Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Briar
A stalactite right above me cracked and dropped, barreling toward my head.
My wolf surged forward, taking control and rolling my body to the right. My side and achy knees hit coarse stone and blinded me with pain. I yelped and flinched, waiting for the agony.
A crash sounded to my left, and the ground shook underneath me as I landed hard on my butt. Wet pieces of stone hit my face and arms, stinging worse than a bee ever could, and then there was silence.
I sat, stunned, adrenaline edging out most of the pain. But when warm liquid oozed down my face and cheeks, I came back to reality.
I was bleeding.
The room spun, and my lungs screamed. I inhaled choppily, desperate for oxygen, and blinked. Fresh tears streamed down my dirty face, no doubt mixing with the blood and dirt.
Even being kidnapped on Earth seemed like a luxury stay compared to this.
Elias hadn’t exaggerated about keeping track of time. It was impossible here, and I hadn’t even been subjected to the horrible torture chamber he’d described.
I could have been here for mere hours, days, or even weeks. I had no way to gauge it, but I had to hold on and wait for Ember and my pack to find me.
A grinding noise made me freeze. My gaze shot up as the heavy metal door above me scraped open. Desperately, I wiped my tears from my face and jumped to my throbbing feet, refusing to let the guards know I’d been crying.
Light flooded in, and my wolf surged forward. The sudden hit of light after being in the dark for who knew how long caught me off guard, and I stumbled back down to my knees.
Heavy footsteps approached the edge of the hole, and two guards without masks under their helmets appeared. The closest was a square-jawed man with a scar over his left eyebrow. He barked, “Stand back.”
I straightened, trying like hell to ignore the sharp ripping sensation of skin and bone peeling apart in my feet and stand as confidently as possible.
The one who’d spoken held a thick rope coiled in one hand and tossed one end down to the floor, where it landed in the center of a puddle with a wet slap .
He smirked and looked at me in a way that made me uncertain if his dick or the rope held his attention. "Grab hold," he commanded, and chuckled low in his throat as he glanced at his friend.
Of course, they’d be like this. The small-dick energy in the cave was damn near suffocating. “I’mma pass. I’ll just stay right here.” And I meant every word. I’d rather stay in this pit than touch or do anything they wanted me to. I wouldn’t give up and begin obeying.
Fuck that.
And fuck this place.
“I’m fine if you want to be difficult.” Scar Eye winked. The torchlight caught on the jagged blue-purple scar over his eyebrow. It dipped down to his eyelid. “You being obedient or as unpredictable as a phoenix will bring me joy in different ways.”
His innuendos were purposeful, and I realized that, even here, men were sexist.
Maybe some would find that familiarity comforting, but not me.
My wolf snarled in my head, and her hackles rose.
“Haven’t you heard? If you push me too far, I bite.
” I’d done that to Kaylen during the first trial after she’d stabbed Arielle, the first friend I’d made here and someone I’d wanted to protect, in the back.
I’d been in wolf form, and I hadn’t hesitated to bite the bitch. I wasn’t above doing it here and now.
I might be their prisoner, but I’d make sure they suffered along with me.
“These ropes contain magical bindings. Are you certain you want to do this the hard way?” The second guard leaned back and sighed.
He was heavier set, with craggy wrinkle lines around his dull blue eyes and over his brow.
Leaning forward, he rested his gloved hands on his belt.
Both Crag Face and Scar Eye had a red mark on the cuff of their right glove.
It looked like a chalice. “All you’re doing is encouraging him. ”
That settled hard into my bones. I didn’t want to encourage him, but he’d made it clear that being obedient would have the same effect. Maybe I could give him a taste of medicine he’d never had before.
I forced my bottom lip to quiver, despite my wolf snarling at the weakness I was showing. At the end of the day, night, or whatever the hell the time was, I was at their mercy. If they wanted to play games with me, I’d return the favor.
“This is your last chance to take the rope of your own volition.” Scar Eye jerked the rope, making it slap again.
Water hit my face, and I clenched my hands, causing the blood to ooze even faster. I might not be able to kill him, but I would get some revenge.
“You’re just taking me somewhere to torture me more. Why should I willingly hand myself over to you?” I could guess that they’d be taking me to the Whispering Veins .
"We’re going to have someone tend to your wounds." Crag Face sounded gruffer than before. "There’s too much for us to look forward to, so we can’t have you getting sick and dying too fast.”
There was no stench of a lie, and my stomach soured even more. They wanted to heal me to hurt me all over again.
The fae were savage.
Ever since I’d been kidnapped, I’d witnessed the fae hurting each other and killing anyone they deemed a threat or competition.
Earth didn’t seem quite as cruel anymore. Sure, we had some people like that, but the majority were decent. Here, most of the fae seemed to be vicious…at least, many of the ones I’d been around were.
I glanced over my shoulder at Elias's crack in the wall. He'd gone silent.
My heartbeat quickened a little. The guards expected me to be too injured to do any harm. Maybe this could be my opportunity to escape? If my wolf helped me, maybe I could break free and hide until Many-Greats-Grandfather located me again.
I stepped forward, and agony ripped through my feet and legs. I didn’t hold back my wince as I slowly moved toward the rope.
"Good girl," Scar Eye sneered. "Be careful, but hurry. I don’t want to miss mealtime."
Just mealtime. No other term.
They must be doing that on purpose so we’d have no concept of time. Assholes.
Hoping I could make him late, I didn’t pick up my pace. Instead, I let out all my grunts of pain, which echoed and mixed with the drips of water.
Both guards crossed their arms, and Scar Eye smirked. Crag Face huffed.
My blood boiled, and my wolf snarled low and threatening. I gritted my teeth, trying to keep myself under control.
I’d make them both pay.
But not yet . The timing had to be perfect.
As soon as I reached the wet rope, the first guard whipped it into the water again. It splashed me all over, but my body was already freezing and covered in water, so it didn’t make a difference.
Still, the rudeness alone had me itching to fight them now.
No. I had to be smart. If I acted too soon, I wouldn’t have a chance in hell.
“Grab the fecking rope,” Crag Face snarled, seeming unamused by the first guard’s antics. He shot the other fae an annoyed look, his wrinkles deepening with his scowl.
This time, I eagerly grabbed the rope and swallowed my whimper as my raw flesh burned. Blood slicked my hands on the already wet rope, and I couldn’t get a firm grip. I was about to wrap it around my wrists instead, but Scar Eye jerked the rope upward.
The rope sliced through my already raw skin, and I whimpered. Everything in me screamed for me to release it, but then I’d have to start the entire process over.
I wrapped my legs around the rope to prevent myself from slipping further. My eyes burned from unshed tears, but I blinked them back, needing my vision to be clear.
As soon as I cleared the top, rough hands seized my arms so hard I’d have bruises. The two guards dragged me across the stone floor, my already raw feet feeling as if the rest of my skin was being raked off like cheese against a grater.
“I can walk,” I said sternly.
"Shut up," Crag Face growled and yanked harder.
But Scar Eye threw his free hand in front of the second guard, causing him to halt.
“If she wants to walk, we should let her. If she can’t keep up, we can use the rope as a whip until she goes fast enough.”
Crag Face grunted. “You’re wasting time. We have our orders.”
“She’s going to the doctor. She’ll be fine. They won’t ever know.” Scar Eye smiled widely.
Though it was the last thing I wanted to do, I let out a yelp as I climbed to my feet, hoping they wouldn’t see me as threatening at all.
“Fine. But we can’t take forever.”
“I agree.” Scar Eye spun and rolled up the rope, leaving the end piece out so he could smack me.
I whimpered, and the first guard jerked the rope so it would hit me on the side.
This might be my only chance. My heart raced as my wolf pushed ahead, lending me her strength. I caught the rope and, despite feeling as if my hand were about to be ripped in two, yanked back.
Scar Eye’s eyes widened as he fell forward.
Crag Face ran the five feet between us and grabbed my wrist. I dropped the rope as he jerked me toward his body, and I opened my mouth on instinct.
I didn’t have time to shift, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t bite.
His eyes widened, and he started to reach for his dagger.
I opened my mouth wide and sank my teeth into his nose. His sickly sweet blood filled my mouth, making me want to gag, but I held on tight.
He grunted as my teeth sank even deeper. Something struck the bottom of my chin, causing my jaws to clench harder, allowing my teeth to cut entirely through the cartilage. His other hand fisted the hair on the back of my head and yanked me backward, and I spat his nose and blood from my mouth.
I tried to grab his shoulders but snagged his arms instead.
Blood made his already slick metal armor impossible to hold on to, and I slid backward until my butt hit the ground.
My shoulders and head followed, banging the floor.
My ears rang, and the world spun so hard that I couldn’t tell which way was up.