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A true battle of wills had begun.
Though as with every foe in my past, I had no doubt I would emerge victorious.
The smirk on Troylus’ face grew to a wicked smile as he leaned forward and looked at me closely. “The other men and I have wagers on how long it will take to break you, and with whom you will break. I am fairly confident I will win this bet with them. Though we all knew you would not answer on first ask, I’m actually pleased you did not. I enjoy a challenge.”
I did not enjoy the feelings coursing through me. They were unfamiliar and made me feel weak. Nervous? Trepidatious?
Regardless of what they were, I grew to detest the man before me for causing these inferior sensations to attack my body.
Troylus took hold of the leather strap around his waist and removed it with a swish of his muscular arm. The slicing sound bounced off the moldy walls of the cell, sending a shiver down my spine. He then removed a dagger from a holder that hung off his hip and placed both the strap and knife on a nearby wooden table that took up most of the length of the wall. He made every slow move seem calculated and choreographed, as if he knew that my heartbeat sped up with every inch of his movements.
With a raised eyebrow, he looked over his shoulder at me and asked, “Would you consider yourself a merciful person?”
I raised my chin and hardened my expression. “No. Never.”
“Neither am I, my dear Zelladine. Neither am I.”
I wasn’t sure if it was the way he spoke to me, as if I were a commoner with a common peasant name, or if it was the fact that I watched his eyes darken as he approached me with dagger in hand, but a lump formed in the back of my throat that I struggled to swallow against.
Fear. Yes, fear had me nearly whimpering when he brought the tip of the knife to my throat and ran it delicately along my collarbone. The touch of cool metal against my flesh contrasted with the warmth of Troylus’ breath so close to my ear and sparked emotions inside of me that had lain forever dormant before.
“Have you ever screamed, Zelladine?”
He pushed the knife a little harder against my neck, piercing the skin just a little. The sting of having my flesh cut for the first time in my existence had me gasping in surprise. I tilted my head away from the weapon as a trickle of blood dripped to my shoulder.
Mortals bled. Not me. Not me.
“Have you ever felt so much pain that you howl against the air you breathe in hopes of releasing some of the agony?” Troylus’ voice was low and husky, reminding me of how I would speak to my prey as well.
He ran the knife down my neck to the fabric of my clothing and sliced effortlessly through the material. Like a wolf clawing at his victim, Troylus slashed away at every inch of clothing that had once covered my body. What remained after his vicious and unrelenting attack was my shivering and completely nude body in nothing but metal shackles. Never before had I stood—or sat for that matter—bare and helpless.
Defenseless.
Vulnerable.
The victim.
“You will pay for this dearly,” I seethed through clenched teeth. “In the worst possible way imaginable, you will pay.”
Another deep chuckle released from my captor as he went and placed the dagger back down on the large table and then walked over to me, took hold of the chains that restricted my ankles and tightened them around the legs of the chair, spreading my legs wider. “Well, in that case, I better make this good. I want it all to be worth it in the end when you’ll make me pay for it.”
Troylus took a few steps back once he tossed the last remaining shred of my clothing to the side and stared upon me. His gaze ran from the tips of my toes that rested on the cool floor, to the top of my head, which caused my face to heat in embarrassment. His eyes devoured every square inch of my being, and there was nothing I could do to stop him or conceal myself in any way. My arms were shackled behind my back, which only pressed my breasts forward, and as much as I wanted to squirm and find some way to hide my most intimate parts, I also didn’t want to give the man the satisfaction of knowing how much my nudity upset me.
His eyes finally settled on the tiny patch of curls between my legs. With my legs spread wide, I could only imagine what my silky folds looked like stretched and opened before him. I wanted to attempt to close my knees, but I also knew the effort would be pointless. I had no choice but to sit in the chair with my tits out and my pussy exposed. Troylus licked his lips as if he could taste what the liquid oddly dripping out of me tasted like. A deep throbbing emerged from my core and pulsated through my pussy. Once again, the unfamiliar feelings had me just as perplexed as before. Although this time, the intensity of the ache that seemed to be in need of quenching had my breath coming out in ragged puffs.
