Page 98 of Fighting for Her Heart
The silver, the shackling system holding them to the wall, the blood and semen collection equipment—logic says all of those thingsmustbe real, but I can’t be certain, not entirely, nor can I be sure about anything else I’ve seen down here.
Ryker struggles against the witches, but they use the silver against him and he soon slumps, falling to his knees in obvious pain, and clearly weakened from all of the blood they’ve taken.
I clamp my lips together, fighting the urge to call out to him, or scream for the witches to stop. Both would only make things worse for Ryker, but it’s hard to think how it could get any worse.
One of the witches clips a leash to his silver collar and Ryker crawls weekly as she pulls him forward and into the cell.
Watching makes my heart shatter, but I can’t look away. I might not be able to stop it, but the least I can do is bear witness to all that he’s going through—since I am the cause. If these men hadn’t met me, none of them would be enduring this suffering.
The witches clamp a chain onto the shackle around Ryker’s ankle—a chain that’s bolted to the wall.
“How is this better?” I ask Nora. “You said you’d remove their silver.” I drop my head down. “Please.”
Nora pats my cheek. “Once all three are safely inside, I will make them more comfortable—that is, if they remain docile and cooperative.”
“Do you promise?” I can’t imagine any of these men being docile or cooperative.
She nods. I’m not sure whether her promise is worth much, but it’s all I’ve got, and I watch as Zuben is similarly transferred into the cell.
Then they turn to Axe.
The instant they remove the cage around his head and release his collar from the wall, Axe roars from behind his gag. He pulls against his other bindings, tugging so hard I fear the shackles will burn right through his wrists and ankles, severing his hands and feet. Can vampires heal from such wounds? Can we replace entire appendages? I have no idea. But I do know he’d die if that collar burns through his throat and severs his head.
“Don’t hurt yourself, Axe,” I cry out. “Please.”
Keeping eye contact with me, he continues to struggle, fighting against the witches and the silver. His eyes are full of rage.
Sighing in annoyance, Nora opens a small wooden box that’s sitting on a table nearby. She retrieves a syringe with an impossibly long needle, crosses over to Axe and then injects something into his body.
Whatever she injects immediately renders Axe unconscious. It was likely that same silver concoction Octavia’s guards used on Ryker and me when we were first captured in Rittenhouse Square.
Once Axe is subdued, it takes all three of the witches to drag Axe to the door of the cell. Glaring at them, Ryker and Zuben tug against their chains, threatening the witches who have yet to get Axe inside.
Nora swirls her hand.
The floor of the cell lights on fire.
Chapter Thirty
Ember
Ryker and Zuben shout in pain, trying to escape flames that seem so real I can smell burning flesh, although it’s so hard to tell the cause of that odor given how badly we’ve all been burned by the silver.
What have I done?
I wanted to alleviate their pain and instead they’re being burned alive.
My heart races, but I remind myself that the flames I’m seeing, that they’re all seeing, must be an illusion. Surely the men know this too, but I imagine it’s hard to listen to reason when you’re bound by silver shackles and engulfed in flames. Watching it is hard enough.
The flames die down as suddenly as they started, and the witches quickly move Axe into the cell, leaving him unconscious on the floor and the other two men crouched in obvious pain.
Ryker lunges toward the bars. He grabs them as if he plans to rip a huge hole, but then leaps back in pain. The bars too are made of silver. Of course they are. The chain holding his ankle tugs him back from the bars, shortening and reducing his range of movement.
He glares at Nora, who turns back toward me, smiling.
“There,” she says. “Happy now, darling?”
“Happy?” Is she kidding me? I shake my head. “You said you’d remove their silver. They’re still gagged and shackled!”
