Page 138 of Their Ruthless Sadist

This caught my interest because for the past two days, Zeke had kept us out of the basement. He hadn’t even allowed Case to go down to work out. I wasn’t sure what he’d been up to, but I was certainly curious.

“It’s time we had a talk,” he added, his eyes serious.

I frowned, concern stirring in my gut, threatening to overpower the garlic and herbs.

“Is something wrong?” Case asked, his fork halfway to his mouth.

“Depends on how you decide to handle the questions I have.”

I tried to gauge his mood. He seemed relatively laid-back. Not on edge, for sure.

I glanced at Case, wondering if he knew what this was about.

“But don’t worry.” Zeke smirked. “For every question you do answer, I’ll give you something you want.”

“I’m done!” Case shot to his feet with a grin on his face. Obviously he was eager to see what Zeke had in store.

I, on the other hand, wanted more details. “And who determines what we want?”

Zeke’s grin widened. “How did I know you’d be the one to ask that?” He leaned back. “I’m gonna let you choose.”

“What if we want to ask a question in return?”

“Then I’ll answer it honestly.”

I studied his face, trying to determine if there was a catch. But there were no shadows or any hint of deceit on his part.

“Well, y’all can talk till your hearts’ content. I’ll be the one asking for more of that whip.”

Zeke’s eyes shot to Case. “I can handle that.”

Now that we had that laid out, I had to wonder whether or not we could handle the questions.

Something told me this was going to be a turning point.

For whom, I didn’t know yet.

CHAPTER 36

Zeke

Once Brax and Case finished eating, I sent them down to the basement while I cleaned up the kitchen. I wasn’t sure why I was compelled to pitch in around the house, but I was. Since they were more to me than merely my fuck toys, it seemed only fair.

However, I also wanted to send them down together so they could contemplate what it was I would do when I arrived. I had a few things in mind, but one clear objective. I decided today was the day I would get Case to open up. In return, I would do the same.

While I wasn’t the type to snoop in other people’s business, my conversation with Jamie had plagued my mind all week. To the point I had decided to do a little research of my own.

What I found had shocked me. More so than ever before.

Case Rhinehart, the man who craved pain unlike anyone I’d ever met, had a dark secret. A very, very dark secret. And, like Jamie, I didn’t think Brax was privy to it. I agreed with my sister. Brax was far too protective of Case. If he knew what he’d lived through, I wasn’t sure they would even be here right now.

After finishing up the dishes, I headed upstairs to change into jeans. I figured that would be the proper attire for tonight’s activities. I had no doubt Case would require something from me. And while I would give it to him because that was what I was promising, I wasn’t doing it for me.

The fact of the matter was, this secret needed to come out. It was time we all got a few things off our chests.

That was, if Case didn’t decide to bolt.

Considering what I’d learned, I had to take the risk. The darkness that man was holding back threatened his happiness. And in turn, mine and Brax’s as well.