Chapter 6 Knox #3
“We’ll discuss escalation when she stops flinching quite so much,” Dr. Hampton replied. “If she cannot tolerate touch without becoming violent, we cannot place her and Command will most likely transfer her to the breeding facility, as a last resort. It would be a shame...”
Silas leaned back in his chair, rubbing a hand over his face. “You’re asking a lot.”
“I’m asking for consistency,” Dr. Hampton said. “Not tenderness, coddling, or bonding.”
She closed her notebook. “If you follow this protocol, she will stabilize. If you don’t, she will shut down completely.”
I glanced at Silas. “We can do this.”
He didn’t answer right away, then he nodded once. “Fine. We'll try your way. But if it doesn't work…” The implication hung in the air.
Dr. Hampton stood. “Good. Then start today.”
Silas walked Dr. Hampton out of the building while I headed for the runt’s room. When I unlocked the door, she did exactly what I expected and slid under the bed.
I sighed and moved to the side of the bed, then eased myself down the wall until I was sitting on the floor. I stretched my legs out in front of me and folded my arms behind my head, settling in.
If Dr. Hampton wanted a constant alpha presence and all Lena intended to do was hide, this was going to be painfully boring for both of us.
“Lena,” I said, closing my eyes and tilting my head back against the wall.
I knew she was listening. She always was quiet and watchful, tracking every sound and shift in the room.
“Things are going to be different from now on,” I said evenly. “You don’t like being touched. Fine. We won’t touch you... as long as you follow Dr. Hampton's routine.”
I paused, letting the words sit between us.
“If you do things on your own, we won’t force you. Eating. Showering. Going to appointments. All of it. You move when it’s time, and we won’t make you.”
I opened my eyes and angled my head, peering under the bed.
“You nodded for the doctor earlier,” I said. “You don’t have to talk. Just yes or no with your head. Can you do that for me?”
She was closer to the edge than usual, arms folded under her chin, eyes fixed on me. Then I saw it. A small, careful nod.
“That’s it,” I murmured. “Just like that.”
I shifted slightly, keeping my posture loose and nonthreatening. “Let’s start with something easy. A shower.”
Her body went taut immediately, every muscle bristling with tension.
“Not like before in the workshop,” I added calmly. “No cold water. No hose. No dragging you anywhere. You go in by yourself with no one watching.”
Her eyes flicked toward the door, then back to me.
“A real shower,” I said. “Hot water. As long as you want. You can come out whenever you’re done, and then we’ll try eating something.”
I tilted my head, studying her. “Better than getting hosed down with freezing water in the workshop, huh?”
She hesitated, caught between the pull of warmth and the safety of her hiding place. I didn’t rush her. I just stayed where I was, head cocked, waiting.
If this was going to work, Silas and I were going to have to learn patience.
Finally, she nodded again.
Cautiously, she slid out from under the bed, keeping as much distance between us as the room allowed, but she didn’t retreat, didn’t bite and didn’t bolt.
I led the way down the hall, as she trailed behind me. When we got to the bathroom, she peered inside, checking every corner with attention before she would step inside. I stood outside, not wanting to intrude in the small space and spook her.
Once she deemed it safe and entered, she reached for the handle, about to shut the door.
I tutted. "No, runt, the door stays open, just a crack."
Her brow furrowed as she darted back and forth between me and the tempting shower.
“I won’t watch you, but I need to stay here and wait, and I need to hear what you’re doing,” I said evenly. “It’s for your safety. Like Dr. Hampton explained.”
To reinforce it, I eased the door inward until it creaked, leaving only a narrow sliver open.
“I put fresh clothes and towels on the counter,” I added. “Nod if you understand.”
Instead of nodding, she lifted her hand and rolled her wrist in a small, deliberate circle. She wanted me to turn around.
I did, facing the hallway and listening as she moved inside.
A moment later, footsteps approached me. Silas came to a halt at my side.
“Doc’s gone. Are we really going to—”
His voice faltered as his gaze snagged on the crack in the door.
I followed it before I could stop myself.
In the mirror’s reflection, I saw what had stopped Silas in his tracks. A glimpse of Lena's back as she undressed.
She was so much smaller than I’d imagined and so damn frail. Her shoulders were sharp beneath thin skin and her ribs stood out as if there were barely anything holding her together. Bruises mottled her body in every shade of decay, some yellowed with age, others dark, angry, and new.
But it was the scars that punched the air from my lungs.
They traced a brutal path from her neck down her back, jagged and deep, the kind left by someone who took their time. Someone like my brother and me, as much as I hated to admit.
A low growl tore out of my chest before I could stop it.
Lena froze, turning over her shoulder, meeting my eyes in the mirror. Her eyes went wide as she realized what we had seen. Color flooded her face, shame burning hot. Then she moved fast, slipping behind the shower curtain and yanking it closed as water roared to life.
Silas’s hands curled at his sides, knuckles whitening. His jaw locked, his breath coming hard through his nose.
“I’m going to kill him,” he said, in a flat and deadly tone.
I didn’t hesitate. “Agreed.”
The water hammered against the tile, steam quickly filling the bathroom. A quiet sound slipped from Lena’s throat, barely more than a breath, as the heat sank into her tired bones.
Standing there, listening to that small, stolen moment of relief, something clicked into place.
Lena wasn’t just an informant. She wasn’t a problem to solve or an asset to manage.
She was a victim.
Just like our mother had been.
And suddenly, the intel mattered less than the revenge that came after. Marco Bellini would pay, but not yet. We couldn’t complete our plan until Lena trusted us enough to speak.
So we would wait. We would do everything Dr. Hampton told us to do. And when the runt gave us what we needed, we would make sure Marco paid for both of them.