Chapter 18 Hawk
Hawk
Ishivered at the proximity of the prisoner.
Where my hand touched her arm, there was electricity.
A fire that would not be quenched. It took away the pain momentarily.
Made the agony less intense. The fire that burned with her presence was nothing like the fire that raged through me when she was in her cell.
The creature that smelled like blood walked on her other side. She stumbled each step, forcing us to carry her. The prisoner could barely walk.
My vision blurred every time I tried to look at her, but not the familiar creature.
He kept a snarl on his lips as he maintained a harsh pace towards the cages. I matched his strides, but part of me hated it. Hated him. The rage-filled storm within me wanted to explode when he was near. It only grew darker, more vengeful the longer I was with him.
The hallway leading to the prison was wide enough for several soldiers, but we were otherwise alone with the prisoner. She didn’t try to speak, or if she did, I couldn’t hear her. For some reason, she angered the other male. He wanted her dead.
But I couldn’t bring myself to feel the same way.
The wide doors leading into the cages opened, revealing more soldiers within.
They eyed the prisoner with hunger, dragging their eyes over her body like she was their next meal.
Something about it made the rage rise sharply within me.
My hand tightened around her arm possessively, but the prisoner made a sound.
The bloody creature laughed. “Maybe soon, he’ll let them have their fun with you.”
Again, the rage built, climbing up my throat. It coiled around my heart with a fierceness that should have made me stop. And yet, it didn’t feel wrong.
But I couldn’t open my mouth to tell the prisoner it wouldn’t happen.
We crossed into the prison, where cages lined the floor. The smell of blood, shit, and piss thickened the air, overwhelming compared to the rest of the compound. Here, the beasts and other prisoners were kept. The overseers passed with guns and whips, still eyeing our prisoner like a scrap of meat.
But it was the beasts who drew my attention more.
Each cage we passed, the beasts within dropped. Wolves, bears, lions, panthers. The sound of bodies hitting metal rang out throughout the prison as silence washed over the area.
Not even the guards said a word, though they drew their weapons. Out of habit, I placed my hand on my hip, where my gun was hidden. We’d been warned the prisoner might try to steal our weapons. They were charmed and hidden now on anyone sent to deal with her.
But the beasts didn’t try to escape. They made no other sound other than hitting their cages as they fell.
Even the other prisoners reacted to her presence.
We dragged her to a large cage in the centre of the prison. New wards buzzed along the bars, turning my stomach. They reminded me of the magic of her cell. That buzzing, which came with pain, returned as the bloody male opened the cage door.
“Enjoy your new home,” the male said, turning to our prisoner with a dark smile. “I’m sure you’ll appreciate it.”
She said something, her voice soft, but I couldn’t hear her over the buzzing in my ears.
Whatever she said angered my partner, but he didn’t strike her. Instead, he grabbed her by the chain of her collar and dragged her into the cage.
“Maybe you’ll finally learn your place,” he sneered.
I didn’t stop him as he threw her inside. Even though something within me screamed to take her and run, to save her, I couldn’t move.
Before the cage door could close, the prisoner hissed, “I hate you.”
Something in those words made the pain worse. Gave the agony a new life.
The familiar creature grabbed me by the shoulder, moving me away from the cage and the female within. “Do you remember who she is?” he asked carefully.
I kept my eyes trained on the doors ahead of us as the beasts in the surrounding cages howled and whined. “No,” I replied slowly. Lie, something within me shouted. Do not trust the bloody one. “Should I?”
The male made a sound in the back of his throat. “Yeah,” he muttered. “You should.”
Those words fed the fiery pain. And I let it.