Page 176 of Burn Like An Angel
I watch in terror as the clear liquid is pushed into my body, a chill quickly spreading through my vein. He squeezes out every last millilitre then tears the needle from my arm.
“No,” I moan, my lips thick and rubbery.
“We may as well make use of their stash now that the institutes are toast.” He stands back up, rezipping the pouch. “Consider it payment for your role in destroying all our hard work.”
I frantically try to fill my lungs. For every second he watches me, I can feel my bodily functions slowing. Woollen numbness is rushing through me faster than a heart attack.
He squints while watching me. “How interesting.”
My fingers soon stop responding. Not even a twitch. Then my legs and toes. My tongue becomes an immovable mass, trapped in my mouth. Even breathing shallowly feels like it takes great exertion.
“I believe the drug has a paralysing effect,” Elon muses. “You can hear and see everything… but you’re powerless to move. Can’t even say a word. How fascinating.”
No,I want to scream.
But my vocal cords have been severed.
Pinching my chin between his fingers, Elon peers into my eyes. Whatever he sees causes satisfaction to stretch his smile into a clown-like caricature.
All I want is to claw that fucking sneer from his face and leave him in fleshy ribbons. The will is there, but nothing responds. I can hardly blink.
My body has been stolen from me and locked in a mental cage, the key dangled out of reach. He could do anything. I can’t fight back.
“I enjoy seeing you like this.” He trails a finger along my jawline. “Immobile and trapped in your own mind.”
Vomit swells in my belly and throat, unable to expel itself. Not even at the nauseating feel of his touch coasting over my face.
“No one is coming to save you. Harrowdean is abandoned, and believe me, it’s low on the list of priorities right now. We’ll slip away while the world is busy arguing over blame.”
The drug hasn’t paralysed my tear ducts which seem to function perfectly well. Stinging rivers stream down my cheeks, making my skin ache where he punched me. Elon catches a tear and lifts it to his lips.
I watch him lick up the moisture, tongue flicking out to taste the proof of his victory. My stomach lurches again. I’d take choking on my own vomit over going anywhere with this maniac.
“I think we’re ready to go.”
His laugh bounces around the cell.
“This all could’ve been avoided if you’d just kept your mouth shut.”
CHAPTER 27
RIPLEY
BURN IT TO THE GROUND – NICKELBACK
The rumblingengine is my sole companion in the blackness. Discomfort long since stopped registering after my third hit of Elon’s favourite weapon. Each time the numbness begins to lift, he doses me up again.
I’ve been carelessly tossed between vehicles every time he stops. The two men travelling with Elon seem determined to throw any potential tail, changing vehicles multiple times.
During our most recent stop, I didn’t even open my eyes. My limbs had started to tingle and wake up, but I remained a limp rag doll. Enough to avoid another dosing to keep me placid.
Every part of me is still weak albeit coming alive. As the engine roars and infinite time slips by, more feeling returns to my extremities. I can make my fingers twitch now. I’m basically deadly.
No, Rip.
You’re basically screwed.
In the pitch-black din of the car boot I’ve been tossed in, I construct a mental portrait of the faces I left behind. Adding brush strokes here, splashes of colour there. Creating realistic texture and nuance. Adding voices, touches, familiar scents.
