The Library

Sebastian

T he sound of Derek’s voice, low and impatient, grates at me as he leads Lilith down the hall. Her soft, wavering responses drift back toward me, her attempts to keep the situation calm, to delay him. She doesn’t realize how close I am. How close she is to me.

I move silently, positioning myself near the doorway, close enough to hear Derek’s frustration growing. His breathing turns heavy, his words sharper, as he tries to push her further. My pulse thrums in my ears, the anticipation building, and I can feel it—the moment when everything will shift. When Derek’s game ends, and mine begins.

“Come on, Lily,” he growls, his words slurred. “Don’t act like you don’t feel something for me. I’ve waited for years for this.”

“I just need a minute,” she says, her voice shaking with false calm. “Let me freshen up… make this special.”

Good girl, I think. Stall him.

The bathroom door closes behind her, and I know I don’t have much time. Derek’s pacing now, muttering under his breath about how he’s going to show her what real love is, how no one else will ever love her like he does.

The sound of the shower turning on is my cue. I move quickly, slipping into the bedroom just as Derek turns around, his eyes widening in shock when he sees me. He doesn’t even have time to speak before I grab him by the collar, slamming him hard against the wall.

“What the fuck—?” he sputters, but I cut him off with a fist to the gut. He doubles over, gasping for air.

I lean in close, my voice low and menacing. “You thought you could touch her? Take what isn’t yours?”

Derek wheezes, clutching his stomach, trying to catch his breath. “Who the fuck are you?”

I shove him harder against the wall, my grip tightening on his shirt. “I’m the man who’s going to make sure you regret ever laying a hand on her.”

His eyes widen in realization, but before he can say another word, I yank him toward the door. He’s heavier than I expected, but adrenaline fuels me. I drag him out of the apartment, keeping him quiet with sharp jabs to his ribs every time he tries to make a sound.

Lilith is still in the shower. She won’t even know I’m gone. She will know I’ve been there though. I left her a note and her cell phone—something I now almost regret taking. She could’ve called for help, but then I’d have been caught too.

Once outside, I throw Derek into the passenger seat of his own car. He’s groaning in pain, too stunned to fight back as I climb into the driver’s seat and start the engine. My bike is still parked in the complex, but she won’t notice. Not tonight. By the time she does, this will all be over.

I drive in silence, my mind racing with what’s about to happen. The basement of The Library is my family’s little secret—a place where we’ve taken care of our “business” for generations. It’s fitting, really, that this bastard’s life will end there, in the same place where I first laid eyes on her. Where it all started.

Derek starts to stir, groaning as he comes to. His head lolls to the side, and he tries to speak, but all that comes out is a hoarse grunt.

“Where are you taking me?” he slurs, his voice barely above a whisper.

I smirk, keeping my eyes on the road. “Someplace special. Just for you.”

The drive doesn’t take long. The streets are empty, and before I know it, we’re pulling up behind The Library. The building looms in the darkness, its shadow casting an eerie silhouette. I drag Derek out of the car, his legs wobbling beneath him as I force him toward the hidden entrance in the back.

The basement is cold, damp, and dark—the perfect place for what’s about to happen.

I throw Derek into a chair, binding his wrists with thick rope as he starts to struggle. He’s still groggy, but the fear is starting to set in. Good. I want him to be afraid.

“You think you can just take whatever you want?” I say, circling him like a predator, my voice dripping with venom. “You think you can drug her, force yourself on her, and no one’s going to stop you?”

Derek’s head jerks up, his eyes wild with panic. “I didn’t… I didn’t do anything.”

I laugh, dark and hollow. “You were about to. And you’ve been waiting for this moment for years, haven’t you?”

He flinches, his body tensing as he realizes just how fucked he is. “You… you’ve been watching her,” he mutters, his voice shaky. “I’ve seen you. You’re no better than me.”

I lean in close, my face inches from his. “The difference between us is that she’s mine. And I don’t need to drug her to get what I want.”

He spits at my feet, glaring up at me with defiance. “You’re fucking crazy. You think she wants you? You think she’d want any of this?”

I slam my fist into his jaw, feeling the satisfying crack of bone under my knuckles. Blood trickles from his mouth as he groans, slumping in the chair.

“I don’t give a shit what you think,” I say coldly. “But you’re going to learn what happens when you try to take what’s mine.”

Derek coughs again, his eyes flashing with defiance, even as fear flickers in the depths. “You think you’re better than me?” His voice is strained, desperate, repeating himself as he tries to dance around what’s going to happen. But it’s inevitable. “We’re the same, you and I. You want her just as bad as I do. You’re obsessed with her. She’s the one controlling both of us.”

I step closer, my movements slow, deliberate. I want him to feel the weight of what’s coming. Leaning down, I get right in his face, my voice a low, dangerous growl. “The difference between me and you,” I say, pausing just long enough to make sure he’s listening, “is that I don’t need to drug her for her to fuck me.”

The words hit their mark. I can see the fury in his eyes, the way his body tenses in rage. I smirk, knowing I’ve struck exactly where I wanted. “She begs for it,” I add, trailing my finger down his arm, “and when I fuck her, she’ll come apart, moaning my name. That’s something you’ll never know, Derek.”

His face contorts in anger, but all I see is the pathetic shell of a man who thought he could take what’s mine.

I turn away from Derek, his ragged breaths filling the silence of the basement. My footsteps echo off the cold stone walls as I walk toward the table, my fingers grazing the handle of the knife. The blade gleams in the dim light as I return, Derek’s eyes widening with fear, his body trembling as he watches me approach.

“Let me go,” he pleads, his voice breaking. “Please, I didn’t mean it. I won’t go near her again. I swear.”

I ignore his pleas, dragging the blade lightly across his skin, just enough to make him wince. Blood beads along the cut, and I watch as it drips onto the floor. I turn on The Summoning by Sleep Token to drown out his screams.

“You’re going to feel every bit of what you deserve,” I whisper, leaning in close. “And when you’re gone, she’ll be safe. Because no one will ever touch her again.”

Derek thrashes against the ropes, his breathing ragged as I begin to carve into his skin, teaching him the lesson he should have learned a long time ago. His screams echo off the walls, but no one’s coming to save him. Not tonight.

I take my time, savoring every moment. His blood stains the floor, the air thick with the smell of fear and pain. By the time I’m done, he’s barely conscious, his body slumped in the chair, covered in cuts and bruises.

But I’m not finished yet.

I stand over him, my hands slick with his blood, and I watch as his chest rises and falls in shallow, labored breaths. His eyes are barely open, but I know he can still hear me.

“This is what happens to men like you,” I say, my voice low and deadly. “You think you can take what you want, force yourself on a woman, and walk away without consequences? Not with me.”

Derek groans, his head lolling to the side. He’s fading fast, but I’m not done yet.

I pull out a syringe, filled with a cocktail that will end this once and for all. “Now you get to feel what it’s like to be powerless,” I whisper, pressing the needle to his arm. “Just like you wanted to make her feel.”

He tries to speak, but the words die in his throat as I inject the liquid into his veins. Within seconds, his body goes limp, his eyes rolling back in his head. His breathing slows, and then… stops.

I watch him for a moment, making sure he’s really gone, before I wipe the blood from my hands and step back.

It’s done.

I drag his body to the car, propping him up in the driver’s seat before abandoning it a few blocks from his apartment and putting it in drive, letting it roll into a concrete barrier. It’ll be found by morning, and the cops will chalk it up to an overdose. Just another unlucky guy who couldn’t handle his own vices. As much as I wanted to do more—leave him unrecognizable, make him truly pay—I had to keep it halfway clean. No suspicions, no loose ends. His death needed to look accidental, something easy to swallow. The rage inside me couldn’t have a full release, not this time. So I staged it, kept the brutality beneath the surface, buried with the rest of him.

Before I leave, I pull out my phone, typing a quick message to Lilith.

“ If anyone ever tries to touch you or hurt you, I will kill them. ”

I hit send, a small smile tugging at my lips as I imagine the look on her face when she reads it.

She’s mine now. And no one will ever hurt her again.