Page 107 of Jagged Souls
I knew offering it up to Varius’ enemy would break him. There’s no sugarcoating what I did.
I just thought that there was a chance he could forgive me for it. That he would understand I was only hurting him to save myself just like he’d hurt me to save Khalid.
Whereas, I knew I would not be able to forgive him for choosing which sense I lost.
Yet, he went and did it anyway. Hechoseto hurt me. He thought about it and decided that it was acceptable.
We’re never going to come back from this.
Tears claw at my throat as that truth resonates inside of me.
The last month I’ve spent trying to forgive him was fornothing.
The anger comes back now, pushing aside the grief.
I hate him.
I hate him so fucking much that all I want to do is break out of here so I can yell at him. So I can torture him like he tortured me.
An eye for an eye only works with enemies. It leaves only bitterness, no second chances. No returning from one’s mistakes. But we are already too broken to fix, and my rage is all I have left to carry me through this nightmare.
So I use it. Wield it. Letting it burn furiously through me, I rub my face against my pillow. I need to figure out where I am. With me blind, they might lower their guard around me now. So if I keep being smart about it, I can escape. Maybe not today, but eventually.
Then I can kick Varius’ ass.
With a strengthening inhale, I push myself up and search for the edge of the bed. My fury falters a bit under the panic that slams into me from being unable to see. I’m only doing something simple, yet I feel like I’m climbing a sheer rock face with a hundred-foot drop. A river raging below without mercy.
I shudder as I breathe, trying to find my focus.
It’s just a bed.
But what if I’m on a top bunk? Or there’s glass or trip wires on the floor to keep me imprisoned without the use of chains?
He wants me alive to breed, but I don’t need to be able to walk.
Moving slowly, I scoot forward on my ass until my feet find the edge of the bed. I hold my breath as they swing off it, the anticipation of pain sending needles across my skin. I reach down, stretching my legs.
Fuck.
Where’s the floor?
My pulse starts to pick up.
I point my toes.
There! Hard wood presses against my soles, and I exhale with relief. Pushing to my feet, I spread my arms out around me and inch forward.
Something grabs my wrist and hauls me towards it.
My body recoils.
My heart rate spikes.
The fear in my belly tells me it’s Sadist, and I swing for him with my other hand. He laughs as he dodges, then kicks me in the stomach. My legs buckle, but before I can hit the ground, he knees me in the face. My head jerks back. Pain explodes all down my jaw and neck. My teeth bite into my tongue, and blood fills my mouth as I start to fall. He shoves me, angling me towards the bed, and I hit it on my back.
Panic rushes through me. I need to sit up. I need to –
His hand wraps around my throat; he drags me beneath him, up the mattress, as he crawls on top of me. I try to kick him, but it doesn’t throw him off. He lies down on me and licks the side of my face.
