Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 73423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Her hand clutches close to her chest, and I realize this is why we were fighting. Why I thought I should hate her, even though I can’t.
Because her heart is in this cage too, stuck between me and her father.
And it’s going to tear us both asunder.
CHAPTER 25
Aurora
I’m wildly awakened from a nap by Raymond rattling the cage with a baton.
“Get up,” he growls.
I quickly crawl up from the floor, wiping the salt from my eyes.
I don’t know how long I slept or how late it is, but I’m still tired. The days and nights are really starting to flow into each other down in this cell.
Raymond opens the door and, with a stun gun in his hands, throws a threatening look at Beast who’s sitting in a corner. Then he chucks something inside the cell. Fabrics and shoes.
“Put that on,” he tells me.
I slowly pick up the fabrics only to realize it’s a giant purple dress, complete with slanted shoulders and ruffled edges near the bottom. Beautiful, if it was an ordinary dress. But nothing in this place is ordinary.
“Now,” Raymond balks at me, as he closes the door again and walks to the front of the cage.
I don’t think fighting them over this is worth it. “Can you turn around, please?” I ask.
Raymond raises a taunting brow. “No.”
This is not going well. I swallow away the lump in my throat. “I can’t do it when you’re looking.”
“Yes, you can,” he says. “Take off your clothes.” His voice is increasingly harsh and demanding as he steps closer to the cage, clutching the bars. “Or do you want me to do it for you?”
I cringe at the thought of having that foul man touch me again.
If my only choice is to undress while he watches, or have him put his hands on me, I guess the first is the least horrible option.
My fingers hook underneath my shirt, slowly pulling it up while I try hard not to burst out into tears for having to expose myself.
Beast suddenly steps forward, positioning himself between Raymond and me.
“Hey,” Raymond growls. “Get out of the way.”
“No,” Beast replies, his arms folded.
I stare up at his back.
What is he doing? This is going to put him in danger.
“Walk away, Beast,” Raymond says under his breath.
“You heard her,” Beast replies.
My jaw drops.
Is he really trying to… protect me?
“You’re blocking my view,” Raymond growls at him.
“Exactly,” Beast retorts. He glances at me over his shoulder. “Go ahead. I’ll stop him from looking.”
I’m too flabbergasted to even respond. But when he turns to face Raymond again, I quickly pull up my shirt. There’s no time to wait. I have to do it now, while I still have privacy.
“You dumb fucking Beast.” Raymond sticks his stun gun through the bars and shoves it into his belly. He groans with pain, but stays put, standing tall to block Raymond’s view.
I pull off my leggings and take off my bra and panties, trying to be as quick as possible. But Raymond keeps shoving the stun gun inside, screaming, “Move!”
Beast won’t budge one bit.
And it hurts so badly to watch him suffer like that as he takes strike after strike, the buzz crackling in the air like lightning, while I struggle to put on this dress.
“You motherfucker, when will you learn?!” Raymond shouts, pushing the stun gun into his skin so long Beast’s teeth clamp shut, and I can hear him grunt in pain.
Tears sting my eyes, but I force them back as I pull up the zipper and put on the shoes. “Done,” I quickly mutter. “Please, stop,” I beg Raymond.
Beast goes to one knee as the current circulates through his body. When the stun gun is finally removed, he’s breathing ragged breaths, completely spent.
“Don’t fucking get in my way,” Raymond growls. “Ever again.”
Beast tilts his head to face Raymond. “Fuck. You.”
The guard jabs him again.
“Stop!” I yell, rushing over to them. I shove the arm away so the stun gun disconnects. “Please, stop. I’m dressed. I’ve done what you asked.”
“Your filthy cellmate needs to learn his place,” Raymond spits back.
“And you need to learn to take a hint,” Beast replies.
Raymond puts his fingers in his mouth and whistles loudly. The door at the top of the stairs opens, and more guards come down, one carrying that familiar collar, the one that makes Beast’s eyes fill with rage.
“What’s going on?” I ask as Raymond marches to the door and opens it up again under the threat of violence, wielding that stun gun like a sword.
“You’re both coming upstairs. Now,” he says, and he flicks his fingers at the other guards. “Strap him in.”
It all happens so fast. One moment, I need to get dressed, then the next, five guards are fighting Beast for control. They push and shove, strike him with a stun gun and a baton, hurt him in every possible way, while all I can do is watch. I feel powerless as they bring him to his knees and force that same collar around his neck again, sealing him in his own death trap.