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Nearby was a desk, made out of dark gray metal, scratches covering the surface. It was very industrial. There was a leather chair behind it, studded with metal bolts, and a few simple wooden chairs in front of it. There was little else in the room and definitely nothing that would prove useful if I wanted to escape. Everything was covered in dust. On the ground, I could see the footprints of a multitude of Vakarrans. I assumed they were from the men that had bound and imprisoned me.
Bastards.
The sound of footsteps echoed outside the room in the parking garage, ominous and powerful. I lifted my head, telling myself I had to be strong. I knew Nix was coming for me and would seek information from me. He wouldn’t be afraid to hurt me in order to get it. I had to remain focused, no matter what. I wouldn’t show him even a single ounce of weakness.
The glass door swung open and with a flick of his fingers, the room was suddenly bathed in a white light. I squinted in the brightness, blinking and trying to adjust to the intensity. When my eyes finally adjusted, I saw that he’d brought some sort of levitating light ball with him. I stared at it for a moment in awe, before he snapped his fingers and it dimmed a bit. It had to be some sort of Vakarran technology or alien technology of some sort.
Nix cleared his throat, garnering my attention then.
He stared at me for a long moment, before he said a single word. He used that time to study my face, then my breasts and the rest of my naked, rope-bound body. The grin that came over him was sickening and I had to work to quell the nausea deep in my belly.
Up close, the disfigurement to his face was even more revolting. It appeared as though a bullet or some sort of laser had torn through his jaw, flaying the skin apart on the side of his mouth. It had healed some, but in a way that reminded me of a terrible burn scar, bubbled flesh that would never quite be the same. His teeth, yellowed with plaque were exposed, as well as some of the bone on his jawline. The mutilated flesh continued down into his high-necked shirt. I assumed the scars continued down his useless left arm.
“I’d recognize those features anywhere,” Nix growled. “I vowed that I’d kill every single one of you for what your sister did to me.”
“Fuck off,” I spat.
“As always. You Stryke girls are feisty ones. Treasonous little cunts that deserve to be taught a lesson in humility,” he replied, and I felt my upper lips curl up in a snarl. I wanted to lash out at him. He was insane if he thought he was going to teach me anything.
How dare he?
He stared at me then, probably relishing the thought that I was his prize, thinking about how he was going to hurt me. How he thought he was going to break me.
In the light, I could see just how dark his eyes were. Hardly even a glimmer of copper like a typical Vakarran, they were like vivid pools of darkness, a boundless black hole of cruelty and greed. There wasn’t any doubt in my mind that he was going to hurt me very badly, and he was going to enjoy every single second of it.
The only question now was, would I survive it?
His face was a mess and I studied it to make a point. Then, my eyes flickered to his useless arm. I looked back to him in disgust.
“Compliments of your sister Danika,” he said, his tone full of anger and hatred.
“Shame she didn’t finish the job,” I retorted, and his eyes narrowed. Out of nowhere, his right hand swung around and slapped my face hard. His hand was huge, his palm encasing the entire left side of my face. I didn’t make a sound, despite the fact that my entire cheek stung with pain. My jaw throbbed, but I lifted my chin all the same. I tensed, staring at him with my defiance.
Fuck if I was going to sit here and whimper for his amusement. If he thought I’d scream or beg for mercy, he had another think coming.
No matter what I said or did, he was going to hurt me and, in all likelihood, kill me and string me up to serve as an example to any human or slave that dared defy him.
Whatever was about to happen was going to hurt, but I’d keep my dignity. I’d hold my head high and remember all the lives I’d held to avoid monsters like him, and how many more were still surviving in the caves, free of his enslavement and depravity. My sisters and I had all played important parts in that.
He chuckled.
“You Stryke sisters are all the same. None of you know who your masters are. You forget that this is Vakarran land now. We own you and we get to decide what to do with you,” he replied.
“You’ll never fucking own me.”
“You doubt me?”
“You don’t scare me,” I retorted. I gritted my teeth, showing him nothing. I could see his frustration building within him and knew I was getting to him. He was the sort of man that was used to being obeyed and if he wasn’t, he’d use his money and powerful friends to make things happen. I couldn’t stand men like him. He didn’t deserve any of it.
I wouldn’t show him a single ounce of fear. Even if the man skinned me alive, I wouldn’t let him know that I was terrified. Fuck him.
“What’s your name, Ms. Stryke,” he asked then.
“Kaela,” I replied. It didn’t really matter if he knew my name now. He’d find out eventually.
“Kaela. Pretty name, pretty little mouth. Lucky for you, I know many different ways in order to keep you quiet,” he said, his eyes narrowing with eagerness and cruel intentions.
Well. Fuck. That.
