Gareth had been brought up from the dungeons and tied to the same heavy wooden chair where Lauren had sat. And then Duke had cut off Gareth’s index finger with a savage blow from the machete. Jake could still hear Gareth’s scream as the blade slicked through his finger and bit into the wood of the chair. They hadn’t bothered to use tape over his mouth to silence Gareth, as they had with Lauren. ‘Ice and a plastic bag, please, Midge,’ Guy had said, picking up Gareth’s finger from the floor. As Midge brought a paper cup and a plastic bag to Guy, Guy had grinned at Jake and said, ‘Isn’t it wonderful that these fast-food drive-throughs always give you too much ice with your drink!’ Then Guy had scooped the ice from the cup into the plastic bag, dropped Gareth’s finger into it, and put it in his pocket, while Gareth was untied and dragged out of the room and back down to the dungeons. ‘I think we’re ready to go now, Jake,’ said Guy.
