LIfe's Too Short

Chapter 15

A few days later

Petra awoke tied to a chair, her hands bound together with thick, splintery rope that cut into her wrists. A thick cloth covered her mouth.

The room she was in looked old and dusty, with a cold cement floor and lit around the walls. In the corner of the room was a bed with worn out sheets and a single pillow, and next to it a desk with books and papers stacked onto it.

Squinting her eyes, she recognized the books as the ones she recommended that Daniel read.

That bastard.

She attempted to scream, but the cloth was so tightly tied that it almost suffocated her, and she found it hard to breathe.

Just then, the door opened, and Daniel stepped in casually.

"Finally awake, huh, Petra?"

He approached her and went behind her, untying the cloth.

"You son of a bitch!" she shouted loudly.

"Shh! You're being too-"

"Why did you kidnap me?" Petra demanded.

"You should know by now," he stated. "I'm just trying to protect you."

"Protect me? You call this protecting me?!"

"Yes, actually. I'm keeping you from your death in the Survey Corps."

"I told you, already! It's not your choice to make!"

"That captain of yours is an idiot," he said sourly. "He thinks-"

"Shut up!" her voice was harsh. "Don't you ever talk about him ever again."

His eyes gleamed with some sort of fascination.

"Oh, I get it," his fingers held her chin, and she pulled her face away in vain. "You love him, don't you?"

Her eyes widened.

"Thought so," his lips stretched into a sinister smile. "Well, I'll let him live with the guilt of not being able to protect you."

Petra felt sick. He hit right home.

"H-He'll come back for me," she said weakly. "I know he wi-"

"Will he, really?" Daniel asked sarcastically. "I beg to differ. I thought you were smarter than that. Didn't you tell him not to let you get in his way?"

She felt like she had just been stabbed. For once Daniel was right.

"How did you-?"

He chucked.

"I'd rather not say."

His brown eyes stared into hers in satisfaction.

"Anyways," his hand held her jaw. "You'll be staying here from now on, Petra. The town thinks you died thanks to the fake blood I planted there. The Military Police are coming over in a bit for a final questioning."

She gritted her teeth and lashed out at him, biting down on his hand as hard as she could.

Daniel cried out and tried to pull his hand away from her mouth, only succeeding at pulling Petra's chair across the floor.

Petra's mouth was filled with bitter blood. It rolled down her chin and pooled up on the floor.

"Get off me!" he shouted, shaking his hand desperately.

When she didn't comply he was forced to punch her jaw until she let go.

He panted heavily, his hand coated in red.