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SIX. AM I MAKING YOU FEEL SICK?
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Kayla's screams would haunt her for the rest of her life. The way it vibrated against the walls of her throat, the way it pierced her ears, the shivers it caused, it was horrible. It was full of pain, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. None of them could. They were all chained up, only He had a key. Daphne's been dead for days now. Her body starting to smell, her organs on display; Lacy can never stop thinking about the unpalatable sound of Him cutting her open, slicing through her skin, carving out her eyes, mutilating her. She remembers Kayla screaming as He sewed her mouth shut, blood pouring through the punctured holes of her skin and lips, the metallic taste permanently filling her mouth — she doesn't scream when He sews her eyes shut because at that point, she couldn't. She was dead. Hannah's not dead. He sees her together but keeps her eyes open so she can watch as He mutilates Lacy, her eyes and ears remaining untouched.
That's how it went: Lacy couldn't speak, Hannah couldn't hear, Kayla couldn't see. A pattern of twisted foreplay that would stick with them forever.
Lacy jolted awake, her heart pounding terrible and her mouth dry. She immediately touched her lips, feeling the scars but her lips were parted, and she sighed. No stitches. She can breathe. Breathe, Lacy. You're safe in your own home. She checked her phone, 6:00. She doesn't even remember falling asleep.
The last time Lacy saw Lydia was right before her last volleyball game. They'd been planning a party for weeks now, a celebration for their upcoming win, nobody had any doubt that they would lose. Seeing her again, she didn't know how to feel. They were friends, close friends, but last night was like talking to a ghost, somebody that she didn't know. Lacy figured that's how it would be with everyone she hadn't seen in so long.
When she walked downstairs, Lacy saw her dad asleep on the couch, still in his work uniform. "Dad?" She voiced unexpectedly, loud enough for him to jolt awake. "I'm sorry."
"No, no, don't be sorry," Samuel groaned slightly as he sat up.
"Why are you sleeping down here? Why are you still in your uniform?"
