Release me. Now. Or I ****** I see the fear in his eyes and I know I’m through playing around. I take the key from behind my back and place it in his right hand. I tell him to unlock the door, so he hands me the key. I close my eyes. I hear him breathing. I hear him turning the key in the lock. When I turn back to him he is standing right in front of me. Now his eyes are full of fear and confusion. I can see it on his face, the look in his eyes and his breathing that has become shallow and raspy. “I will be doing something that you won’t want to do.” I say to him. He is paralyzed with fear. He is trying to speak but no words come. I see he is as scared as I am. I place my hand around his throat and I squeeze hard. He falls to the ground. I hear the thud of his body hitting the floor and see the fear in his eyes. I grab him by the back of his shirt and haul him to the side of the room. I kick the door open and drag him through it. I close the door and put the chain on it. Then I place the padlock back on the door. I pull him out into the hallway and back to the elevator. I turn him around to face me. I’m standing over him with a knife. I start speaking to him like he was a child. “You will crawl to my office, do you understand?” “Yes,” he answers. I see the fear in his eyes and hear the fear in his voice. I hear him crying. “You will crawl to my office?” “Yes.” I see his fear and hear him sobbing. I tell him to get the fuck up. He stands. I kick his ass, then his ribs and his stomach. He falls again. I reach over and pick up the knife. I place the tip of the knife under his chin. I pull it back and let it go. He takes two steps forward and I see the fear in his eyes. I tell him that I will do it again. I grab him by the back of his shirt again and drag him back out into the hall. I place the chain on the door again and lock it. He is still on his knees when I drag him over to the elevator. I take out my phone and call the head supervisor. “Get him out of here,” I say. The voice on the other end tells me he will do it. “No. Not him, the other two. The two that have been flirting with me.” I slam my fist against the elevator door. I hear the guy crying. “Take him, do whatever you have to do, but get him out of here.” I watch the elevator close the door and disappear. He will be dead before he hits the lobby. I hear a voice in my head, tell me that no man deserves this. But, you do. You do because he wants to rape you, just like he did the other two. I start hearing the little voices again. You are a dirty fucking whore and you will pay for it. A loud ringing fills my ears as I look down at the poor bastard that has been with me for six months. The chain is still on the door. I put the key back in my pocket. I will give it to my new secretary tomorrow when she gets here. I turn around to look at myself in the mirror. The only thing that should be there is a face with a blank look. But, it is still there, staring back at me. I look at the chains on my arms and legs. I look at the bruises. I look at the blood coming out of his mouth. I move closer to the mirror and pull out my pocket knife. I make sure that it is clean. I will only need one. I stare at myself in the mirror. I let the tears come. It is over. This is the way it is going to end, all over the fucking world, with the last person I ever touch. I take the knife from my pocket. I hold it in my hand, knowing that my life is about to end. I close my eyes, and the voices are gone. I place the knife against the hollow part of my throat and pull it downwards. The blade opens a gash on my neck. The blood starts rushing out and out of the wound. I move the knife over to my throat again and pull it downwards. This time I slice a bigger piece of flesh from my neck. I can feel the warm blood pouring out of my neck and onto my hands. I look down and watch my blood run down my chest, all over my waist and down my legs. I look into my eyes in the mirror and see the confusion and fear in my own eyes. I am still staring at my reflection. I see the blood. It is everywhere. I watch my body until it finally goes still. The noises that I hear are coming from me. I look at my clothes. The blood is flowing everywhere and they are getting stained. The mirror is reflecting the same image, a scared little man, dying on the floor in a hotel room in New York City. My body is dead. My mind is dead. Everything I did was an act. I had to get the last look out of the mirror. I had to make sure that no one is watching, so that I can truly die. Author Bio: A writer and lover of the written word, L.J. May’s book debut ( The Blood Runs Deep ) comes with a very unique and interesting spin on a topic that should have us asking ourself what is really happening to our society. By portraying it through a twisted and darkly comic, yet very real lens we are made to ask questions on our humanity, beliefs, and what the world holds for us and our children. With a second novel currently under construction that is sure to have the world talking and shaking the foundations of perception, May is definitely an author to keep an eye on. About L.J. May: L.J. May is a writer, whose passions include long walks on the beach, a great book, her family, and wine. In her spare time, she enjoys exercising, listening to music, and watching YouTube videos of kittens. For more information on this intriguing novel please visit http://www.ljmay.net/index.html And remember to add this page to your favorites so you can return again, next week, for another excerpt from The Blood Runs Deep, with a bit about the cover artist.