𝐏𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐎𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 [𝟏𝟖+] ✔

61

My twisted, traitorous heart begs for the dark love that's been consuming me, pleading with me to give into it, to embrace it.

And my mind is exploding with every passing second I have the knife pressed to Toby's back, my fingers twitching as I brace myself to take someone's life... to take his life.

His breath whispers against my pale skin, his lips grazing my neck. "Breathe. You can do this. Do it for both of us. All of us."

I feel myself imploding with a suffocating heart and a reeling mind, urging me to continue, but it's as if our possessive souls are interlocking, dark meeting light, existing side by side, and I drop the blade with a painful sob catching in my throat. "I... I can't do it."

I'm not a killer.

"Do it," he orders me with a touch of anger, his hands tightening around me until I feel my lungs start to scream. "You need to. I can't go into some mental institution and be medicated into a mindless vessel. Plus, I can't physically allow you to leave, no matter how much I want to."

"Why?" I sob, tears burning my eyes. "I can't hurt you. I can't."

Toby huffs in frustration and pulls away from me, gritting his teeth. I can see the shift, the rage, the confusion. "How can you protect our kids if you can't take out the biggest threat, huh?" He slaps his palm against his chest, trying to control his breathing. "Me, right here, I'm that. How can I trust you to protect them?"

And just like that, gentle Toby is nowhere to be seen. I feel my heart twisting in my chest as I watch him, his stance changing to defensive, his fists clenching at his side as he blinks.

Gulping a painful lump, I lower my voice to a soft whisper. "You need to calm down."

I gasp as he shoves a finger in my face. "You don't get to tell me what to fucking do. You're nothing to me. All you ever were was a good fuck gone wrong."

I frown in confusion, trying to mask the hurt. "Gone wrong?"

He nods, prodding the inside of his cheek with his tongue. "You weren't supposed to get into my fucking head." I stay silent, watching him have yet another inner battle with himself. "She's tricking you. She's tricking you," he says repeatedly as he paces the length of the small office, my body freezing as he bends down and grabs the blade from the ground. "Take her back. I need to take her..."

Grabbing me by the arm, he drags me out of the room, ignoring my pleas as he pulls me down the narrow corridor and tosses me onto the ground, right next to Kaleb's lifeless body, his eyes wide open next to my face. I scream, pulling myself to my knees and scurrying away until my back hits the wall, my heart nearly blowing through my chest at his blue lips and paling skin.

"Aria!" Gabriella yells and I snap my head in her direction, panicking, her face pressed against the cage door. "Are you okay?"

With wide eyes, I nod once. "Y... yeah."

"Did he touch you?" she asks with tears streaming down her face. She looks relieved as I shake my head, her eyes closing as she releases a breath.

Toby chuckles as he steps over Kaleb's lifeless body, leaning against the table and crossing his ankles. "Did I touch her?" he repeats Gabriella's question with a scoff. "Considering she kissed me and loved every minute of it. Right, Aria?" He watches us both shaking, silently sobbing. "I gave her a chance to kill me, and did she? No, I'm shocked we didn't fuck, to be honest." He rolls his eyes as I mouth sorry to Gabs. "The two of you are pathetic..."

Before he can continue his verbal torture, the sound of an engine echoes through the room, the small rectangular window slightly ajar. My pulse quickens as the sound of snow crunching underneath car tyres comes to a stop.