Free Ink & Bone (New York Crime Kings Book 5) by Skyla Madi Page B

less than twelve hours, I get to hold her again. I get to touch her. Kiss her.
    It feels like an eternity has passed since I last saw her, but finally I get to see her.
    Emily.
    My girl.
    My Kitten.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Eight
     
     
    Emily
     
    Ex-oh
     
    I’m not dead.
    God, I wish I was…but I’m not.
    It has been a few days since Skull shot me in the thigh and pulled me out of the pool. The next two days following my daring attempt at escape were torture.
    He whipped me. He slapped my face until my lip split against my teeth. I spent forty-eight hours dangling from the ceiling, freezing to death.
    On occasion, in the dead of the night, Skull would come in and pull up a chair. Without a word, he’d stare at me. Not at my naked body, but at my face. He would stare, and I would stare back. Then he’d leave.
    Tonight, he freed me from my cell and brought me back to his room, where I remain chained by my wrists to his bedpost. I shift as best I can with no hands and settle comfortably on my hip, keeping my wounded thigh in a safe position.
    After Skull shot me, I expected half my thigh to be missing, it hurt so much. Once the bleeding stopped though, and it was cleaned away, I saw that it only scratched the surface.
    I don’t know how much longer I’m going to last here. I’m losing my mind. Every single time I open my eyes, I don’t know what the hell is going to happen me. Will today be the day Skull forces himself on me? Will today be the day he loses his patience waiting for Jai and decides to kill me?
    Speaking of Jai…I used to spend every second of every day expecting his valiant arrival. Whenever I close my eyes, I pray that the next time I open them, Jai will be standing there ready for me. Honestly, I’m losing hope.
    The door opens, and I shuffle back, pulling my knees into my chest to cover my bare breasts.
    “I’m getting real tired of waiting,” Skull says as he enters the room, followed closely by the woman from the other night―Laura, is it? “I haven’t left the compound in days. I’m a busy man. I’ve got shit to do.”
    Their outfits match. He wears a red tee and black slacks, and she wears a tight, black dress with red heels.
    “You expected him to be here by now.”
    Skull paces. Three steps forward. Turn. Three steps back. “I did.”
    I watch them curiously, and they ignore me. Just the way I like it.
    Laura slips in behind Skull, stopping him dead in his tracks when he turns around. She steps forward once more, pressing his back against the bathroom door.
    “I want to have fun,” she mutters, resting her slender hands against his chest. “Please, can we have some fun?”
    He scowls. “I’m not in the mood.”
    “Then perhaps,” she reaches into her cleavage and pulls out a tiny zip lock bag, “I can put you in the mood.”
    Skull eyes the small bag of drugs. “We have company.”
    “I like company,” she purrs. “How long has it been since we last played with company?”
    “It has been a while.” Grinning, Skull turns his head in my direction. “But I’m saving her for when Stone gets here.”
    I grimace. Saving me? Like I’m some kind of sweet candy.
    Soulless.
    You’re soulless.
    “But you can have some fun.”
    Laura kisses Skull on the mouth with a giggle and then bounces her way over to me, where I sit, naked on the bed.
    Kicking her shoes off, she hums and smiles as she climbs up onto the mattress and crosses her legs in front of me. “How old are you, Kitten?”
    “Emily.”
    “Hm?”
    “My name,” I deadpan. “It’s not Kitten. It’s Emily.”
    “Emily…” She smirks the same way Skull does. “Well, that’s hardly any fun, is it?”
    While she toys with her zip lock bag, I watch Skull kick off his shoes, unbutton his red shirt, and pop the top button to his pants. Then he becomes engrossed in his cellphone as he paces back and forth.
    “So, how old are you?” Laura asks, and I drag my stare back to