Chapter 48: Burnt

Her imploring eyes looked at him, and the callousness in them haunted her, making her

want to act upon what he said.

"Come on, Sheharzaad," he said. Darkness dripped from his words. He placed the cigarette

between his lips, smoked, pulled the cigarette bar out of his lips and puffed out smoke. All

the while looking at her. His eyes, intense, struck on her face.

"I'm not a man of patience, Sheharzaad," And she felt the time slowing down around her.

She wanted the earth to swallow her. She desired the sky to eat her up. She wished she

could beg him. Rather she could. But he did not have the heart to give in to her pleas. He did

not possess a heart. He was a heartless monster. No matter how much she would beg him,

he would do whatever he wanted. Whatever he thought.

"Plea...please," A tear leaked from her eye. Flowing down her cheek. She joined her hands in

front of him. Her chin wobbled. She had no idea what he had saved in that fucked up mind of

his. It was something. As twisted as him. And he did not want to be subject to his wrath. She

was scared. She thought, just like he cut her finger, she might cut her tongue too. And her

mind was going blank. She had no idea where she should run to to save herself from him.

"Please Shehryaar," she whispered. Her eyes beseeched him.

"Open. Your. Damn. Mouth, Sheharzaad or I will fucking slit your throat," Sheharzaad knew

she had nothing in her hands now.

Slowly, her shivering lips moved and she slightly opened them.

"Pull out your tongue,"

A few moments passed, but she didn't, unable to guess what was going on in his mind, when

a metallic sound rose in the silent atmosphere, and her eyes fell on the gun he had placed

just placed on the table.

Slowly, she pulled her tongue out of her lips and as soon as she did that, the very instant, he

held her tongue between his fingers and placed the burning end of smoke on her tongue.

A scream erupted from her throat when he changed the position and placed the cigar on

another area of her tongue.

She felt her tongue burning and the ashy taste of cigaratte on her tongue. Tears flow down

her eyes followed by sobs.

He was burning her tongue. She couldn't even ask him to stop or pull back because that

would stretch her tongue.

The intensity of hotness she felt on her tongue was unbearable. She thought she was having

blisters when he placed the burning end on some new spot, making her cry out terribly

when he pulled back, and as soon as he did, she coughed hysterically, holding her throat.

He threw away the cigarette and crushed it under his feet. "Lie to me again," his warning

came, "washroom is that way," he pointed at a door and she rushed there while coughing.

She cleaned her mouth with water and even water caused a burning sensation on her

tongue. She kept on gargling until she wasn't satisfied with her lot, and it took her almost

fifteen minutes to compose herself before getting out of the washroom.

She made a run for the office door as soon as she was out not wanting to face him.

"Come. Back. Here," his voice came as soon as she placed her hand on the knob.

She was so dead.

She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She remained rooted at her spot, not able to

blink or move herself.

"Come here," he stated again, on seeing her not moving an inch from her place.

She wanted to run out of this room, but when the thought came to her mind, would he let

her go even if she ran away? No, he won't. He would hunt for her till the very end.

Gulping in her fear, she turned back, looking at him.

"Now I ask again, where have you been?"

"I-I was at," She contemplated while fidgeting with her fingers as they slightly began to

shiver. When she saw him leaving his chair, she shrieked and attached herself to the door.

He got up only to move closer to her.

"Don't-don't hurt me, please," her whisper of plea came as he approached her. Her eyes

widened with every step he took towards her. She could see his eyes boring holes in hers

making her eyes glassy already.

She was with Hannan and she didn't know how he would take it if she lied to him again and

he caught it, this time he would mutilate her tongue for real

"Tell me. Tell me, with whom were you exactly,"

She began to sweat with fear. Her suspicion was right. He would kill her if he came to know

she was with Hannan and he would

Coiled back from him, she tried to suppress the sobs coming out of her throat. Her heart is

hammerinwasin her chest, and shallow rapid brea, this escaped her lips in a rhythm.

The horror of the situation was he was standing on her head, engaging her between his firm

arms and asking something from her about which she had to lie so she could save herself,

yet she couldn't because she was afraid that might be her last lie by her tongue.

Her ragged breathing, the left and right movement of her eyes and the shivering of her

hands depicted the complete panic her mind was in.

"Are you hiding something?" he questioned and she vigorously shook her head in a no.

"Then why are you scared?" he hushed, stroking her chin with his thumb.

"I 'm-I'm not scared," She tried to deny it because if she accepted, then that would mean she

was hiding something.

"Okay. I can see that but where did you go without my permission?"

"Please, I'm sorry," she said in one go, rubbing her hands together out of anxiety.

"Asking you for the very last time, with whom and where?"