Chapter 19
Sharp, gripping pain tore through his back with each shallow breath. Jesse wasn’t sure why. It might have been a broken rib. It might have been a bruised kidney. It might have been both. He wasn’t bleeding anymore, but only because Marcus had switched from sharp to blunt at some point. Right around the time he stopped trying to draw Jesse into a bizarre parody of a conversation. He seemed disappointed when Jesse refused to speak—refused to utter a single sound—but he soon found other distractions.
“Where’s Gideon? I have to say I’m a little let down. I was expecting him by now.” Marcus tossed a heavy paddle aside. Jesse glared at him through a swollen eye.
“I asked you a question. Where’s Gideon? Do you know it’s been almost four days? What do you think he’s doing?”
Marcus p
