Page 72 of Caged

Why are his arms around me?When I tried to move away, my body screamed.The cattle prod. Every muscle felt overworked.

“Sore, but otherwise okay.” I pulled away, immediately missing his warmth. “How long was I out?”

“Maybe thirty minutes.”

I braced my hands on his knees and stood. His hands hovered nearby, ready to support me if needed. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” He stood behind me. When I started to stretch, he said, “Start slow.”

“I don’t think that’s an option.” My laugh sounded more like a whimper.

He handed me a bottle of water. Remembering my fear of drugs, I sipped slowly despite my thirst.

“Thank you, for everything,” I said as I handed him the bottle. I was seeing a new side of Jaden.He’s a good guy when he’s not trying to prove he’s not ‘less than’ his brothers.Not that I’d say it out loud, at least not here.

“No problem.” He shrugged it off.

Remembering what I wanted to tell him, I whispered, “Franks is a sadist and Roman doesn’t like to get his hands dirty.”

“That doesn’t surprise me. He hides behind a lot of shell corporations and lets his enforcers do the work.”

“No, I mean literally. He backhanded me and immediately reached for sanitizer.”

“Interesting. How can we use it?”

“Not sure. I doubt he’ll be hands on often.” He had Franks and his other goons for that.

“Feeling better?” he asked.

I wished I could see his expressions. Not that I doubted his sincerity, I could hear that, but I wanted to give him the answer he needed. There was no guarantee they’d question him before taking another go at me, and I didn’t want him more pissed off than he already was.

“I am.” It wasn’t a total lie. “I just need to move a little.” I walked the perimeter of our cage, my right hand trailing along the wall or bars for added support.

We talked about what they’d asked, my answers, and their methods for extracting information. Jaden’s low growls didn’t go unnoticed when I told him about the hits and zaps.

“It could have been worse,” I played it off.

“You’re one tough cookie, Maxwell.”

“Was that a compliment, Sheppard?”

He laughed, “Don’t let it go to your head.”

When the foghorn blasted, I jumped, making me wince.

The door opened, and three guys stomped down the stairs. One of them tossed two paper bags through the bars before they all stomped back up the stairs.

“Breakfast is served.” Shockingly, Jaden’s snarky sense of humor helped me stay calm.

“Bon Appetit.” I quoted Franks.

The meal was the same. A sandwich, chips, a cookie, and a bottle of water.

We tested the water bottles and ignored the food, making our stomachs grumble in protest. At some point, we’d have to risk eating something if we wanted to keep our strength up, but we weren’t there yet.

And as long as we have water, we have six to eight weeks before starvation kills us.

Not true,we’d succumb sooner. The cold, physical abuse, and torture induced lack of sleep would weaken us significantly and shorten our life spans.

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