Chapter Seventeen
Maksim.
“He’s damaged.”
“His shoulder has been out of its socket for a few days.”
“Well, fix him!” Kane whines like a petulant child about to stomp his foot on the ground. “I want to make this funnnn! I want it to drag! Not have him die within the first few yards. There’s no fun in that. I want to hunt him down.”
The guys in scrubs glance at each other in annoyance. Well, at least we have that in common.
It’s the first time I’ve been on my feet in however long I’ve been here, and I’m embarrassed to say my thighs are fucking quivering.
My hands are in electric cuffs connected to my ankles by chains like I’m a fucking prisoner in a goddamn sci-fi movie.
That, coupled with the fact that I’m fucking emaciated from lack of actual food—other than the half sandwich Alice gave me from what I think was days ago—I’m starting to feel like this is all one fucked up hallucination.
“Hurry up!” Kane screams at the doctors, red in the face.
So, they get to work. There are three guards.
One of them comes forward to loosen my chains but not enough for me to be able to reach up and wrap the fucking thing around his throat.
I try to calculate not just my chance of survival but of getting out of here.
I know there are more guards outside of the door. I have to wait for my men.
I have to get back to my wife alive.
They make me sit on the steel bed I was previously strapped down to before these sci-fi cuffs were placed on me.
I glower at Kane the entire time they pop my shoulder back into place; not even a grunt escapes my chapped lips.
He wants me riled up. He wants me to make a beast out of myself, but I’m saving my energy for what I’m guessing is the first ‘game.’
He hikes a dirty blonde brow up. “Better?”
I don’t reply. I just keep staring, watching his every move, not tearing my eyes away. Psychological warfare. Physical warfare. It’s the fucking same to me.
When a few more minutes tick by, I can see the anxiety beginning to roll through him.
He’s unnerved by my silence. My stare. Sure, he has the upper hand now; he’s got his little entourage, feeling brave.
I can’t wait to see him dripping with blood.
A bullet hole between the eyes, gray matter splattered against the wall or the pavement.
It doesn’t matter to me. As long as I’m the last image he sees before he goes straight to fucking hell.
He rolls his shoulders back, squaring them, then narrows his eyes.
I blink at him, unbothered.
He leaves the room, guards and doctors behind him.
I get up and start pacing the room as much as I can, trying to get some strength back in my legs.
If I’m going to run, I can’t be wobbly. I go over everything Alice said to me before.
It feels like forever ago, even though I know it’s only been just a few short days.
Shit. What did she say about the ground?
They stopped letting the gas pour in, but my brain is still muddled, my eyesight is still hazy.
Thank God there hasn’t been a shot of adrenaline.
My wrists are sore from trying to escape the fucking straps.
I think I did once and was given a tranquilizer, but I don’t know if that was real or a hallucination.
Fuck. I owe Raven an apology if I ever see her again.
I keep pacing, feeling a bit steadier on my feet. I try to squat but almost fall over. My thighs are shit. Think, Maksim. What did Alice say about the ground?
“Be wary of the ground and your footing…”
I pause. The fuck does that mean? I hear a squeak and look over to see the door’s been opened, and a guard places a tray of food just inside on the floor and scurries back out.
I almost grin. I go to it, looking at the bowl of fruit, a water bottle, dry cereal, a small carton of milk, and a piece of toast.
“Eat throughout the day…”
I pick up the tray and head to the steel bed, looking at my options.
I shove the dry cereal and water bottle into one of the pockets in the scrubs they have me in.
I can eat the fruit now since it looks fresh, the toast later.
I eat slowly, letting the sweetness of the blueberry hit my taste buds and almost whimper.
Tears spring to the back of my eyes and my heart lurches; memories of my wife baking and catapulting blueberries with a spoon into my mouth hit me like a freight train, but instead of allowing myself to become emotional, I laugh.
I blink back the tears as more memories crash around me with every piece of fruit I eat slowly, letting every flavor settle over my tongue, chewing as slowly as possible before swallowing. When I’m done, I lie down on the bed and do my best to stay focused on remembering everything Alice told me.
“Run straight to the forest. Be wary of the ground and your footing. Survive the night. Don’t drink the wine. The second game begins at sunrise.”
Be wary of the ground and your footing… traps. They have traps or something hidden in or on the ground. What do I look for? I’ve never fucking been hunting. Lumps? Would the ground be lumpy?
My stomach rolls, and I know the fruit wants to make a comeback, but I don't let it. I need the energy from it. Instead, I take deep breaths, letting my stomach calm down. Only thinking of my wife and my survival, I let myself fall asleep.
I wake up to small noises, sitting up is a little easier now and I don’t feel as lethargic. Even my heart feels like it’s beating a little faster.
“Oh, good. You’re awake.” Alice nods to the toast in my hand.
I must’ve fallen asleep holding. “You should be able to eat that now.” I lift the stale bread to my lips and take a bite.
“I have to take your vitals, but I’m going to talk very fast. They’re working on the cameras again.
Something about a breach. I heard your wife is upstairs. ”
I choke on the bread. “What?”
“Are you sure you trust her? The word is; she's here with Kane, here to make sure to see you die.” She makes quick work of putting the pressure cuff on me.
“I trust my wife with more than just my life.” I growl. “If she’s here with that fucking cazzo, she’s here for me. It’ll be fucking chaos. You told me to survive the night? Well, survive whatever Sabrina has planned.”
Alice eyes me over and dips her chin quickly. “Do you remember everything I told you?”
“They put traps or something in the ground, right? That’s why you said to watch my footing.”
“Yes. They’re going to bring you lunch, and later I’ll be back with more guards to put the tracker on your neck.
It works like a court-issued ankle monitor.
But instead of checking for parameter breach, it’s on your jugular to keep track that you still have a pulse.
They’ll be able to watch your every move.
In the morning, if you survive, you’ll be moved to one of the wings.
” She puts her stethoscope under the cuff and begins to pump it.
“There are no windows, so you can’t escape. ”
“Is there a way for my wife to get to me?”
Alice sighs. “I can try to find a way.”
But I know she’s not telling me something. I know she knows more. “What is it?”
“There’s so many initiates here. I don’t think Kane is your only worry.”
“How long does the hunt last?”
“Three days, sometimes a week. Until you’re all dead.”
Fuck.
“Get to my wife. Find my wife. Tell her where I am. In case I don’t make it, tell her I love her.”
The nurse removes her stethoscope and the pressure cuff. “Maksim—”
“I’ll get you out. Even in death I keep my promises, and my wife will honor me in this way.
She never forgets. Trust me. She may forget her glasses or her phone, but she has never forgotten a promise or a favor.
She’s good. She’s… She’s The Duchess. When you find her, you call her that.
Duchess.” There's a commotion out in the hall and Alice moves quickly, gathering her things. “She’ll know it’s me. ”
She stays quiet for a moment.
“What is it?”
“I… I have to take out your catheter.”
We both grimace, and I turn my head to the side so she can do her job.
I tense when I feel her hand on me and immediately feel dirty.
I swallow down the bile that rises and tell her to hurry up and try to control my breathing.
My hands curl into fists at my sides, but I feel them shaking.
“No, I'll do it. I’ve had enough strange hands on me to last a lifetime. Just tell me what to do.”
Alice hesitates but does as I ask and leaves the room, but before the door closes, she gives me one nod in my direction.
Run straight to the forest. Be wary of the ground and your footing. Survive the night. Don’t drink the wine. The second game begins at sunrise. My wife is here. My wife is here. My wife is here.
I’m pacing around the room again when lunch is brought in, my head feeling clearer by the hour.
My shoulder still hurts, but it’s not as bad as when they popped it in, just a bit sore.
I look down at the tray placed inside. Protein, vegetables, rice.
Nothing I can take with me other than another small water bottle.
Once again, I pace myself while eating, chewing as slowly as I can, inhaling deeply when I feel like I want to throw up so I don't lose it. I need whatever little strength I have.
When I'm done, I go back to pacing but decide to take a quick nap to conserve whatever energy I have from the food.
The door to my room squeaks open.
Alice is followed by guards.
My anxiety hitches.
I sit on the metal bed so she can reach me.
She puts the collar on me and I feel when she latches it closed.
I keep my eye on the door. She hands me a bag, and the guards turn to leave when they see I’m not a danger but stay just outside of the door in case Alice calls for them.
She grabs her tablet and begins to tap something into it, looking up at the monitor on my throat every now and then.
I quirk a brow and keep my voice low and between us. “What’s this?”
Alice sighs and mimics me. “It’s clothes.
Again, this is a game to them. If you’re in white scrubs, it makes it too easy to spot you.
But I put an extra thermal shirt in there for you and socks.
Double up. Stay away from the right side of the property.
There’s a deep pond you can roll into easily…
Rub your chest, not your hands. It’s going to get cold tonight, and it’s snowing. I did what I could.”
“Did you find my wife?”
“Not yet. I’ve been down here since this morning. But I have a plan of my own if you survive the night.”
“Rub my chest, not my hands.”
“Stay awake,” she says with finality and leaves.
I change into the black cargo pants I was given, double up on the thermal shirts, put on the fucking… turtleneck and both pairs of socks. There’s no fucking shoes. I shove the water bottles and bag of dry cereal in my pockets.
Run straight to the forest. Be wary of the ground and your footing. Stay away from the right side of the property. Rub your chest, not your hands. Stay awake. Survive the night. Don’t drink the wine. The second game begins at sunrise. My wife is here. My wife is here. My wife is here.
I sit on the bed and wait.