard his voice. I’m sure it was him.
He was talking to someone. It must have been on the phone because I can’t remember hearing anyone else in the room.
“I got him.” That’s what he’d said. I’m sure that’s what I heard him say.
So he hit me?
Robert?
That makes no sense. He’s my best friend.
But it was him in the room. I know it was.
So, he hit me?
I open my eyes again as I try to process what happened. Memories begin to flow of the fucking trouble I was in before this.
I was going to run. Run to keep the knowledge I have out of the wrong hands and protect my family.
I sent Robert an email asking him to look after my mother and sister.
I emailed with an encrypted code because it was safer. Or so I thought.
The creak of a door opening cuts into my thoughts, and I look up the steps just in time to see my best friend stepping into the room.
I stare at him as he takes one step at a time, and I try to process what’s going on.
I know there’s only one thing his presence here could mean. It’s just that my mind can’t accept it.
I’ve known this guy all my life. We met when we were five and went to school together.
He’s like a brother to me.
So, I can’t accept he sold me out to my enemies and delivered Judas’s kiss of betrayal.
When he gets to the bottom of the steps, the light shines down on his jet-black hair and illuminates his dark brown eyes.
His eyes always reminded me of coal. As I stare at them, the darkness I see is pure evil, and it’s the first time I see who he truly is.
“You, you did this to me?” I ask, cutting straight to the shit.
“I did.”
“You fucking asshole. You fucking dog. How could you—”
My voice cuts when a bolt of electricity pierces through me. It wracks my body from head to toe, and a roar of anguish rips from my throat. The sound is so animalistic it takes me a moment to realize it’s coming from me.
The intense pain makes me shake as every volt ripples through my body, piercing straight through to my soul. Even when the blast stops, I shudder. My brain is so rattled I barely register the remote Robert is holding. It’s not until he lifts it and runs his finger over the button, I see it properly.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t piss me off,” he smirks. “It’s not me who’s the fucking dog today. It’s you. You’re the one who’s going to do as he’s told.”
Jesus, I feel like I’m going to die. My head is spinning, and my stomach churning.
I stare at Robert and try to steady my thoughts. This is what he had to do to beat me, but why?
I need to know why he did this to me and where he’s taken me.
“Where the hell am I, Robert?” I grate out.