Chapter 17
Friendzone
Rhys
After everything that’s happened today, it’s time I stopped being a coward.
As soon as I get the chance to be alone with Ollie, I’m going to man up and apologise to her. Even if she refuses to forgive me, it’s the right thing to do.
But first, I have a Lodge scumbag to interrogate.
The thought sends a thrill of violent excitement down my spine as I round the side of the cottage we’re sleeping in for the night and into the backyard.
Bean is happily grazing in the corner with a chirping Ketchup keeping her company.
They both ignore me as I pass, heading for the summerhouse at the end of the garden.
The sun barely peeks over the horizon, reminding me we only have about an hour to get as much information as we can out of this fucker before darkness descends. I don’t want to be stuck in this flimsy-ass building when the infected come out to play.
The wooden floor of the little porch area groans beneath my boots as I step onto it. Through the glass door, I can see Theo and Alex silently watching over our captive.
They both incline their heads in greeting to me as I open the door and step inside.
The temperature is barely above freezing outside and isn’t much better in here either.
The scumbag is shivering on his knees with his hands tied behind his back.
His eyes are black and swollen from the fight earlier, and blood crusts the side of his jaw and neck from the nasty head wound.
“Has he said anything yet?” I ask as I shut the door behind me.
Theo stands in front of him, arms crossed over his chest as he gazes down at him with feigned disinterest. Although I can see the feral glee in his eyes when he glances over his shoulder at me. “Nothing yet, but I’m willing to stand out here all night until he does.”
I bite back a grimace. I’m not. The idea of being trapped in this wood and glass shoebox with this fucker while infected run around outside is the least appealing thing I can think of.
But I can’t show that to the scumbag, otherwise he’ll resist until nightfall and then I’d actually have to stay out here with him.
No thanks.
I glance towards Alex. From the outside, the big guy looks relaxed and unfazed, but I can see the tension in his jaw and the tightness around his eyes. He’s uncomfortable knowing I’m about to torture a guy for information.
“Alex, go check over the patrols for the night,” I tell him, giving him a way out.
He takes it, flashing me a grateful look before striding out of the shed. The door clicks shut behind him, and the kneeling captive tenses, understanding what’s about to happen. A savage grin stretches across my lips.
Time to get to work.
I step up to stand beside Theo and stare down at the scumbag. “My friend here tells me you haven’t been very useful, so I suggest you change your attitude before something painful happens to you.” I keep my voice even and reasonable.
The scumbag juts his chin out and even though his eyes are almost swollen shut, I can see the defiance in his gaze. “How about you shove your suggestion up your ass?”
I rock back on my heels as I think about what to do next.
While psychological torture is my preferred method, it takes time and we don’t have much of that, so I’ll need to hit him hard and fast with pain.
“Theo, grab his head and pull him back until he’s on his ass and his legs are stretched out in front of him,” I say calmly as I draw my knife.
“Wait! What are you doing?” the scumbag demands, his voice filled with panic as Theo does as I say.
We both ignore him as Theo shoves the guy’s legs out from under him.
“Perfect. Hold him still.” I stand over him, twirling my knife in my hand. “You’re a member of the Lodge, correct?”
“Yeah, but you already knew that.” He lifts his head with false bravado, unable to meet my eyes.
We suspected it, but to have it confirmed is like a punch to the gut. While I’ve never been close to Mark and the Lodge, it’s still a shock to know that they’ve sided with our enemies against us. I thought Mark was a better man than that, but I guess not.
I grind my teeth and push back the anger and betrayal bubbling up inside my chest. “When did the Lodge side with the Scourge?” Was it before or after we stayed there for the night?
Just the thought of leading Ollie to that cesspit has bile burning my throat, although them turning on us after we left isn’t much better either.
The scumbag tightens his jaw and stubbornly remains silent.
I stifle a sigh. It seems we’ve moved on to the torture part of this interrogation. Bending down, I grab his muddy boot and yank it off his foot. His sock quickly follows.
“Hey!” he yells, kicking out at me. “What the fuck are you doing?”
I ignore him as dodge his foot and wait until it’s on the ground before placing my foot on top, pinning it to the floor. He makes a surprised noise in the back of his throat and struggles against my hold. I lean down and press the tip of my knife against his big toe.
He stills instantly, eyes wide.
“I’m going to ask that question again. If you don’t answer, we’re going to see how long it takes for me to saw through the bones in your toe. Understand?” I pause and wait for him to nod before continuing. “Good. Now, when did the Lodge and the Scourge become allies?”
He gulps. “D-December,” he answers in a trembling voice.
My hand flexes on the handle of my knife. That means those bastards were allied when we were there. No wonder the atmosphere was so different from our previous stays. Thank fuck we didn’t allow Ollie out of our sight. I shudder to think what would have happened if she’d been alone.
With gritted teeth, I turn my attention back to the Lodge scum. “Mark knows about it?” I ask, needing to confirm.
He nods.
I blow out a heavy breath at the knowledge that a man I knew and somewhat trusted has betrayed me. Although one thing is bugging me…
“Why did Mark give us the information on the Scourge camp if they were allies?”
The man winces but doesn’t answer.
My eyes narrow, and I press the tip of the knife against his toe until it bites into his flesh. “Why did Mark tell us about the Scourge camp?” I grit out as blood wells from beneath the knife and trickles to the floor.
The scumbag squeaks and shudders. “H-he played both sides. He figured if they didn’t capture or kill you, you’d do enough harm to the gang for Mark to take over and renegotiate a better deal.” The words fly out of his mouth, tripping over one another in his haste to answer the question.
“Who’s Luke?” It’s not a name I’ve heard before.
The colour drains from his face, turning him ashen at my question. “S-Scourge leader.”
Apparently, this Luke guy is terrifying.
I pull the blade slightly away from his now-bleeding toe. “Did Mark renegotiate?” I’m unable to hide the bitterness in my voice at being used as a pawn in a game I didn’t even know I was playing.
“I-I don’t know.” His left eye twitches.
Fucking liar.
The knife is returned to his toe and this time I dig deeper, feeling the blade scrape against bone. The Lodge scum screams and thrashes, but my foot on his ankle keeps it pinned to the wooden floor.
“Did. Mark. Renegotiate?” I demand, twisting the blade.
“Yes! Yes, he did!” the man cries. “He got a bigger cut of supplies, weapons and any women the Scourge get, including the woman you brought to the Lodge with you! The one Ethan wanted!”
I see red.
I want to take out the rage burning inside me on the guy screaming and crying beneath me, but I pull back.
There’s now a small pool of blood beneath his foot, his half-severed toe oozing at a steady rate.
My nostrils flare and my hands shake as I wrestle to control myself.
Behind the scumbag, I can see Theo struggling with his own rage, his silver eyes flashing dangerously in the darkening room.
I turn my ire back to our captive. My patience is completely gone, my usual steady calm buried beneath a mountain of fury.
“You’re going to tell me exactly how you and the Scourge found us, what your plans are, and how many of you there are,” I snarl at him, baring my teeth like an animal.
“Otherwise, I’m going to paint the floor with your entrails and leave you for the infected to eat. ”
Fear blankets his face, and the stench of piss fills the air. All defiance the Lodge scumbag had is long gone, leaving a sobbing, terrified man who blubbers anything and everything I ask for.
The information he has is scant and mostly worthless since he’s just a low-level thug, but one thing is clear.
The Scourge and the Lodge are doing exactly what I expected them to do: create roadblocks on major roads and motorways and wait.
Evading them means adding more time to our journey, but it’ll be worth it not to run into any more attacks.
Once the scumbag gives me everything he can, a quick slash of his throat has him dying on the wooden floor.
After returning to the cottage, washing off the lingering anger and remains of the interrogation, I march off in search of Ollie.
I find her curled up in her sleeping bag in the kitchen, surprisingly alone with only Harlow lying beside her.
She blinks and struggles to sit up when she catches me entering and closing the door behind me.
Dark bags linger beneath her eyes, stark against her pale face.
The fight last night has taken its toll on her, just like it has on everyone else.
“Don’t get up on my account, princess,” I tell her, holding out my hand to stop her. “You look exhausted.”
Harlow lifts her head, sees it’s me, and lays her head back down, completely unbothered.
Ollie huffs but does as I say, settling back down against her pillow. “What do you want?” she asks, eyeing me warily as I close the distance and sit on the floor in front of her.