Chapter 10
Chapter
Ten
MARCUS
Pain.
The only word that ever came to mind anymore.
The only thing I felt, reaching past my consciousness into my unconscious state.
At first, it had been simple to ignore them.
The torture being barely anything. They attacked my human body, as though I would feel the same as they would.
It had been easy. Easy to laugh in their faces.
To snarl at their attempts to bring me to my knees.
Until Samuel Fisher came into the picture.
I didn’t know if I was in Dylan Genesis’ territory, but everyone who came down were his pack members.
It made me think he took over for Ebony.
She failed, considering I could filter the poison they were using to weaken me.
Although my link to my dragon and the mate bond were severed, I was no longer weakened.
Or at least, it hadn’t. Lately, they had been using an altered version of it. My body was struggling to filter it. At some points, I felt as close to human as I could ever be. Then they set me on fire. Watched as I burned, my skin disappearing into scales.
I didn’t know what they were thinking at the time until Samuel stepped forward. Colton’s half-brother. With piers, he pulled the first scale. Then another. Then another. I was able to hold it for days. Or what I assumed were days.
Sometimes they would pull five, sometimes they would pull thirty. Every time, if I healed, they would set me on fire to burn me down to my scales again. Finally, I cracked. When they removed the smaller, more sensitive scales, I roared.
Now, I was hoarse. My roar hurt. My throat was raw.
My body was raw. I’d been fully descaled too many times to count.
Over and over. My body hung heavily against the wall.
Chains and cuffs held me where they wanted me, my legs too weak to stand on.
Long ago my shoulders had dislocated, unable to heal back into the position as they held my weight.
My wrists were next, the chains cutting deep and even crushing the scales underneath them.
I was losing the battle to stay alive. There was a time that I was glad I couldn’t reach out through the bond. I didn’t want Colton to feel the pain. To know what I was going through. Or to feel just how weak I was.
“What do you think?”
One of the pack members asked Samuel, who was wiping his hands off. “I think we are almost there.”
The shifter snorted. “I thought it wouldn’t take this long.”
“He’s a dragon. I expected it to take longer, honestly. The scales were a game-changer. Dylan is bringing the new formula today.”
“The bond breaker?”
Samuel shook his head. “Not yet. That one is still in the works. No, it’s a more potent poison. We’ve used his scales and crushed them up. Turns out they are a good ingredient.” He shrugged. “That’s beyond my knowledge at this point. I have my orders.”
“I’m surprised Alpha pulled you for the dirty work. Especially with your relationship.”
Samuel snapped at him. “Colton is nothing to me. He was an experiment Dylan’s father tried. They used my mother because she was a level ten. Nothing more.”
“Right.”
I doubted that, and so did the shifter. Still, the shifter kept his mouth shut. I might have if I had the strength. My eyes closed on their own. The strength to hold them up was too much at this point.
“Are we waiting…?”
“Yes. Shut up. He might be weak, but he can still hear us.”
If I could laugh, I would have. They had pulled about six or seven scales from my shoulder, but it seemed like they were waiting before they touched my neck. My chest rose and fell, hurting every time it moved.
Colton. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I tried, my Little Omega. I tried.
Somewhere along the line, I accepted I would never see my little girl.
I didn’t know how long it had been. Weeks.
Months. All the time blurred together with the pain.
Being unconscious did nothing for the light that streamed in through the small arched windows.
We were underground; that much I knew. It was cold and damp, but those feelings or scents didn’t even register anymore.
There was a chance Colton had already had our hatchling. The thought tore me apart far more than any of my scales. I’d promised to be there and be his strength. Now, he was facing the scariest part alone. Swallowing, I raised my head; the chains clinking against each other.
“You really should just give up now.” The shifter snarled at me. “You’re in for a world of hurt.”
“Shut it.” Samuel snapped at him again. “Giving up isn’t enough. We need him to break. Dylan said Ebony needs a blank slate. So we will create it. Asking him to do anything is pointless.”
I inhaled, and as I let it out, I spoke. “Never.”
Samuel hummed, walking over to me. “I don’t think you understand. You’re in no position to argue, dragon.”
My chest filled with air. “I…will…die…”
“Not on my watch. You will break, but you won’t die. I’ll do as my Alpha tells me. There is no room for failure.”
There was something in his voice. A hitch. His Alpha had proven he would do anything to get to Colton. I wondered if that extended to threatening his leadership.
Samuel’s hand grabbed my face and pulled me up to him. Slowly, I lifted my eyelids to look at him as defiantly as I could. His face was blank, as though this meant nothing to him. It brought it no pleasure, but it also wasn’t painful.
“Dylan will win. The difference between you and him is that he will do everything in order to get what he wants. He would burn the world, even himself, in order to get to Colton. You wouldn’t.
You might say you would, but you don’t know what that truly means.
The level of unhinged obsession it takes to do that. ”
The shifter behind him hissed. “Beta!”
“Do you understand, dragon? You are nothing compared to him. He will get Colton. He will get everything he wants from him. Then he will kill him. Because that way, no one else will touch him. You are in the way. The only reason you’re still alive is because Colton might die if you did.
On top of that, we made a deal with Ebony. ”
I tried to shake my head. My body was too weak. The only thing I could do was clench my jaw. He wouldn’t understand. Dylan could be obsessive all he wanted, but I would love Colton unconditionally. Colton was my mate. He would always be my mate and no one else. I would die before that happened.
He said nothing further. Just pushed my head away in disgust and walked back over to the door.
I was in an old-fashioned dungeon. The type that used to under pack houses.
I had seen them a few times, but I never realized packs actually used them.
It was outfitted for wolves; the cuffs and even the bars were made of silver.
They talked about random things, and I tried to listen, but my consciousness was waning. Finally, my head fell forward and my chin hit my chest. Their voices disappeared as I fell into the darkness. Alone.
“Up, dragon.”
There was a clicking before my body warmed. Peeling my eyelids up, there were now three shifters, not including Samuel, in the small cell now. One of them was currently blow-torching my skin that had slowly tried to heal back into place. My chest rose and fell as I tried to see their faces clearly.
I didn’t recognize any of them. Their faces blank, save for one in the back who looked positively giddy. He was standing in the doorway, the furthest away. A new setup was in the corner, and I could see a row of syringes next to the pliers that Samuel usually used.
“Where do you want me to put it?”
The voice coming out of the giddy shifter did not match. It was high, squeaky, and almost child-like. He wasn’t large by any means, but he did at least look grown. He nodded to me.
“You want to get it directly into the external carotid artery.”
Samuel turned to look at the shifter. “John, seriously? What am I? A doctor?”
The shifter huffed and came forward. He was tentative, as if he thought I was strong enough to move. Or that I might bite his head off. If I could have, I would have shifted, but even keeping my eyes open was a struggle.
“Right here. There should be a line you see under the scales. You want to inject it directly into the bloodstream.”
“Stay here so I can make sure I’m doing it right.”
Samuel grabbed the pliers, and I let my eyes close. I knew what was coming. My body could brace for it, but as soon as he pulled the first scale from my neck, I let out a cry. The cry that left me sounded strangled as my body trembled. He didn’t stop.
One by one, he took scales off the side of my neck, and I lost count after nine.
Pain was swimming in my head, making their voices sound as if I were listening underwater.
Fingers pressed against the sensitive and bare nerves beneath.
I let out a roar, but they only pressed harder.
I’m sure I was bleeding down my neck, but my consciousness was already slipping.
A prick hit my neck and slipped in deep. It hurt. Everything hurt. My body was shaking, nothing voluntary. I felt the liquid almost immediately. It was freezing as it spread through my veins.
It hurt. The pain burned in the same way Beau’s ice burned me. It was spreading and getting worse. My body convulsed violently, and there were shouts to back away. Eyes flying open, I felt the ice in my chest, sucking my breath away. My vision had darkness creeping in around the edges.
My mouth opened to let out a roar of pain, but I didn’t even have the breath for that. It was too much. I’d never felt anything like this, and I hoped never to feel anything like this again. I was dying. This pain was death.
“Now?”
“Yes, it should have circulated already. It only takes about a minute.”
My vision was gone. The darkness took over even though I’d kept my eyes open. Skin touched me for a moment before I felt the familiar cold metal of the pliers.
I wanted to plead. I wanted to beg. I wanted to tell them just to kill me. To be done with it. I wanted it to end. All of it.
He was right.
Samuel was right.
I couldn’t endure. I thought I could for Colton. For the chance to see him again. To love him. To apologize. To live the rest of our lives together. I thought I could face whatever they threw at me. I knew death might come, but I was willing to fight it for as long as I could.
I couldn’t. I screamed when he pulled the first small scale from behind my ear. It tore from me, tore my throat. It tore everything from me. He didn’t stop. The next small scale. One. After. The. Other. My scream turned silent at some point. No words came out.
Somewhere along the way, I lost.
Lost myself.
Lost all my senses.
Lost my soul.
Death was right there. It never claimed me. Worse, neither did my consciousness slip. This time, they were working through my entire body. Each and every scale.
A husk. A body with a mind, but without a soul. No regeneration. No healing. Nothing. I became nothing.
I don’t know how long it took, but somewhere around my underarm scales, they injected me again. I barely felt the change as they continued. Stripping me down completely. Stripping everything from me.
Finally, I felt it. The grip of death. A warmth that filled me. My mouth ticked up, a smile on my face as I faded. My last thought of my mate. Of our little girl. Of how much I loved them. Even if it wasn’t enough.
Even if…