Chapter Four Summary: Anna breaks in and threatens Connor with Murphy so she can subdue him and take him. Murphy is forced to share his past with Romeo, telling him about Anna. He gets a text from Connor's phone, the picture of Murphy captive eight years ago. It then rings, the person he's scared of most on the other end, and she has his brother...

AN: Anna is just getting started. If you thought she was bad the first time, you'll be terrified to know that she's gone a little fruity in the loops. So here's your chapter! Enjoy!

Demons of Saints

Demands and Desire

Candra Hastings

Murphy answered the phone. "Anna," he said, the name rolling off his tongue like it was poison his mouth.

"Hello, pet. Did you miss me? No? What a shame because I missed you. And this time, we're going to have so much more fun!"

Her voice, so happy, it light sent shivers down his spine and made his flesh crawl. He was ten years younger and could feel her body penning his down again, her legs tightening on his broken ribs as he tried to buck her off, hands tied and trapped under his back. Her hand roamed around him going down...

"Shut up," Murphy growled, snapping out of his memories. "Where's Connor?"

"He's here and he's just fine, for now," she giggled into the phone, raising the hair on the back of Murphy's neck.

"I want to talk to him," Murphy demanded.

Anna was silent a moment, and Murphy was afraid that she was going to hang up on him. Finally she answered. "You don't need to talk to him right now."

"Yes, I do," Murphy denied. "If he's really fine, prove it and let him tell me himself."

"You don't trust me, pet?"

"No, I sure the hell don't," he snapped.

Anna paused again but it was shorted this time. Her voice came through clipped, like she was getting annoyed. "Fine, you can speak to him for a second. As a... a sign of good faith. You two are all about faith, right?"

"Just put him on the phone," Murphy wasn't willing to play her games. He just needed to hear Connor's voice, to know that he was still alive.

He heard a shuffling sound as the phone was moved and he could hear the sound of someone breathing, the sound familiar.

"Connor?" Murphy couldn't keep the tremble from his voice.

"Murph," came a sigh. "Are yah alright?"

Murphy wanted to smack his brother in the head. Why the hell was Connor worried about him? He should be focusing on himself. "I'm worried about you, but other than that, I'm fine. Connor, I'm gonna find yah. I'm going to come get yah. Where are yah?" Murphy asked quickly, hoping he could get an answer before Anna caught onto them.

"Murph, don't come here. No matter wha-"

The sound of Connor's voice cut off by a loud smacking sound. Murphy's blood boiled, knowing Anna had slapped his brother. Her nails had probably sliced open his face, just as they'd done to Murphy when it had been him.

"Pull something like that again, and I give you a first hand demonstration of what your little brother felt the last time I saw him," Anna hissed on the other end of the phone.

"Leave him the hell alone!" Murphy yelled into the phone.

"I'll do what I want, precious," she replied. "And if you want to want to use that tone with me, your brother will suffer for it."

"I'm sorry!" Murphy said instantly, voice rising an octave with fear. "Don't hurt him!"

"That's better," she purred.

"What do you want with him? I thought you would want me," Murphy asked her.

"Oh, but I do, pet," she agreed eagerly. "In fact, this is all about you. See you were the one. The only one I was never able to break. No matter what I did to you, no matter how I hurt you, you wouldn't break for me. But now, I think I know what'll make you break, darling."

"Just let him go," Murphy begged. "If you want to deal with me, then deal with me. But let Connor go."

"Are you asking for a trade, sweetie? Your life for his?" she asked, almost like she couldn't believe it.

"Yes. That's exactly what I'm asking for," Murphy agreed, ignoring Romeo's wide eyes.

"Oh, see now I know I'm right. This isn't just about wanting you, pet. That'll come in time. If I'd wanted to, I'd have taken you last night. But this is about making you totally mine. And first, I must break you. Now, I know how to do it. I have to go now, love. I'll be in touch."

And even though Murphy tried to stop her, she hung up the phone. Now, Murphy didn't feel cracked. Now, he felt fractured.

B~D~S

Connor remained calm as Anna ended the call, once again separating him from his brother. He felt sick at the sound of Murphy's terrified voice over the phone. Connor hated knowing that he was the reason for the worry.

He knew he needed to stay calm and not provoke her. He'd seen the aftermath of what Anna was capable of in the scars on his brother's body. She really hadn't even done anything to Connor yet. As soon as he'd woken up, she'd hurried to call Murphy.

While Connor had come to, she'd spoken to his brother on the phone. His head had cleared enough to discover that he couldn't see anything. Something covered his eyes, blinding him so that he had no idea where he was. He went to remove the object when he realized that he couldn't. His hands were not only bound tightly behind his back, but to the chair that he was seated on as well. Testing himself further, he found that his legs were also tied to the chair.

Before he knew what was happening, something that felt like a phone was pressed to his ear and his twin's breathy and scared voice was saying his name. He tried to warn Murphy away, to tell him to take care of himself, but the phone had been ripped away, and punishment was dealt as a hand made sharp contact with the right side of his face. It stung, but he knew that things could and probably would get much worse.

Connor could only wait as Anna continued the conversation with his brother. He'd heard Murphy's desperate tone on the other end, but he couldn't really make out the words he spoke. Only when Anna asked if he was willing to trade did Connor understand what Murphy had offered. And Connor knew that he would do it, too. Just as Connor had asked for when it had been Murphy in his place.

Connor couldn't allow that to happen. He knew that Anna had some sick, twisted obsession with his brother. She all but confirmed it with the end of her call, saying that she was going to break his brother, that she was going to make Murphy hers.

He would be dead and rolling in his grave before he'd let that happen. Connor struggled with the rope binding his hands, feeling the familiar slice in his wrists over the old scars. Though he pulled with all he could, they wouldn't give. It was when he felt hands on his shoulders that he stilled.

"And what do you think you're doing?" Anna asked calmly.

Connor knew not to smart off. Unlike Murphy who didn't mind telling giving anyone what-for, Connor knew that he needed to play his cards right. Unlike his brother, Anna didn't like Connor at all, and he knew it. He needed to keep her as calm as he could.

"What are you doing, Anna? This isn't going to help you."

She laughed. "I don't see how it won't. I get to take my revenge on you for sending me to jail while breaking my pet at the same time. It sounds great to me. Killing two birds with one stone, if you will."

"You won't break him," Connor denied. "Murphy won't break for anything. He's strong."

"Oh, I know he's strong," Anna agreed. "After all, it takes a lot to not scream while you're being sliced apart slowly."

Connor bit down hard on his cheek. Oh, he wanted to hurt her. To make her suffer for torturing his brother. For giving Murphy so many years of nightmares, a roadmap of scars on his body. He wanted to curse at her, to lash out, but he didn't. It was what she wanted, to effect him with her words.

But she knew she'd struck a nerve when he didn't respond. So she decided to continue in glorious detail.

"Do you even know how strong he is?" she asked playfully, enjoying the way his jaw tightened. "Did he tell you everything that I did to him?"

"He told me enough," came the short reply.

"Really? Did he tell you that he bore most of his scars for you? That he wouldn't tell us where you were, even as we carved him like a pumpkin? Did you know that it had all been for you that he bled out while tied down just like you are now?"

Connor's heart ached. He'd seen the cuts and lacerations while Murphy had recovered in the hospital. He'd seen the thin white lines that trailed over his twin's arms, his chest. He'd known that they'd wanted information from him. But hearing it all in detail by the person that had left those scars? It hurt more than he would ever admit.

"I guess he didn't," she said dryly. "What about the cigarettes? There's no way he didn't tell you about how we went through his and my own pack before we got bored with that. He wouldn't scream for me, though. Not when that burning ember pressed down on his skin..."

"So what's your plan, huh?" Connor asked, trying to make her stop. He couldn't hear any more. Her words were eating away at him. Eating away at his very soul for not being able to save his twin from that agony.

"My plan?" she asked innocently. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what are you going to do once you kill me? Murphy isn't stupid. He won't come for a body," Connor informed her. He was bluffing of course. He knew that Murphy would hunt for him until he either saved him or found his body. Still, he wanted Anna to think differently.

"Connor, I don't plan on killing you. Not yet. You haven't paid yet. And you will pay."

"An' just how do yah plan on doin' that?" Connor asked spitefully.

"You're my key, Connor. As long as I have you, your brother will do anything that I want. I know that. And right now, the only thing that I want from him is to break him. The rest can come later, once he's mine."

Connor didn't want to know what "the rest" was that she was talking about.

"It worked out great that you kept that picture. All kind of memories that'll bring up for my little pet. I wonder why you kept it..."

Connor knew why he kept it. So that he could look at it every day and remember how blessed he was. Murphy was alive and that was all that Connor needed. He could go on every day, he could deal with anything, as long as he could do it knowing Murphy was there to have his back. Because he'd almost lost him. He'd almost lost everything.

That picture showed him the miracle that was Murphy.

"But what should I start with?" she asked, pulling him from his thoughts. "I know! How about I give you a tutorial of everything that happened to your brother? That way, you can understand what I'm trying to do. You can feel his pain and you can suffer like he did. I won't even go as far with you as I did him. For you, you'll just get a taste."

If it had been Murphy in his place, the darker twin would've cursed at her, told her where she could stick her tutorial. Connor wanted to rage at her, too. Wanted to kill her for everything that she'd ever done to his brother. Still, Connor knew that he needed to keep himself safe. He needed to look out for himself, or it would end up killing Murphy.

"No, I'll cut you up a little, let you bleed out. I'll burn you until you scream for me. I'll beat you until you're broken and bruised," she drawled. "But, you still won't know everything. You won't know how it feels while I pin your body down with my own and take what's mine. For such a dirty mouth that your brother has, it tastes so sweet."

That did it.

Something in Connor snapped. He snarled at her, for even daring to mention her attempt to violate the person he loved most in this world. He struggled again with his bonds, mumbling curses at her, his fingernails digging into his palms as he fought to escape.

The cold metal brushing against the skin of his throat stilled him. He forced himself to calm down. Getting himself killed would only hurt Murphy, and his brother didn't deserve to be hurt anymore. So he steeled himself as the metal moved from his neck to his collar bone, drawing a thin, sharp line in his skin.

"My pet could see what was coming when I got to play with him," she sighed as if reminiscent. With that, she pulled the blindfold from Connor's head. The light hurt and he shied away, squinting from the pain. When they adjusted, he forced himself to look back at those hateful green orbs.

She grinned. "Your eyes are exactly like his. So beautiful. Soon, he'll be mine again, my prize, and I'll always have those eyes,"

Connor's gaze never faltered as she continued to draw shallow cuts on his body, blood mixing with sweat, stinging him. He made sure he stayed calm, measured. He needed her to believe him when he said, "He will never be yours."

She frowned. "He will if he wants you to live. So, Connor, would you like a cigarette?"