Chapter Twenty-Five
“Mr Cane, your reputation precedes you…She is…breathing well enough…I’ll send one…Mr Cane.” A woman’s voice trickles through my mind as I try to grasp hold of something. Anything.
There’s one thing I can. Cane.
Nate.
The clip-clop of shoes on the concrete pierces my ears and brings me around further. I recognise that voice. It might be buried, but I’ve heard it before.
Nate.
She was talking to Nate. Please let this not be a dream.
The voice and words drift away, getting softer until there’s nothing but quiet again.
My shoulder aches. My hip aches. Most of my body aches and no matter how much I try, I can’t find a comfortable spot. Not surprising in this stupid cage. It’s designed for a dog, not a person. But that’s what they want, isn’t it? They didn’t invite me here to talk. I’ve been here too long for that.
The dull ache in my jaw has stopped throbbing enough that I can close my eyes. Not that I’ll be able to get any sleep. I fear I’ll need exhaustion to pull my mind to slumber. When I close my eyes, the horrors from the last few days—is it even days?—float into my mind like a film I can’t get out of my head.
They took Andreas away, his body broken and bleeding over the floor. He didn’t look at me or try to catch my eye, and I refuse to acknowledge the thought of what might have happened to him. I can’t. I need to be strong. For what? I’m not sure yet, but I’m trying.
I twist over and bite down as my shoulder screams in pain at my move. My back’s to the door. I don’t want to see the men coming in and out any longer. Every time I hear the squeak of the door, my body freezes, and I play a game with myself. I dare myself not to look at who’s come in. Of course, I lose. Fear overcomes my rational thought process, and I try to guess what they’ve come in for. To check on me? Bring me food? Something else?
When I make it onto my other side, I pull up into a defensive position and relax my head onto the floor. As I lie here, the throbbing in my jaw starts again, and I close my eyes and hope that the pain will be a distraction from my surroundings. I screw them up tight, scrunching them shut to keep the tears from falling. That’s all I want right now, to keep my emotions inside. I can fall apart when I’m safe. Now isn’t the time.
Now isn’t the time.
All of a sudden, I feel warm. Warm and centred. Like everything in the world is okay. Nate’s voice drifts through my mind, and I feel my mouth curve into a smile. Will there ever be a time when I don’t smile at the thought of him? I hope not. But something doesn’t make sense. It’s not Nate’s name I’m hearing. An echo…A memory. Something I need to remember? My mind struggles with the tendrils of information knotting together and confusing me. I can’t make sense of it all, but I know I don’t want to let the threads go. There’s something I need here. Something important to hold onto.
“Wakey wakey.” A smooth voice invades my mind, but I don’t want to let go of Nate. “I said, wake the fuck up.”
My mind is completely alert as the cage rattles around me, but I keep my body still, showing no sign I’m conscious. Even my breathing slows to prevent my chest rising and falling so dramatically, even though I want nothing more than to suck some much-needed air into my lungs.
I gasp, as cold water hits my face. The shock hits my system, and I move, waiting to escape the ice water. After a few seconds the soaking stops, and my tongue licks out over my lips, collecting as much of the water from my skin as I can.
“Too bad you didn’t listen. Could have drunk it all. Maybe you’ll learn next time.”
“Asshole,” I murmur.
I’ve not been given any water or food since I was on the plane, and the trickle of water snaking through my hair has me pulling it to my mouth and sucking the moisture from it. It barely coats my tongue.
I look around and see the man slouching against the far wall.
“Ready to go for a walk?”
I don’t answer but wait to find out what he’s come in here for. The size of the cage doesn’t allow for much movement, but I shuffle around so I’m sitting, my back to the far side, so I can see the man in the room.
He’s new. At least, he’s not been in here with me before. He’s solidly built with dirty hair hanging to his shoulders. This isn’t the same calibre of man who’ve been watching me so far. They’ve been smaller, more clean-cut. This one has my gut rolling in my stomach for a whole other reason.
Finally, he approaches the cage and unlocks the padlock. He reaches inside to try to grab me, but I bat him away. “Bitch, don’t make this any worse.” I shove my leg out and connect my foot to his chest, wishing it was his face.
But the more I thrash, the calmer he seems. He reaches back inside and grabs my ankle, yanking me onto my back and ripping me from the cage. The material of my clothes doesn’t protect my skin from the rough treatment and I feel it break as I slide over the dirt floor.
He drops my leg and the rest of me on the floor. My fingers dig into dust and grit as I put my hands out to stand. As much as I’d love to stay here huddled on the floor, I can’t.
The bear of a man is back in the corner of the room, sporting a leery smile and exposing a gold tooth.
“Now, play nice. Boss woman wants to see you.”
