““vow I will not murder you until after our meal. How’s that?” Grinning, he said, “After we eat, I will simply retie you. How is that?” He approached me, slipped a small, thin blade from his pocket, and gently cut the silk that bound me. Once freed, I reacted on instinct. Sitting up and jerking back my elbow in one fluid motion, I made a fist and punched him. My knuckles connected with the top portion of his cheekbone. His head whipped to the side. When I made no other move to attack him, he slowly turned back to face me. He fingered the now reddened skin. “I said I wouldn’t kill you, and I haven’t. I said nothing about beating the shit out of you.” “My mistake,” he said. “Don’t ever tie me up again,” I growled. “Now, let’s eat.””
