Page 104 of Brutal

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Even.

No strain. No anger.

That’s what makes it cut.

For a split second, my mind blanks. Then a colder kind of fear slips in under the first.

My breath catches, not loud, but enough that I feel it, the loss of control in something as basic as breathing.

I force it back.

Think.

This isn’t about hurting me. If it were, I’d already be on the ground.

Already bleeding.

Already—

He knows I’m close.

He knows what I’ve seen.

He loosens his grip slightly.

Then—

Nothing.

He lets go.

No shove.

No follow-through.

No escalation.

One second he’s there, and the next…

He’s gone.

I don’t move.

I can’t.

My body stays locked in place, back against the wall, wrists still half-raised like they’re expecting resistance that isn’t there anymore.

My heart is pounding, each beat echoing in my ears, drowning out everything else.

My hands are shaking.

I hate that.

I lower them slowly, forcing control back into the movement, even as my fingers tremble.

Breathe.

In.

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