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The brand was finally pulled away, and he thought he’d throw up, but his stomach was empty. The tension didn't leave his body as he quivered and sobbed.
Maybe they’d be done for today at least. He couldn’t handle anymore. He just couldn’t. He jerked when he felt a guard’s hand on his ass.
“Leave that. That’s for Roth.”
“He was probably raped on the boat. You know how some of those sailors are. I can guarantee he’s not a virgin.”
“I don’t care. I’m not handing over my son’s present after it was fucked so recently. If it wasn’t for Roth, I’d let you both have his ass. Put that cream on so he doesn’t get an infection.”
The cream seemed to make it hurt worse. Oriel knew the outer layers of skin on both spots had to be dead now, but the pain went deep in, and he still couldn’t stop the tremors in his body. The wood digging into his hips didn’t help. One of the guards finally started undoing the ropes, and he was forced to kneel on the floor with his hands on the top piece of the horse.
Moving his arms pulled on the skin around the brands, but he didn't dare disobey. They could put him right back over the horse and heat the brands again or get the whip. He tried not to think of how his back looked with the D on his left and the S on his right.
If a good healer was right there, they could make it like it never happened with a couple of healing sessions. After a bit, such marks could never be made to go away, and he’d have them for life.
Nobody would be coming to heal him.
Oriel stayed on his knees as he drooled with the bit gag still strapped in since he couldn’t close his mouth. With spit, tears, and sweat smeared all over his face, he’d never felt less like a Prince.
He didn’t even feel like a fairy anymore. He focused on the wood as he shook while one guard took away the brazier. The one from earlier remained, and he smacked the D on Oriel’s shoulder. He cried out but didn’t move.
“Let him drink from the cup,” said Lord Delwin.
The bit gag was finally removed. The cup only contained about two mouthfuls of water, and it wasn’t nearly enough. In fact, Oriel was sure he was thirstier once the guard pulled the cup away.
Lord Delwin stood from the crate and went to pick up the S brand that had been left against the wall. The end no longer glowed, but it was still hot, and he could be hit with it.
“You have no idea who Sam is, do you?” asked Lord Delwin.
Oriel wasn’t sure if he was supposed to answer or not. Speaking out of turn would definitely earn him more pain. His head throbbed as he shivered and looked at the wood. Lord Delwin slowly walked around, and the guard backed up. Oriel flinched as he felt the hot metal graze his lower back.
“Sam wasn’t my cousin,” said Lord Delwin. “That’s what everyone was told. I’m sorry, let me rephrase that.”
The metal slid down to Oriel’s ass. It wouldn’t mark him for life, but it was hot enough to hurt, and he clenched the wood piece so hard, his knuckles whitened.
“Samwasa distant cousin of the family, but my Mother cheated on the last lord so I wasn’t his real son. It was my Father that your Father killed. I couldn’t say the truth, and I doubt King Leneer would have cared. He was so adamant that Sam hang for his crime. I don’t even believe he raped that woman. He might have been a drinker and a loser in general, but he wasn’t that sort. Of course, if you dare to blab that I'm a bastard child, no one will believe a slave."
Oriel could barely absorb that. His Father had killed Lord Delwin’s Father. Now, son would punish son.
“When I learned that King Taven was going after West Bay, he owed me a favor, and I asked for you. You’ll spend the rest of your pathetic life as my son’s sex slave and pet. Whatever he commands you to do, even if it means bringing you into public naked, you’ll do it, or else. My son can punish you just fine, but if you continue to defy him, and it's decided that you’re not worth it, I’ll bring you right back into this room."
The wood blurred before Oriel’s eyes. Elira, no.
"You'll spend weeks dying a slow death.” The Lord yanked the once-Crown Prince’s head back, but Oriel kept his gaze lowered, not daring to look him in the eye. “Do. You. Understand. Me?”
“Yes, M-master.”
“Prepare him for the night in the cage."
Instead of being allowed to curl up in the cage which wasn’t big enough to stand or stretch out in, he had to remain on his knees. His wrists were tied to the bars above him. The guard locked the door, smacked the top, and told him to sleep well with a smirk.
Oriel realized he was being left like this all night. It was impossible to lie down, and he couldn’t stretch out or lower his arms. He almost wanted to cry again because he’d never be able to rest like this, and the burns throbbed with constant pain as they tightened and further pulled on the good skin around them.
He hadn’t been fed, and the savage welts all over his body stung with every movement. The guard hadn’t restricted the lashes to his back and ass.
He sagged against the side and prayed that somehow, Aspen was all right. Oriel was fucked, but maybe Elira could help Aspen.
He noticed thin cobwebs in the corner and dust on some of the bars. Maybe this room hadn’t been prepared just for him, and someone else that had made an enemy of the lord had been in here a while ago. Lord Delwin clearly had no problem with torture.
