Be My Dreamcatcher [girlxgirl]

Twelve

Chapter aesthetic: don't expect Benjamin's knife to be so elegant.
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"What do you mean?" Eva says. Her voice is very high-pitched; she clears her throat twice before repeating, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Lydia Ackles never had an affair with me," Benjamin replies, then takes repeated swigs from his bottle.

"Then how did you know her?" I don't want him to focus on me in case he glances at my wrist but I just couldn't keep the question inside.

"Why does that matter?" he says to me, then turns back to Eva, grinning cruelly. "Don't enjoy yet, sweetie. She did have an affair even if it wasn't with me."

Eva spits in his direction and growls, "How the fuck would you know that?"

"I really shouldn't be answering your questions as if I'm the one who is tied up, but those tormented expressions of yours are quite something."

"And you get off on that," Eva retorts.

I'm increasing my pace with the glass but the ropes still don't seem to be coming off.

"Why yes, I do indeed."

"See? You're a fucking psychopath! How can you say that Lydia was having an affair?"

Benjamin shrugs. " 'Cause it was with my brother."

And then it clicks. Goddammit why didn't I think of this before. I'd smack my forehead right now if I could.

"Ethan. Remember, my assistant?" I say to Eva. Then to Benjamin: "But it was your blood that we found in her room."

"Ah, so that is the evidence."

"What?" Eva asks while I go back to my work at the bonds.

"The reason why you're tied up, babydoll." He shakes the bottle in his hand once before going to the kitchen and picking up another one. He leans against the countertop there and continues, "Give me that evidence and forget you ever knew me or Ethan."

"What the actual shit are you shooting?" Eva is losing grip on her calm—not that she had a lot of it in the first place—and that can't be good.

"Give me that blood or whatever and let Lydia Ackles rest in peace."

"My wife would rather rest in power than peace. Why is your blood on her dress?"

Some pieces are coming together in my mind slowly but I can't quite put them in the right position. My head feels too fuzzy to do such a complicated thing. All I can do right now is slash these ropes at an excruciatingly slow pace, but the good thing is that I can feel them starting to come undone now.

"Darling," Benjamin puts the bottle down and stares straight into Eva's keen eyes, "your wife was having an affair with my brother, Ethan, as your friend so helpfully put it. And when she died, well, she ended it with him three weeks before that. Because, and I quote here, she had realized what a big mistake it was to cheat on her mighty wife Evelyn Bridgers."

"That doesn't answer my question!" Eva snaps.

Benjamin knocks over a bottle from the countertop and growls, "You're in no position to call the shots, bitch."

"From darling to bitch, you're quite a piece of work, aren't you?" I interject because I can feel a) the bonds getting weaker and b) Benjamin getting tired of this conversation which means he wants to end it soon which is so not good for my plan.

"I've heard that your friend is the same." He points at Eva.

"Yes but she's not keeping two people tied up in her . . . living room, against their will." The ropes are significantly weaker now.

"Only because people tend to listen to her. You two, on the other hand, would have proven to be difficult without these. Now tell me where's the evidence."

"Do you think we'll tell you easily now?" Eva replies, eyeing me sideways as if she's asking me to not tell him about Travis and Joanna.

Like I would. Honestly this woman . . .

"One of you'll have to, what with watching the other getting tortured and everything."

And with that, he charges at Eva, pulling out the glinting blade from his shirt pocket.

"You," he points at me, "seem like the one who'll yield more easily. Let's begin."