OUT OF MIND² ━━ Bellamy Blake

𝐗𝐗𝐈𝐕: Cruel Intentions

┍━━━━ ⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ━━━━┑

CRUEL INTENTIONS

┕━━━━ ⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ━━━━┙

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

MURPHY seems to be burning alive.

Lyra can tell. From the way he paces back and forth across the grand living room like a caged panther to the way his fingers drive into his skull. His breathing is raspy as if he is fighting the urge to scream, scream until his teeth are flecked with scarlet just like Emori's, until his lips are flecked with the bitter iron glass. But the shackles of morality have bitten into his wrists, a gag stuffed into his mouth as if to make him suffocate on his own sufferings at his inability to protect Emori. He cannot lash out at the colossal figure with swarthy features and battle scars that is tied down to the chair, and so instead he lashes out at Lyra.

"It's going to be OK," she murmurs for what feels like the thousandth time. "He won't get the chance to hurt her again."

"I know." Murphy's eyes are set dead on the Grounder. His voice doesn't sound like his own.

"I know how you feel — "

"Oh, really?" Murphy's crooked, thin lips twist into a wrathful smirk as he rounds on her. She stumbles back as he stalks forwards, his breath hot. "You do? Tell me, Lyra, do you know what it feels like to have the only person in the world who understands you suddenly ripped from your arms? She is all I have left and I almost lost her today."

His fingers constrict around the gun as he continues to box her in towards the wall. His voice is raw, reedy with rage but his eyes are thick with agony. His urge to shred the world to ribbons is clear as day. For the first time in a long time, Lyra is afraid of him.

"I — I know," her voice breaks, her words clumsy. "I — "

"No, you don't," Murphy snaps. "You don't know anything about me. I was forced to steal to survive. Forced to kill. You were loved. Told you were special. I was told my life meant nothing."

She sucks in a sharp breath. "I know what it's like to choose between life and death."

He looks murderous. "This isn't a choice."

     "I only came here for the food," Baylis' voice is a low, pleading croak. He finally looks unnerved. "Things I can trade. I scavenge don't my family can eat. Please."

     "That's it," drawls Murphy as a dark chuckle escapes him. He regains his cool composure as he stalks back towards the Grounders. "Find the right angle. I'll help you out. I love someone who was beaten and tortured by a man who thought he could control her."

"I'm not that man," there is a quiver in Baylis's voice. "You can torture me all you want, and that won't change the fact — "

     Emori stalks into the room, features contorted. Her path leads her right to Baylis and she slams her fist into his face once and then twice. Clarke stands some distance behind her, quickly finding her spot right beside Lyra. The two Skaikru girls exchange very bleak looks.