Chapter 10

An hour goes by, and I grow impatient. Where is Ryder?! I look out of the window and see a 2014 black chevy impala pull up. I only know this because Mom's assistant has one.

The driver door opens, and Ryder gets out. He has on his black suit and sunglasses. In his right hand, he's carrying a big, metal, silver suitcase—my mouth waters.

Why did this killer have to look so irresistible?

I panic when he starts making his way towards the front door. Should I run back upstairs? Should I just stand here? Right when I decide to run upstairs, Freddie and one of the maids walk up to the front door. I have seen her around. She's an older, Hispanic woman and walks hunched a little. She always has a pep in her step and smiles whenever she sees me. You can tell she likes working here.

Both Freddie and the maid are looking very serious, and they don't seem to notice I am standing off to the side. The maid opens the door for Ryder. He walks in.

The maid then takes his suitcase and walks off with it. Ryder then takes his jacket off and hands it to Freddie, along with his black gloves and sunglasses. It is then that I notice blood on his face and all over his white button-up suit. Is he hurt?!

I am horrified and can't look away!

The maid returns to the foyer and grabs everything from Freddie, walking off again. Freddie pulls out a wet wipe and hands it to Ryder.

Once he wipes his face, Ryder turns and looks at me. "Be ready to go in thirty minutes and dress warmly. It's cold outside."

He walks right by me and starts walking up the stairs.

"Target?" Freddie asks, following him upstairs and typing furiously on his tablet.

"Terminated. I need the next list of..."

I can't hear the rest of the exchange between Ryder and Freddie. I don't even know where to go. What have I just witnessed? That's blood all over him, and I'm positive it isn't his.

Turning around, I see the maid. My gut tells me to follow her. However, something else tells me not to.

I'll follow her.

The maid walks into the kitchen. She puts her hand on the palm scanner, then opens a door, I'm assuming, to the basement. Looking around, I see no one else, so I tiptoe as fast as I can and catch the door before it closes.

If it had shut behind her, I wouldn't have been able to follow her.

I look around the kitchen again. I have to make sure Freddie nor Ryder see where I am heading.

As I walk down the stairs, I notice the walls on both sides. It looks old, and the yellowish paint is peeling off. Strange that the entire home is in pristine condition, and the basement isn't given any thought. The smell of bleach fills my nostrils and gives me an instant headache. What are they cleaning?

I then start to doubt my decision. Maybe this is a bad idea. I don't know what I'm walking into. If I'm caught, then I definitely won't be able to go outside either.

Once I make it down, I peek around the corner. The maid turns, opening the door to a giant, red rusted looking furnace. She places the metal suitcases on the floor and throws Ryder's clothing into the furnace. The fire roars angrily as it burns through every item. She closes it, picks up the suitcase, and walks away.

She then continues down the hallway, passing a bunch of doors on both sides. She proceeds to make a left into the last room, where the door has been left open.

My heart is beating a thousand miles a minute. I know I'm crossing the line being down here. It's pretty evident, considering the door to the basement has the hand scanner and no doorknob. However, Ryder never physically said I'm not allowed down here.

I hear a man's voice as I get closer to the door. I creep slowly towards it and turn around, making sure no one is behind me. I then put my back against the wall. The door is open enough for me to peek inside.

The maid puts the suitcase on the table, and the guy, whom I've never seen before, puts white gloves and a black apron on. I scan the room. The only things in the room are two metal tables. They stand at the center of the room.

"Which one is it?" The man asks as he begins opening the metal case.

"Pinky, Jose. Keep the ring attached to it. Payee wants both as proof of death. Something about the ring always being attached to the guy," the maid says, looking at a paper.

What?! What is proof of death? And what did she mean by pinky?

I open the door a tiny bit more to see what is in the metal case. The guy reaches in and pulls something out.

I can't tell what it is! If he only moves an inch to the right, maybe I can see...

My heart and mouth drop at the same time. My lunch starts to rise in my throat, and I close my eyes, concentrating on not throwing up!

Jose pulls out a severed hand. The maid turns back to Jose, handing him a butcher's knife and a small sledgehammer. I don't need to stand there to figure out what they are going to do next. Now I know what is meant by pinky!

I run down the hall, my hand over my mouth, so they don't hear me sobbing. Ryder is an animal! How can he do this to another human being?!

Now I know why he was covered in blood, cutting the poor man's hand off!

The hand belonged to an older person. It was big and had white hair covering the side of it. The golden ring on the pinky finger had the masonic symbol in the middle of it.

"God!" I yell into my hand. Why did I come down here?!

I am so stupid! Is this what I have to look forward to?! Ryder will kill me and send a piece of me to the person who hired him? Proof that I am dead?

As I make my way up the stairs, I see a long, rectangular, green button. I tap at it with a shaky hand, looking down. I don't even know if this will open the door.

I turn and look down the stairwell to make sure no one saw me. I wipe my tears as I hit the green button again, causing the door to open slightly. I peek out and see no one in the kitchen.

Tiptoeing to the library, I breathe a sigh of relief that no one saw me. I sit on the couch and try to calm myself down.

Didn't Freddie say he only concentrated on one job at a time? Why is he still killing and more importantly, who is the innocent-

"I knew I'd find you here!" Ryder's voice causes me to jump from my seat. I am so deep in thought I haven't realized he has been standing in front of me, showing no visible emotion.

He sits on the chair in front of me. I look down and see that he took a shower.

His hair looks damp, and he has on dark jeans and a blue button-up shirt. He's also wearing a holster with a gun it in.

"I have to thank you for last night! I don't think I've slept that good in years." Ryder leans forward, looking pensive. "I should have warned you yesterday before trading rooms. It can get noisy and annoying next to me." He smiles, slightly, at me as he looks around.

What the hell is he talking about?! Ryder has just finished murdering someone and had their DNA all over him.

Someone's downstairs cutting up proof, and he wants to thank me?! He disgusts me!

A surprised looked spreads through his face as he notices the library is clean. "Did you finish cleaning this-"

"Wow, you want to thank me?! After you just murdered someone?!"

Ryder looks taken aback. His brows furrow as a menacing grin spreads throughout his face. He then crosses his legs and places his arms firmly on the arms of his chair. "Why are you so shocked? You know I do this for a living. Was the blood too real for you? Want me to dial it down next time?"

He gets up and walks towards me, putting his hands in his pockets. "Do you have a particular way for me to kill next time? So I don't get blood on me?" An unemotional Ryder is standing tall in front of me.

"Yes! Don't kill anyone!" I snap back.

"Goddamnit, Sam! Stop pretending to know me or change me!" He hisses in my face, looking thoroughly angry.

"I'm not! I'm just trying to understand all of this! Who hired you to kill me?! When are you going to do it?!" Tears pool in my eyes.

Why am I about to cry? For him? For me? I shouldn't shed a single tear for him. He's a murderer! A monster! Someone, I should be trying to run away from, not confront. "Do you, at least, feel anything when you kill?"

"No, I don't."

Ryder doesn't even try to think before he gives his answer. It shocks me to my core. He removes his hands from his pockets and gets closer to my face. So much so that our lips are inches apart.

"Never have, never will," he says through gritted teeth.

I can't believe this! He doesn't have a heart. I look down at Ryder's holster, and without thinking, I grab the gun.

Pointing it at him, I take a couple of steps back. He rolls his eyes and sighs.

"Is it really that easy?" I back away again, pointing the gun at him.

Ryder puts his hands on his waist as he looks unamused. "Put the gun down. I know you've never held one. I don't want you breaking a nail."

I want to shoot the arrogance off of his face. He is right! I know absolutely nothing about guns. However, I know it has a safety lock on it. I also heard him cock it when I first got here.

I examine the gun and see the little switch. I click the safety off and cock the gun in one swift move. We were both shocked by my action. He makes his way towards me.

Not knowing what else to do, I put the gun to my head, making him stop in his tracks. He tilts his head slightly upwards and parts his lips. I'm guessing he's taking me seriously now.

Holding the gun to my head is the only thing I can think of at that moment. Maybe he will finally answer my questions since I have the upper hand.

"It's so easy to take a life. Since I'm nothing but a job, you won't mind me taking my own life? You, not caring and all, right?!"

Ryder gives me that sinister, calm look. He slowly walks back towards his chair and sits, crossing his legs. He watches me for almost a minute, looking at me up and down. A look of hunger is written all over his face. I grow uncomfortable and look around. I haven't thought this far out.

"Well! I'm waiting, Samantha," Ryder says, tapping the arm of the chair with his middle finger.

My mouth drops slightly at his words. I am in shock! Is he really waiting for me to blow my brains out? "What?!"

"Let's see you shoot yourself." He sits forward in his chair—an amused grin on his face. "You see, I love looking at the inside of a person when they've died. Two years in medical school taught me a lot of interesting things. Let's see what you are made of, Samantha. Literally and figuratively...

I swallow. Ryder is sick, and this scene played differently in my head. We both know I won't go through with it. I just want him to feel something.

Anything!

I can tell seeing me like this makes him happy. He stands up slowly and makes his way towards me. I take a big step back and point the gun at him.

My hands are trembling. I am terrified and instantly regret taking the gun. What was I thinking?!

I do everything I can to compose myself. I don't want Ryder to see how scared I truly am.

He stops a couple of feet from me and smiles. He looks me up and down and rolls his head.

It happens so fast!

My mistake is blinking. In the second it takes me to blink, he takes the gun and has it under my chin. My finger is still on the trigger. Tears roll down my cheeks as I struggle under his hold.

"Since you are so prepared to make a scene, let me show you how to use a gun properly." We walk backward, stopping once my head hits the wall, somewhat hard.

I am practically on my toes, looking up at him. A move I am forced to make as the gun slowly begins to push my head upwards. Ryder looks into my eyes and then my lips. Not an ounce of emotion as I tremble beneath him.

I close my eyes. This is it! He's going to murder me here in the library. My family and friends will never, ever find my body.

They will never know someone hired Ryder to kill me.

Ryder lets go of me and puts his gun back into the holster.

"Follow me," he commands and walks out of the room.

I am still shaking as I rub the area where the gun was under my chin. I had just danced with death and survived for now.

"Let's go, Samantha!" I hear Ryder yell.

After a few moments, I cautiously walk out of the library and down the hall. Ryder is at the front door. He walks back inside, looking very impatient.

I hurry my steps and meet him. Ryder is on the phone and hangs up. "Get in," he says pointing, outside, to a car.

It's his blue Lamborghini. The engine is on, and the passenger door is wide open. He grabs me by my arm and lightly pulls me towards him.

Ryder puts his lips to my ear. "Don't get any ideas about driving off. I can turn the car off before you decide to put it in drive. Do you understand me?"

Did he just threaten me?

God, I loathe him! I yank my arm out of his grip and make my way to the car. Ryder follows me closely. He waits till I climb in and slams the door shut. Asshole, I mouth to myself. He then walks back inside the house.

It is then that I notice how cold it is. The sun is out, but it doesn't provide that much warmth. It's never this cold around these parts. I use my hands to warm my arms.

Just then, Ryder exits the house with a black, metal briefcase and a red sweater. He opens the hood of the car and put the briefcase inside. I forgot the engine of this car is in the trunk.

Once he closes it, he gets in, handing me the sweater. I am grateful for the sweater, but I will never tell him that. He revs the engine and takes off like a bat out of hell.

I am so scared to ask anything. I'm sure we are going to wherever Ryder kills his victims. An abandoned warehouse or something. I am the latest victim.

He has grown tired of me. Me taking his gun is probably the last straw. Why am I not horrified? If anything, I am pretty angry!

Angry at the fact that I didn't blow his brains out when I had the chance.

I look back at the house and see how huge it is. Ryder didn't give me a proper tour. It's almost as big as Hallo Mansion.

I'm sure this place has its own zip code because it took almost half a mile just to get off the property. Ryder hits a button above him, and the black, iron gates open.

We drive for a couple of miles. I don't see any cars or people: nothing but trees and the highway. I start to appreciate the fact that I'm not able to escape the house.

Where would I have gone?

I still would probably be walking around trying to get help if I had left the first day I was kidnapped.

"Where are you taking me?" I ask nervously as I stare at my hands.

Ryder looks over at me, agitated. "Just sit back, shut up, and enjoy the ride."

I sigh and do as I am told.