𝐒𝐲𝐧 ┃𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞

90. 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑑

Syn

I snapped my fingers. "Next time fucking lead with that shit, yeah?" He shrugged, chuckling under his breath as he sipped on the coffee. I knew I was right about hiring the bastard. As infuriating as it was to have another man near Queen, he was fucking good at what he did. I almost wanted to praise him for his accurate assessment of Aiden but I pushed it away and clenched my jaw, storming toward the hall past the kitchen.

I heard him and Queen follow behind me as I opened the door to the basement. I was met with complete darkness and I flipped the switch, the fluorescent lights buzzing before flickering on. Immediately, I smelled the sharp scent of blood and I looked over my shoulder at Paris who shrugged as if he had no idea what was going on.

Good fucking job.

Queen took a step forward and I held a hand out, stepping down the steps of the basement in front of her. I didn't know what to expect- if anything he could've been in a corner creeping and waiting to attack. Although I knew it was pointless trying to stop Queen from coming down here with me, her safety was my top priority.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I felt plastic under my feet and looked at the far back of the room where Aiden sat on a chair head hung down. His arms were chained behind him, the thick chains wrapped around his legs all the way around his neck and once again I mentally praised Paris for his craftsmanship.

No matter what way Aiden moved, if he tried to struggle, the chains were wrapped in a way that he would be strangled. He must've learned that for himself as I noticed the dark bruises around his neck. I took a few steps toward him, and he raised his head, his eyes widening when he saw me. "You," he snarled, his teeth stained with blood and I furrowed my brows, glancing at Paris in question.

"The fucker bit me. Tried to take off a chunk of my arm," he said in mild annoyance, rubbing his bicep. I looked down at the stained blood on Aiden's neck and looked at Paris to explain once more. "I bit his bitch ass back, the fuck."

I smiled, holding in a laugh as I brought my eyes back to Aiden. I rolled up my sleeves, crouching down to his level and looking up at him. He rushed forward, quickly falling back into his chair as the chains tightened around his neck. I didn't flinch, disgust filling me as I took him in. He was unrecognizable.

"Be careful," I said to you. "You might end up killing yourself before I get the chance to do anything."

I pulled up an empty chair and placed it in front of him, taking a seat. His eyes followed me- full of hatred and I shook my head. How could he of all people have done this and gotten away with it? He was intelligent, I could give him that. But he was also an excellent liar and master manipulator.

"Queen." I watched slowly as his facade began to come back as his eyes landed on Queen, the innocent quarterback look filling act coming back as his eyes pleaded with her. Rage filled me and I shot up from the chair, knocking it back as the back of my hand made contact with his face in a sharp slap. I grabbed his neck, making him look at me as I gave him a warning.

"Don't fucking say her name," I snapped, my fingers urging my body to just snap his neck. "If you so much as look in her direction again I'll make sure it's the last time you see anything. Your eyes are useless to me, remember that."

I let him go forcefully and picked up the chair before taking a seat again. I would've done a lot more than just threaten him if I didn't feel Queen's eyes on me. She had seen me kill people, but she'd never witnessed the disturbing ways I could break someone- bringing them to the brink of death and resuscitating them before repeating the process. It was cruel, but I never did it to anyone that didn't deserve it.