AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Stephen raised an eyebrow at this, a smirk playing on his lips. "Aren't you a little angel?" he said, sarcasm dripping from each word. But he shrugged a tacit assent, stepping towards me while keeping a wary eye on Victor.
The canteen wasn’t exactly equipped for first aid, but I scrounged up what I could; paper towels, a bottle of water, even a bit of vodka that had been tucked away. Clumsy makeshift supplies, but it would have to do.
“Sit down, Victor,” I said. “And take off your shirt.”
Victor looked like he was about to object, but one stern look from me quelled any protests. "Fine," he grumbled, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it aside. His torso was a mess of blood and grime, testament to the ordeal we'd just survived. I could tell that the movement had hurt him, but he bit back any complaints.
"Try not to move," I advised, wetting a paper towel with vodka and gently dabbing at the wound on his side. Victor hissed through his teeth but remained still, his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides.
Stephen watched us silently from across the room, leaning against a wall with that same infuriatingly casual pose as he smoked his cigarette slowly. His gaze flicked between Victor and me, a subtle smirk curving his lips.
"Enjoying the show?" I spat, not bothering to hide the venom in my voice. Victor shot me a surprised look, but fell silent when I gave him a steely gaze.
Stephen shrugged, flicking the ash from his cigarette onto the cold concrete floor. "More than you know," he replied, that smug smirk pulling on his lips. The glow from his lit cigarette danced across his face, deepening the etched lines and shadows.
Victor's body tensed under my touch, and I glanced at him concernedly. He didn't look at me, his gaze set like steel on Stephen across the room. My heart clenched; Victor was stubborn, but he was also fiercely loyal and protective. But this wasn’t the time for that.
“Victor,” I murmured softly, placing my hand on his shoulder in an attempt to soothe him. He flicked a glance toward me before grunting out a curt response. I dropped my voice to a whisper as I approached him. “Let’s be smart. He might be our ticket out of here.”
Victor’s gaze softened, his hard jaw smoothing into acceptance. “Alright.”
I took a steadying breath, turning back to the wound. I focused on cleaning it, trying to smooth out the tense atmosphere in the room with my meticulous motions. Every now and then, I shot a side glance at Stephen. His cool exterior was frustratingly unreadable.
He was watching us with an amused smirk, his cigarette dangling precariously between his lips as he studied us. The smoke from it curled lazily around him, the acrid smell mixing unpleasantly with the stale air of the cell.
“Why are you doing this?” I asked Stephen, trying to keep my voice steady.
He regarded me for a moment before taking another drag on his cigarette and letting out a long puff of white smoke. “None of your business,” he said.
"Just trying to understand." I replied keeping my eyes fixed on the wound, "It's how I stay sane in situations like this."
"Stay sane?" Stephen's chuckle echoed ominously around the room. "Perhaps you should worry more about staying alive."
I could feel Victor tense beneath my touch, but I continued my work unflustered. Being around them had hardened me enough, and when I realized that my father was the Viper, I’d become pretty cynical. It hadn’t served me at all…until now. "I think I can manage both."
There was a pause as I worked, only the steady drip of water somewhere in the dark and the intermittent hiss of Stephen's cigarette breaking the silence. “I’m just following orders,” Stephen said.
“From my dad?” I asked.
“You’re as smart as he said,” he replied.
I barely registered the sarcasm as I looked down at Victor’s wound. “It could have been worse,” I said, looking up at him. “It’s really a flesh wound, I think. Just gotta keep it clean.”
Victor didn't respond, his eyes clouded with a sharp pain that he tried to hide. I clicked my tongue sympathetically, giving him a gentle squeeze on his shoulder before turning my attention back to the wound.
When I was done, Victor’s head snapped, turning to Stephen as his gaze hardened once again. "So what now? You're gonna lock us back up?"
Stephen shrugged nonchalantly, taking another drag of his cigarette before he finished it. "You're not going anywhere until I've figured things out."
My heart sank, the hope that had briefly sparked within me quickly extinguished. There was no way out of this yet. Stephen held all the cards and we were at his mercy.
"But," Stephen continued, capturing our attention once again. "I don't see any harm in letting you out of that cell for a while. It's not like you can go anywhere. That part seems silly.”
“Where are we, exactly?” I asked.
“Underground facility,” he said. “I can’t tell you where, obviously, but it's secure. Middle of nowhere. Only the Viper knows the exact location.”
He said it so casually, as if he was talking about the weather. As if our hope for escape didn't just decrease massively. Victor’s body hardened under my hand and it took all my control not to let my own disappointment show.
