Page 13 of Born into Darkness

“Yeah, like a shadow in the night, silent and deadly. He’s a sniper. He can shoot just about anything from anywhere. It’s too dangerous for him to be in the middle of the fighting because he can’t hear what’s going on behind him, but from a distance, he’s unstoppable.”

I hear the pride in her voice, and I love that she’s close to her family. It makes me even more curious about them, and a deaf sniper intrigues the hell out of me. “I’d love to meet him,” I tell her. “I’d like to meet all of them.” I grin and add, “Especially Wallace. He sounds smarter than some people I’ve met.”

She laughs and I feel her shake her head in agreement. “He’s a genius. I’ve even taught him a few signs.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, he knows sit, lie down, and roll over, but I want to teach him more. Border collies love to learn new things, and they really love having a job to do. They’re not the type of dog that’s happy just lying around. So what about you? You mentioned a brother. Do you have any other siblings or pets?”

“No, I don’t have any pets and only one younger brother, Nikita, but we all call him Niki. He took after my dad and ever since he was little, he’s been obsessed with computers. I took after our mom and became obsessed with the piano.”

“She’s a musician too?”

“Yeah, she loves to play the piano, but she’s shy about it. I don’t have any other siblings, but I’m so close to my cousins that they may as well be my brothers and sisters.”

“That’s how it is with my family,” she says. “We’re all very close, and my dad’s top men live on our property, so I grew up with their kids, too. They’re like family to me.”

I keep asking her questions, trying to picture her life in my head as we sit in darkness, waiting for the inevitable sound of the door opening again. I’ve lost all concept of time, and it feels like hours since they brought our last meal. We should be getting one more, but I’m guessing Miguel is going to make sure that doesn’t happen. He’s a fucking sadist, and I’ve never hated anyone as much as I hate him.

Talia’s voice gets softer, her words coming farther and farther apart, until they stop altogether as her breathing evens out. Not wanting her neck to be sore, I carefully move her so her head is in my lap. She makes a soft noise, the movement pulling her from sleep, so I stroke her hair and whisper that it’s okay. Some part of her must recognize my voice because she instantly calms and lets out a deep breath. I keep stroking her hair, not wanting to stop touching her. Without her voice to fill the room, the darkness is even more oppressive, making me feel like I can’t breathe.

I fucking hate it, and when we finally get out of here, I’m never going to be in a fully dark room ever again. There will always be some form of light coming in, even if it is just the moonlight streaming in from an open window. The weight of Talia’s head in my lap and the sound of her soft breathing is what I force myself to focus on. A tune plays in my head, one I’ve been composing for her, and while she sleeps, my fingers gently move, playing the melody that only I can hear. I’m calling itSvetik Moy, My Light, because that’s what she is to me. She’s the light in this darkness, the only good thing in this place.

Eventually I fall asleep, resting my head against the hard wall with my fingers still woven into her hair. I feel like I’ve just fallen asleep when I hear the heavy door scratching across the concrete as it’s pulled open. My head is thick with sleep, but I’m coherent enough to gently push Talia off me. She gives a soft whine of protest before I feel her whole body stiffen when she realizes what’s going on. Without another sound, she scurries away right before the lights are flicked on and Miguel steps in, followed closely by Juan and Jose. The cruel smirk on Miguel’s face makes it clear that today is not going to be a good day.

Juan walks over, unlocking Talia from her chain so he can lead her to the bathroom. I follow her with my eyes until she disappears from sight.

“Pretty girl,” Miguel says, stepping closer and watching my face for a reaction. I don’t give him one. I force myself to relax, keeping a bored look in my eyes when I meet his.

He gives a soft laugh when I don’t give him what he wants, and when Talia is brought back out, he lets out a groan that has the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. Before Juan can secure her to the chain again, Miguel says something to him in Spanish that has him stepping aside so Miguel can take his place. Talia keeps her head down, avoiding his stare, so he hooks a finger under her chin, roughly forcing her face up to his. Without taking his eyes off her, he says, “Take him to the bathroom.”

His accent is thick, but he’s been speaking more English. Whether he’s learning it just so he can fuck with me or if he’s always known more than he’s let on, I’m not sure. I wouldn’t put it past him to learn some just so he can taunt me. Juan reaches for my chain, but I keep my eyes on Talia. I don’t want to leave her alone, and that’s exactly what Miguel is testing me on. Using every bit of willpower I have I pretend like I don’t give a fuck. Returning Miguel’s smile, I say in Russian, “Scream if he touches you.”

He may be studying up on his English, but there’s no way in hell he’s also managed to learn some Russian. The man only has so much free time available to him. His scowl lets me know I’m right. I resist giving him a smug grin because I know Talia will be the one to suffer for it. Letting Juan lead me to the bathroom, I step in and then quickly use the disgusting toilet before turning on the rusty faucet that only produces ice-cold water. Filling my mouth, I swish it around as best I can while I scrub at my face. There’s very little to be done without a rag or soap, but I lift my shirt and scrub at my chest and armpits, determined to at least try to get rid of how disgusting I feel. Spitting the water out, I pull my shirt back down, ignoring the black-and-blue bruises that decorate the majority of my body, and watch the cold water fall down the open drain. Val and I decided early on to not drink any of it. It doesn’t look all that clean, and if our captors aren’t even using it to give us our daily ration of water, then there’s no way in hell I’m going to willingly ingest it. Ignoring my empty stomach and the gnawing thirst that never seems to go away, I turn off the faucet and step out.

I’ve only been gone a few minutes and Talia hasn’t made any noise, but I don’t breathe easy until she’s in my line of sight and I see for myself that she’s okay. Her eyes are filled with fear, and I can see the way her body is softly shaking, but she’s still clothed, and I don’t see any signs that she’s been hurt. Miguel’s body is way too close to hers, though, and when I’m chained back in my usual spot, he reaches down and grabs her ass, making her let out a terrified yelp.

I raise a brow at him, schooling my features into a bored, exhausted expression. I don’t have to fake the exhaustion, but the bored is using all my willpower to perfect. When he doesn’t get the reaction he wants, he smacks her ass hard and then shoves her to the ground, ignoring the sob she lets out when her knees hit the hard floor. I bite the inside of my cheek so hard I taste blood, but I refuse to show how much this is killing me. I won’t allow him to use her against me. It’s far too dangerous of a game to play with Talia at the center of it.

“You forgot our supper last night, Miguel,” I tell him as I sit with my back against the hard wall. “And it looks like you didn’t bring any breakfast with you. It’d be a shame if we starved to death and missed out on the pleasure of your company.”

Just like I’d hoped, he forgets about Talia and walks over to me, barking out an order to Jose and Juan. When the two men haul me up, I try not to show how much I’m dreading the upcoming beating.

“I’m sorry,” Talia quickly says in Russian, and the distraught sound of her voice has Miguel turning his gaze back to her.

“Don’t let him see that you care,” I warn her. My voice is flat and emotionless, the exact opposite of how I’m actually feeling. “No matter what he does to me, don’t let on that you care. It’ll just make things worse.”

She nods, and I know this isn’t going to be easy for her, but we don’t have any other choice. The most important thing is to keep these men away from her. If they keep their focus on hurting me, then maybe they won’t bother her, so I look at Miguel and give him a smile. “Ready, asshole?”

Turning his back on Talia, he barks out another order in Spanish, making me wonder if he’s been given some kind of promotion. The three of them seemed like they were on equal footing, but now it’s like Miguel is in charge. I never thought I’d miss Mateo, but I can’t help the quick glance I give to the door, wishing his Armani-suited ass would walk in and put a stop to this.

He doesn’t appear, though, and soon I’m strung back up and awaiting my beating while still in so much pain from the last one. Miguel doesn’t make me wait. He never does. I’m guessing he’s not big on foreplay. With him, it’s always straight to the point without bothering to get me ready for it. A pained groan escapes when he hits me in the kidney that makes him give a soft laugh.

“God, you’re such a fucking bastard,” I tell him, but he just grins and keeps punching.

When he hits my face, my vision darkens, and soon my mouth is filled with blood, and when the coughing starts, I can’t get it to stop. It feels like I’m being stabbed in the lungs with each breath I take. Spitting blood out, I force myself to take slow, shallow breaths, trying to get my coughing under control, but the bastard keeps hitting me, refusing to give me even a second of peace. We’ve done this enough times for me to know that I just need to outlast him. Aside from not liking foreplay, Miguel also has very poor stamina. I swear it’s why he’s so angry. He’s a shit lover, and every unsatisfied woman he leaves in his wake just fills him with even more rage that he then takes out on me. It’s a vicious cycle, but I’m not going to be the one to enlighten him and help him work through his problems. Instead I’m going to kill him the first chance I get.

The room starts to spin, and I know I’m close to passing out. Miguel must sense it because he gives me one more hard punch to the ribs, making me see stars as my pained groan fills the room. He smiles, clearly enjoying every second of my torture. Gasping for air, I stand before him with my arms hanging above my head and barely enough strength in my legs to keep me upright. He glares at me while I sway on my feet. This is usually the part where he growls something at me in Spanish and lets me go, laughing when I collapse to the floor, but today he just grins and raises his fists again.

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