Chapter 2

                                    

                                          
The silence pressed down on Eli, crushing him beneath its weight. Buildings whizzed by as the SUV sped through the night, taking turns seemingly at random until Eli was completely lost. He stared out the darkened windows, determined not to be the first one to break the silence. Everything was deliberate with Benjamin, calculated to unsettle and give him the upper hand. There was a reason he had risen to the top of the criminal world in such a large and important city as Seaset. He might seem calm and unconcerned about tonight's events, but Benjamin was known to smile and laugh even while plotting how best to torture someone to get important information.  
Despite himself Eli glanced over across the seat to Benjamin, lounging with a slight smile on his face, seemingly not a care in the world. He certainly didn't look like the ruthless leader of criminals who had climbed his way to power over mountains of bodies. He looked like an accountant. Short, slightly receding dark hair, and thick out of style glasses. It wasn't until one looked into the eyes behind the glasses that you saw the real monster hidden behind the bland exterior. Benjamin Water's eyes were cold, calculating, and able to carve out your thoughts and secrets like  a scalpel.  
"You have had quite the exciting night, haven't you Eli?"  
Benjamin's voice snapped Eli out of his thoughts, and as he met the eyes of his boss, he couldn't stop a shiver from running up his spine. This night really had gone to shit in a truly spectacular way.  
"I tried to talk to Jacob and Alex. I told them I would take on Delilah's debt, that there was no reason to hurt her. They ignored me. We fought. I won."  
Eli turned to fully face Benjamin as he spoke, careful to keep his voice firm but respectful. He was so damned tired it was hard to focus, every thought felt like it had to push its way through mud to get to the surface. He had used too much of his power tonight. If there was a less ideal time to confront Benjamin, he could not think of one. Eli's only hope was to tell the truth and hope Benjamin Waters decided to show mercy. A desperate plan with almost no chance of success. At least if he died the pain from his entire body being bruised and cut up would go away. 
"Every time I think I have gotten a handle on you, you go and do something so spectacularly stupid that I am forced to reevaluate my own skill at reading people. I know you have become squeamish over the last few months, lost that bloodthirsty edge that made you so endearing, but I never thought you would put your own life in danger to rescue a sorcerer." 
Eli ran a scraped and bloody hand over his face, struggling to find the right words to explain. "I... I just wanted tonight to end without any violence." 
"Well, you failed at that didn't you?" Benjamin laughed humorlessly. "And at the end of it all, Delilah tried to turn you to ash to further her own wants. Typical sorcerer, wouldn't you agree?" 
"I wasn't expecting her to try and kill me."  
"Were you expecting praise and thanks? Perhaps a parade thrown in honor of the noble hero who had just saved the damsel in distress?"  
"She doesn't deserve to die." 
 Eli wanted to say more. He wanted to rage against Benjamin, shout about the injustice of it all, how things didn't have to go this way. His plan would have worked, Benjamin could have gotten his money. Eli wanted to say more but he couldn't. Numbness spread throughout his body, settling comfortably in his brain. There was only one conclusion to his actions tonight; his death, and he was too tired to fight it. He had tried and he had failed. Slumping back in the leather seats he closed his eyes and waited.  
"She isn't going to die Eli, stop being so dramatic. Right now, she is having the fingers in her left hand broken. My people will make sure to keep the breaks clean, that way she will still be able to enchant once they heal. They will be sure to get the point across though that this is her last chance. I imagine after the night she had, agreeing to pay me back will be an easy choice."