Chapter 10 Aurora
AURORA
The concrete walls feel closer now than when we arrived, our prison shrinking with each passing hour.
We’ve been taken out one by one to shower and returned immediately after.
And they’ve given us a fresh nightgown. I’ve regained control of my limbs since the drugging incident, but being able to move freely in a locked cell feels like its own special torture.
“Water delivery,” a guard announces, sliding two bottles through the meal slot. The routine never changes—breakfast at seven, water at ten and three, dinner at six. Like clockwork in hell.
Olivia sits on her cot, knees pulled to her chest. She hasn’t met my eyes properly since that night. Since what Jax did. Since what I saw.
“Liv,” I say softly. “You need to drink something.”
She shakes her head almost imperceptibly. Dark circles rim her eyes, her once-perfect blonde hair hanging limply around her face.
The electronic lock disengages with its familiar mechanical whine. My stomach tightens instantly—it’s not a scheduled mealtime. That means only one thing.
Jax enters, immaculate as always in a black tailored suit. Two-armed guards flank the doorway behind him.
“Good morning, ladies.” His voice carries that unsettling blend of politeness and menace. “Day five of our little arrangement. How are we feeling?”
Neither of us responds. I’ve learned that silence infuriates him more than defiance.
“Not talkative today?” He crosses to Liv’s cot, standing too close. “That’s a shame. I so enjoy our conversations.”
Liv shrinks further into herself. I catch her trembling.
“Perhaps Aurora would like to chat instead?” He turns his dark gaze to me. “Tell me, what’s your favorite childhood memory with your sister? Before she became such a willing—”
“Stop it,” I snap, unable to contain myself.
He smiles, victorious at getting a reaction. “Protective, aren’t we? Though I wonder why. Your sister seems quite capable of making her own… decisions.”
Olivia makes a small sound—something between a whimper and a sob.
“Leave her alone,” I say, standing despite every instinct screaming to appear smaller, less threatening.
Jax ignores me, reaching to brush a strand of hair from Olivia’s face. She flinches but doesn’t pull away. The shame in her eyes when she finally glances at me is unbearable.
“Such lovely sisters,” Jax murmurs, his fingers trailing down to Olivia’s neck. “So different, yet equally... entertaining.”
Jax’s fingers slide from Olivia’s neck to her jaw, forcing her head up. “Drink,” he commands, grabbing one of the water bottles and pressing it against her lips.
Olivia clamps her mouth shut, turning her face away.
“I said drink.” His voice drops an octave, that dangerous edge returning. With one hand, he pinches her nose closed while the other tips the bottle to her lips.
Olivia struggles briefly but can’t break his grip. When she finally gasps for air, water floods her mouth. She chokes, coughs, but Jax doesn’t relent until half the bottle is empty, water spilling down her chin and neck, darkening the nightgown.
My stomach churns. I’ve already finished my water—downed it mindlessly minutes before Jax arrived. What’s in it?
“Perfect. Now we’re ready for our entertainment.” Jax releases Olivia, who collapses into a coughing fit. He pulls a tablet from his jacket pocket and positions it so we can both see.
The screen lights up with a news channel logo. The headline scrolls across the bottom.
TECH MOGUL HUNTER REED LINKED TO ORGANIZED CRIME SYNDICATE.
“Your boyfriend’s quite the celebrity these days,” Jax says, his eyes fixed on my reaction.
The footage shows Hunter leaving a building, his expression cold as reporters shout questions.
“This carefully edited garbage doesn’t prove anything,” I say.
Jax laughs. “The public disagrees. Your Hunter is officially Public Enemy Number One. I doubt he has time to even look for you.”
My heart sinks despite myself.
“Five days,” Jax continues. “I expected him sooner. Perhaps you’re not as important to him as you believed?” He studies my face with clinical interest. “Or maybe he’s simply outmatched this time.”
I watch the screen, the images of Hunter burning into my mind. Five days. Has it really been that long? The seed of doubt takes root despite my determination to crush it. What if Hunter can’t find us? What if Jax has outmaneuvered him?
“You look troubled, Aurora,” Jax says, putting the tablet away. “Having second thoughts about your knight in crime-stained armor?”
I don’t answer, but my silence feels more like weakness than defiance now.
Jax turns his attention back to Olivia. “Your sister still believes in fairy tales.” His hand slides to her shoulder, fingers tracing her collarbone. “You’re more practical, aren’t you, Liv?”
To my horror, Liv doesn’t pull away. Her eyes remain downcast, but she leans into his touch.
“That’s better,” Jax murmurs. His hand moves lower, tracing the outline of her breast through the fabric of her nightgown.
“Liv,” I whisper, my voice catching.
Jax’s other hand cups Liv’s face. “Tell your sister how you feel when I touch you.”
Liv’s eyes flick to mine, a flash of something—shame? Fear? Something else? —before dropping again.
When Jax guides her hand to the front of his trousers, she doesn’t resist.
My stomach churns. “What did you put in the water?” I demand suddenly.
Jax turns to me, smiling while his hand remains on Olivia’s. “Just something to help you both sleep deeply. Very deeply.”
The implication hits me like ice water. Sleep deeply—deeply enough that we wouldn’t know if he came in during the night. Wouldn’t know what he did to us while we were unconscious.
“You drugged me again?”
“Consider it a courtesy,” Jax replies smoothly. “The human mind needs rest, especially in stressful circumstances.”
“You’re a monster,” I whisper.
“I never claimed to be anything but a monster, Aurora.” Jax’s voice carries no shame. “Your mistake was assuming your Hunter is any different.”
He turns back to Liv, his fingers threading through her blonde hair, tilting her head to expose the pale curve of her neck. When his lips touch her skin, my stomach twists into a knot of revulsion.
But what happens next freezes my blood.
Liv moans.
Not a whimper of fear or a cry of distress, but a sound I recognize from my own sounds I make with Hunter—pleasure. Her eyes flutter closed, body arching toward Jax as his mouth works its way down her throat.
Is this real? My mind races through possibilities. Is Liv playing him—pretending to respond to gain his trust? It would align with the strategy she mentioned days ago, using his attraction to find an escape opportunity.
But the flush spreading across her cheeks looks genuine. The way her fingers curl into the fabric of his suit jacket seems instinctive. She’s either a very good fucking actress or…
I search her face for some sign—a flicker of revulsion behind her eyelids, a moment of eye contact to reassure me this is all an act—but find nothing. If she’s playing a role, she’s committed to it completely.
Or maybe...maybe she truly responds to him. Stockholm syndrome? The drugs in our water? Or a darkness in my sister I’ve never recognized before?
I want to scream, to pull her away from him, but I’m frozen in place, watching this nightmare unfold with no way to determine if my sister is a victim or a willing participant in her own corruption.
Jax’s hand slides up along her thigh. The sight makes me physically ill. He leans in, his lips brushing against her ear, but his eyes remain fixed on me—watching my reaction.
“Tonight,” he whispers, loud enough for me to hear every syllable, “when the drugs take effect, and you’re deep asleep, I’m going to come back in here and eat your perfect little pussy until you come in your sleep. Would you like that, Olivia?”
“Fuck off,” I spit, lunging forward before remembering the armed guards at the door. “Don’t even think about touching her, you psychopath.”
Liv’s reaction stops me cold. Instead of revulsion or fear, her pupils dilate, lips parting slightly. A flush creeps up her neck as she gazes at Jax through half-lidded eyes. She looks... aroused.
Who is this woman? The sister I grew up with, shared secrets with, comforted through breakups, and celebrated achievements with—she’s become a stranger in five days. Or maybe she was always a stranger, and I just never saw it.
Liv suddenly reaches up, grabs Jax’s face between her hands, and crushes her lips against his. The move clearly takes him by surprise—his eyes widen before he recovers, gripping her waist and deepening the kiss.
“What the fuck, Liv?” I gasp, unable to process what I’m seeing. “What about Ari?”
Jax immediately stiffens, breaking away from Olivia. His hand remains possessively on her thigh.
“Ari?” His voice drops dangerously. “What do you mean?”
The temperature in the room seems to plummet. I realize I’ve said something significant, something that matters to Jax in ways I don’t understand. But I press forward, desperate for any advantage.
“She was dating Ari. Ari Carter. Before all this.”
Jax’s eyes darken as he turns to Liv. “Is that what you like? A nice pretty boy who would look perfect on his hands and knees sucking cock?” He grabs her chin roughly. “Not a real man?”
Liv bites her lip. “No,” she whispers, her voice breathy. “I don’t want a boy. I like you.” She leans forward and kisses him again, her hands sliding up his chest.
My stomach turns as I watch my sister press against this monster, her body language broadcasting desire rather than revulsion. This can’t be happening.
Jax pulls back, a satisfied smirk spreading across his face as he strokes her cheek. “Good girl,” he murmurs, his thumb brushing across her lower lip. “Very good girl.”
He stands abruptly, straightening his jacket. “I’ll see you tonight,” he states, his eyes flickering between Liv and me. “Both of you.”
With a final look, Jax exits the cell, the electronic lock engaging with a definitive click behind him.
The moment he’s gone, I round on Olivia. “What the hell was that? Have you completely lost your mind?”
“It’s our way out, Aurora,” Liv says in a low, urgent voice. “Don’t you see? I need to use his obsession with me to blindside him.”
“By what? Sleeping with him?” I hiss, incredulous.
“By making him trust me enough to let his guard down,” she counters. “He’s careful around you because he knows you hate him, but he thinks he’s breaking me. I can use that.”
I shake my head, trying to process this. “How exactly will we escape when we’re drugged every night? Did you forget that part of his sick little game?”
Liv’s eyes dart to the water bottle Jax forced her to drink, then to the steel toilet in the corner of our cell. Her expression shifts from despair to determination.
“I know how to fix this,” she whispers. She staggers toward the toilet, dropping to her knees beside it.
“What are you—” I begin, but before I can finish, Liv sticks her fingers down her throat. She retches violently, her body convulsing as she empties the contents of her stomach into the toilet.
She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand and nods toward me. “Your turn now.”
I stare at her, not immediately understanding.
“The water, Aurora. Get it out of your system.” Her voice is raw but urgent. “If we’re not drugged, we can stay awake. And when he comes back tonight...”
The realization hits me. “Genius,” I breathe. If Jax thinks we’re unconscious, but we’re awake and alert...
I rush to the toilet as Liv moves aside, and I push my finger down my throat, gagging immediately. It takes several attempts before my body finally responds, expelling the water I’d consumed earlier—earlier than Liv.
The acidic taste in my mouth is disgusting, but the clarity in my mind is worth it. I spit repeatedly, trying to clear the bitter taste.
“Do you think it worked?” I ask, wiping my streaming eyes. “What if it’s already in our bloodstream?”
“I don’t know,” Liv admits. “But it’s better than doing nothing. We have to try.”
I glance at the security camera mounted in the corner of our cell. “He’ll have seen us throw up.”
Liv shakes her head. “I doubt it, as he only just left. We need to act drugged when he comes. Make him think his plan worked.”
I flush the toilet and slump back against the wall, my throat raw and my mouth still tasting of bile. Despite the discomfort, my mind feels sharper than it has in days. I look at Liv, who’s already settled back on her cot, arranging herself in a position that mimics drugged sleep.
“We need to practice,” she whispers, eyes closed but body tense. “Slow breathing. Completely limp. Not even a twitch when he...” She doesn’t finish the sentence, but I understand.
My heart hammers against my ribs as I consider what’s ahead.
“What if it doesn’t work?” I whisper, moving to my own cot. “What if there’s still enough of the drug in our system?”
Liv opens one eye. “Then we try again tomorrow. And the next day.”
I practice relaxing my muscles one by one, forcing my breathing to become deep and even. It’s surprisingly difficult to appear genuinely unconscious—my body wants to tense, to prepare for fight or flight.
“We’ll only get one shot at this,” I murmur. “If he realizes we’re awake...”
“He won’t,” Liv says with quiet determination. “Men like Jax are so confident in their power, they don’t imagine anyone could outsmart them.”
I think of Hunter, wondering if he would say the same about me. The thought sends a pang through my chest. Is he still searching? Has he given up?
“When he comes in,” Liv continues, “we wait until he’s... distracted. Then we strike. Together.”
The plan is terrifying and brilliant in its simplicity. No complex escape scheme, just two desperate women with the element of surprise on their side. If we can overpower Jax, we might be able to use his access to escape.
“It might actually work,” I breathe, a tiny spark of hope flickering to life within me.
For the first time since our capture, I feel something beyond despair—a dangerous, fragile optimism. It’s mixed with gut-wrenching fear, but it’s there.