Page 7 of Claiming Charlotte

The shackles around my wrists dug in the more I moved, forcing me to put weight on my legs and push my body up the wall as far as I could to get a little relief. I was sore all over, and my eyes stung with impending tears over what happened. Think. Rowan. Think.

I didn’t know how much time had passed or what they had already done to Lottie, but I had to figure out a way to escape and find her. Before I could clear my head enough, Walker opened the door and walked through, followed by Jason.

“Where is she?” I slurred.

They ignored me and a pained scream ripped through my gritted teeth, sounding off the walls of the room. Jason was fiddling with something in his hands, before handing it to someone who was standing just outside the door. Then he followed Walker approaching a table against another wall. The table was covered in various instruments, and I knew this to be the area where Jason conducted his interrogations.

My vision was still out of focus, right now all the movements danced around together in shadowy wisps, so it was hard to tell what Jace kept on his table, but I could tell that most of them were shiny, silver, and probably sharp. My heart pounded against my ribcage as he paced in front of the instruments, perusing his options.

I blinked a few more times before asking again. “Jason, where is Lottie?”

Walker approached the table and my head snapped up trying to focus on what he was saying. The two whispered something between themselves, and then Walker spoke loudly.

“Put that mask on him,” he ordered viciously. Mask? What mask?

My eyes bulged as Walker?spoke, trouble was coming, and I had no idea what it was, they never used any sort of mask on me in the past. I was prepared, and?accepted things for what they were. Walker was using devices and methods that purely brought pain. I could handle the physical pain, it’s almost like riding a bike; it was the psychological torture that worried me. Jason shrugged and stalked toward me with it.

“Get away from me,” I said roughly, trying to disguise the fear in my voice.

Throwing my head back, feeble attempts were made to stop him, and I growled as he took a fistful of my hair, forcing me to stay in place so he could tightly?fit it around my face. Pulling at the restraints desperately trying to reach and get it off of my head, I started to panic, my heavy breaths causing sweat to form and condensation to build up around the eyes.

As Jace worked fiddling with the dial that seemed to control the airflow, Walker paced over to me nodding that it was time to begin.

“Rowan, I’ve waited so long for this,” he began. Jason turned the dial and all the air was sucked out of the mask. I gasped for breath as he continued. “Do you know why?”

My lungs burned and I gasped trying to hold on to what little air I had; thrashing my head around as darkness swam in my vision. In my struggle he answered his own question. “That’s right. I’m doing this because you betrayed me. You betrayed the family crest, and I can’t let you get away with this.”

The dial clicked, releasing air back into my burning lungs. I sucked in lungful after lungful of air, taking in as much as I could before the dial turned again and I lost my breath. Dizziness overtook me, and I pulled on the chains, like it would help bring the oxygen back into my lungs. I have to stay alive. Gasp. I promised. The bubbling started in my lungs, and I felt vomit coming forward, threatening to spill out. I wouldn’t be able to last much longer if we kept this up, though they had only begun.

“More than that, Rowan, I can’t have you parading around with the Bennetts. I can’t just allow you full access to the most sought-after woman in the world right now.”

I looked at Walker in confusion, my silence spoke volumes as my body worked hard.

He chuckled at my clueless expression. “I didn’t think you’d know what I was talking about. We’ve been capitalizing on these videos of Charlotte for years now, thanks to these sites, I even saved some of them for myself. She’s got quite the price on her head, and I can’t wait to see what sort of things will be done to that beautiful body. But first, I want to have my way with your Princess.”

Air returned to my mask, and I sucked in a deep breath, calling all my energy to growl my frustrations at Walker's little speech.

“Don’t you touch her, you fucking pig!” I croaked.

Snapping his fingers at Jason, he gave the approval and the dial clasped shut again, sweeping the air away from my lungs once more. I felt like passing out, but I knew Walker wouldn’t allow that, he wanted his victims to feel every part of the process, breaking you mentally; then physically.? “Oh, Rowan. I just can’t wait to see your anger bubble to the surface as I take her over and over again,” Walker said, stepping closer to me with each word.

He was close enough to strike, so I lashed out. I headbutted him hard and narrowed my eyes?as he grunted stumbling backward holding his bloodied nose. I smirked as air returned to the mask.

“Try me,” I challenged, though I knew I was in no position to make a threat.

I’m going to survive this, I have to. She's counting on me, and I will find her. Bracing myself against my restraints, I screamed into the mask and took short breaths as the dial flicked, but my air never returned.

Charlotte

My eyelids felt heavy, and I struggled to open them, groggy beyond belief. I finally pried them open, and?stared up at the ceiling. Where am I? The ceiling was drab and gray, unfinished with beams crossing the wide expanse of space. Bright white lights lit the space and gave the already dark ceiling an eerie look. The air billowed past me gently, caressing my bare skin, and I suddenly got the sense that I wasn’t as safe as my dream led me to believe.

My head began to pound relentlessly, beating like a drum against my skull. Turning my head in any direction proved almost impossible, and as my eyes came into focus, I saw my arms stretched out above me and tied with what I felt was a ridiculous amount of rope.

My wrists were bound tight, and they became numb as I stared at them, trying to wiggle free with as little energy as I could. My head still felt heavy which meant for the time being lifting it to survey further was just not going to happen. My legs were the same, the ropes tied around my aching thighs suspending me into the air. I swallowed, but the motion was stopped in its tracks by the gag that was placed in my mouth.

I fought too much, and they gagged me like an animal, a piece of leather across my face strapped tightly in the back, my hair flowed over it in waves. My jaw was forced painfully open by the “O” ring and a bar that cut into my tongue as it was pushed down. I wished they would allow me some peace from the collar that remained trapped around me. It hurts. What did I do to deserve this?

Memories of being dragged down the basement stairs returned to me, and my mixed emotions plagued me, anger for being so naive, fear for what my life had or would become. The worst pain being the early loss of my father, I hadn't been able to even mourn him yet, and Rowan; Jason told me to say goodbye and I feared for him.

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