Chaos tapped at his chest, frowning down at his sternum. The piece was dormant in the way that usually meant Cooper was sleeping.
But why would Cooper be asleep?
“Isaid—” the doorman repeated, raising his voice and coming to stand directly in front of Chaos.
“Quiet,” Chaos commanded, slapping a hand to the man’s mouth. The doorman tried to pry him off, but he wasn’t nearly strong enough, and Chaos simply used his grip on the man’s jaw to lift him off the ground, removing some of his leverage.
Nowthe people passing by were giving Chaos looks, their attention no doubt drawn by the muffled, panicked yelling coming from the doorman as he thrashed his arms and legs around, trying to dislodge Chaos’s hand.
But Chaos couldn’t enjoy the attention. He was too focused inward. Yes, the soul piece was very, very quiet. Maybe Cooper had finished his task and was taking a nap?
But Chaos had felt pain there, for just a moment, hadn’t he? He hadn’t imagined that.
Something is wrong. Something has happened.
Something had happened to his puppy.
Icy fingers trailed down his spine, and the heaviness in Chaos’s chest was nothing like the comforting weight of Cooper’s soul. It wasn’t an anchor but an anvil, dragging him down, making it hard to gather his fuzzy thoughts.
Chaos had told Cooper he didn’t fear anything in this realm. But he’d have to come clean when he saw him next. Because this was fear, wasn’t it? Panic, even. Dread.
Chaos dropped the doorman on the ground, ignoring the man’s frantic gasps as he turned on his heel. He needed to find his puppy right now.
And if anything or anyone had hurt him in any way…
Then this realm would find out just how dangerous an unleashed chaos demon could be.
20
Cooper
It was the pain that woke Cooper, a dull throbbing at the back of his skull, like someone was drumming on the bone from the inside.
Drumming, drumming, drumming.
Had he hit his head? But when? How?
He tried to reach up a hand to feel it out, but he couldn’t move his arm.
He couldn’t move either of his arms.
Cooper blinked his eyes open. If he’d hit his head, it hadn’t dislodged his glasses, because he could still see clearly. And he was looking at a…gaming setup?
It certainly looked like one. There was a massive U-shaped desk with multiple computers and different-sized monitors. There was various other tech he was too dazed to categorize properly too. Cooper winced at the blinking lights, which were intensifying that horrible drumming in his skull.
He didn’t inspect it for long. It hurt too much, plus he was a little distracted by his restricted movements. His gaze dropped to his uncooperative arms. He was tied to a chair, thick rope wound around his chest and limbs.
Fuck.Fuck.
Sergei. Tied to a chair. Bruised and beaten, with a bloody bandage around his arm.
Was the same fate about to befall Cooper? He didn’t handle pain well. And torture…
Panic set in, swift and vicious. Cooper tried to shake himself out of the rope, tried to kick his legs for leverage. It was futile. His limbs were tied too tight, the rope was too thick, and he just wasn’t that strong. But the fear didn’t let him stop trying. It was choking him, insisting that if he thrashed long enough—hard enough—somethinghad to give. There was no other option. If he stayed here, he was going to die. His heart would stop if nothing else.
He didn’t know how long he struggled.
Long enough for his muscles to start trembling, for that horrible, suffocating panic to give way to a strange, dark numbness. Cooper realized with a start that he wasn’t gagged. He hadn’t even thought to try screaming.
