Page 25 of Garden of Ashes & Hope

I cling to that memory now, using it as an anchor against the tide of despair threatening to drown me.

That little plant survived against all odds.

So can I.

Mordakus's face flashes in my mind. His red eyes, usually so guarded, softening when he looked at me. His rare smiles that made my heart skip a beat. The gentle way he held me when I was afraid.

He's alive.

He has to be.

And he'll come for me. I know it with a certainty that surprises me.

I open my eyes, meeting Zane's gaze. He's still talking, describing in graphic detail the horrors that await me. But I barely hear him. Instead, I focus on Mordakus, on Vincent, on the dreams we shared of a better life.

"Are you listening, bitch?" Zane snarls, noticing my distant expression.

I look at him, really look at him. And for the first time, I see the fear behind his cruelty. The desperation. He's not strong. He's weak, lashing out at the world because he's afraid.

"I hear you," I say, my voice steady despite the terror coursing through me. "But you're wrong. You can't break me. You can hurt me, you can... use me. But you can't take away who I am."

Zane's face contorts with rage. He raises his hand, and I brace myself for the blow. But it doesn't come. Instead, he lowers his arm, a cold smile spreading across his face.

"We'll see about that," he says softly. "We've got all the time in the world, sweetheart. And by the time we're done with you, you'll be begging to spread your legs for us."

He turns to leave, his men following behind. At the tent flap, he pauses, looking back at me. "Get some rest. You're going to need it."

Then they're gone, leaving me alone in the darkness once more.

I let out a shaky breath, feeling the full weight of my situation crash down on me. The horror of what awaits me is almost too much to bear. But I can't give up. I won't.

I close my eyes, picturing Mordakus's face. His strength, his determination. I draw on that now, wrapping it around me like a shield.

"I will survive this," I whisper to myself. "I will endure. And when Mordakus comes - because he will come - I'll be ready."

In the depths of my despair, I find a flicker of strength. A resolve to fight back, to hold onto my humanity in the face of unimaginable cruelty.

I think of the garden I hope to build someday. Of Vincent's soft purr and playful antics. Of Mordakus's gruff kindness and the love I know is growing between us.

These monsters may break my body, but they cannot touch my spirit. That belongs to me, to Mordakus, to the future we dreamed of together.

As exhaustion finally overtakes me, I cling to these thoughts. They are my lifeline, my reason to keep fighting. No matter what horrors tomorrow brings, I will face them with the strength of my love for Mordakus and the hope of our shared dreams.

In the darkest hour before dawn, I make a silent vow. I will survive. I will escape. And someday, somehow, I will find my way back to Mordakus and the life we were meant to share.

With this promise burning in my heart, I finally drift into a fitful sleep, my dreams a mix of nightmares and desperate hopes for salvation.

18

MORDAKUS

The camp lies before me, a haphazard collection of tents and makeshift structures. The smell of unwashed bodies, alcohol, and fear permeates the air. But beneath it all, I catch Eve's scent.

She's here.

She's alive.

For days, I've tracked them, pushing my battered body to its limits. Now, as I stand on the precipice of violence, I feel the last threads of my control snapping.

---