“There’s a video on Colt’s computer. I found it last night. They took it while I was… you know. On my knees.” My voice shakes, and tears are in my eyes, but this is worth it. I have to push through. “If you can’t help me, I’m going to have to tell somebody else and show it to them. I’ll go to the police if I have to.”

And then it happens.

I can pinpoint the exact moment I see him for the first time. The real James.

His pupils dilate, eating up most of the color, turning his soft blue eyes that usually look at me with fondness and concern into an icy, dark blue.

One second, the James I danced with last night, who’s been the only kind person in this house, is in front of me. The next second, he is gone, and the man in front of me now raises his lip into a snarl like an animal about to attack. He is the predator, and I’m the deer, literally frozen in the headlights.

I’m a flash, his hand is around my throat, and he’s slamming me against the wall. The force knocks the air out of me, and the tears that were already filling my eyes instantly spill over as the pressure in my head builds.

He leans in, his face swimming in front of mine now that my head is spinning and my vision is blurring. “James!” I croak, fighting against his hand, fighting to pry his fingers away. It’s like trying to bend iron.

“You listen to me, you little slut.” His spit hits my face while I strain for air that never comes. “If you ever so much as mention going to the police again, I’m going to make you regret it. You’ll wish you had never even thought of it.” He pulls me an inch or two away from the wall and slams me against it again, hard enough that my head bounces off it. “I will come to your room, fuck you bloody, and I will slit your fucking throat from ear to ear. Do you understand?”

I only understand I’m finally facing the biggest devil of them all. And he’s not interested in playing. “I said, do you understand?” He gives my throat another squeeze as if he could force the words out of me. I push up to my toes, hoping to relieve a little bit of pressure on my throat, but it’s no use. My lungs burn excruciatingly, begging for air that’s not coming.