There wasn’t anything that Luka could do either, because if he intervened, then they would kill him. No questions asked. I glanced at him, and his eyes were filled with so much sorrow. He wanted to help me. Suddenly, we had been thrown together and were finally on the same side. No fighting, no bickering, no bullshit laid between us. He was my only shot at freedom, or even a reprieve from the torture I was going to endure.
No matter what, I knew that I’d be lucky to get out of here alive. They needed me, but only so far. If they could really get the crown in their hands, they could keep me locked away or “tragically” murder me, making it look like an accident or an attack. They would use me for their own political games. I reached down and tugged hard, so fucking hard, on the bond to Matthew. I felt him instantly and was filled to the brim with the strength I needed to survive. No, to fucking overcome this newfound hell I’d been thrown into. I loved him more than anything in this world, but I knew that by the time they were done with me… I’d never be the same person.
* * *
Time ceasedto mean anything to me while I was being held captive in my own home. I couldn’t remember the last time I saw the light of day, forced to stay in the dark room somewhere beneath the castle grounds.
The only people I had thedispleasureof seeing were Damien, Orion, and Luka. Though, I felt myself softening immensely towards the redheaded friend I’d once been at odds with. Luka was just as much a victim in this mess as I was.
When he’d made it clear that he wasn’t comfortable with my torture, nor would he participate in their sick games, Orion had chained him to one of the dungeon walls and forced him to watch as they stabbed me over and over again. Every day that passed, I saw his eyes grow more haunted. The only comfort either of us had were small nods to one another, letting each other know we hadn’t been completely broken yet. Although, the more days that passed, the more we both ached for some sort of reprieve.
Damien and Orion talked freely in front of me, never caring that they were discussing the annihilation of my mate. While they had apparently been searching for him and Kalen, they’d had absolutely no luck finding them yet. It was the only thing I could hold onto, the only thing that kept me from completely giving up.
Every evening, when I finally laid down to rest on the tiny scrap of blanket I had been given, I would reach down the bond to let him know I was still alive, and I was brought the smallest bit of comfort when I’d feel him on the other side.
They were hollow moments, because it could never satisfy the persistent need to be with each other. However, just knowing he was alive kept me going. It brought me strength even though half of the time I was awake, I spent with a dagger piercing my skin and dark magic surging through my veins.
Tonight, though, I felt nothing as I tugged. The bond was silent. Not a flicker of emotion coming back to me.
Maybe I was just exhausted. Today’sactivitieshad pushed boundaries beyond what I had experienced thus far. I had spent it submerged in a box filled nearly to the brim with ice cold water. Before they had locked me inside, Damien had plunged his dagger into my stomach, seemingly mesmerized as he watched my blood saturate the water around me. As the dark magic had suppressed my abilities, I couldn’t even use them to my advantage. So, I had been left utterly helpless; treading water with a stab wound under limited oxygen.
But tonight, the longer I tried to pull from the bond, the more impatient I grew. A trickle of unease ran down my spine as I heard the door from above slam open and raucous laughter filter down the stairway. My heart began to beat wildly, almost to the point where it felt like it was going to explode from my chest.
They never came back down to visit after our daily torture sessions. I tugged down the bond harder than ever before, desperation rippling through me when it fell completely flat once again.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I whispered to myself, drawing my knees into my chest as Orion came into view. The stench of stale ale and cheap wine hit my nostrils, as well as something else. It had a sharp, coppery tang to it.
He leaned against the wall, pulling a large sack from behind his back that had a dark substance leaking out of it onto the floor. I cowered away in the corner, cursing myself for both my self-preservation instincts and the fact I felt the need to fear him.
“Brought you a present, your highness.” His words were slurring ever so slightly, giving away the fact there must have been some sort of celebration going on. He raised his hand, tossing the bag to my feet. I turned my head away, refusing to look at him or the package. He sauntered closer, leering down at me. “What’s wrong? Too good to open it yourself?”
I refused to meet his eyes, staring down at my feet instead. Whatever was in there would end up hurting me, I just knew it. Orion grabbed a fistful of my hair at the base, jerking my head to look up at him. I gritted my teeth, not giving him the satisfaction of showing the extent of my pain as he dragged my body closer to him. He didn’t give me the opportunity to stand up, so he had me crawling on my hands and knees like an animal. He threw me down into the puddle of sticky liquid seeping onto the floor. As I looked at my hands, I swallowed a scream.
Blood.
It was thick, dark, sticky blood that had pooled before me and now it was coating my hands and legs.
“What the fuck did you do, Orion?” I stared up at him in horror, and he smiled down at me.
“Father? Are you down here?” Damien’s voice came from the stairs, his footsteps quickly following. He turned the corner, a sated smile dancing on his lips as he came to stand by his father and looked down at me. “I see I’m not too late…” He reached down, his hand disappearing into the sack to grab ahold of whatever was inside.
As he pulled it out, I felt the ground beneath me shift. It was a head. But not just any head. It was one that I’d come to know and love above all else. Someone who had been keeping me anchored through the absolute hell I had been enduring. Then he reached in and pulled out a second one, throwing both of them towards me until I saw the horrific expression on their faces.
Matthew.
Kalen.
My heart stopped.
My blood ran cold.
The air in my lungs evaporated before I could take any more in.
And then I threw my head back and screamed.
The ground trembled beneath me, rattling every surface in the room. Bits of rock and other debris fell, catching into a vortex of air swirling around me. Every bit of emotion I was capable of conjuring came out - hate, anger, regret, and above all else… an absolute and unending sense of despair.
I tugged, and tugged, and tugged on the bond repeatedly as I screamed out. Begging for something,anything, to come back to me. But just like it had been earlier, it was silent. Not even a nudge of the familiarity that had kept me centered. It was just…gone.
