Page 49 of Unhinged

Gaston releases Matias, stepping back with an icy smile. “Your man needs to learn his place, Taren.” He says, fixing his cufflinks with a nonchalant air. “As for the asset...” His gaze slides to Blake. She stands as rigid as a statue, fear etched into her features. “I trust she’ll be worth every penny.” With that, he exits the cell.

A tear slides down Blake’s cheek, but she quickly brushes it away. I hate this. I hate how powerless we are. I glare at Taren, who’s still standing there staring at me. Matias is clutching his throat.

“That son of a bitch almost killed me,” he growls, standing to his feet with his fists clenched.

“About time someone taught you a lesson,” Taren replies, eyes still fixed on me. “Did you strike Alice?” he asks, his voice has a lethal edge.

I bring my finger to the spot where Matias backhanded me and wince. There’s obviously a bruise which made Taren aware of his treatment of me.

Matias growls at him. “What the fuck is with your obsession with Alice?”

Taren doesn’t even blink at the question. He’s as cool as a cucumber as he stares at Matias. “Did you strike her?” he repeats the question.

Matias folds his arms over his chest. “She fucking came at me. So, I stopped her.”

It’s true. I did try to attack the bastard, so it’s not like he struck me for no reason. But Taren’s rage feels like a tangible entity between us, simmering like lava beneath a volcano ready to erupt.

Before I can react, Taren lunges at Matias, knocking him to the ground with one swift, powerful punch. His fists are a blur as they connect with Matias’s face repeatedly. “You don’t touch her,” he hisses through gritted teeth, punctuating each word with a punch. The air crackles with raw, primal fury. I’ve never seen this side of Taren before. It’s terrifying, and yet, there’s a part of me that’s relieved. Relieved that someone is finally standing up for us, for me.

Matias puts up a fight, but Taren’s power and strength are unmatchable. Every time Matias lands a punch, Taren shows no sign of pain. He doesn’t react.

Blood spatters on the grimy floor beneath them. It’s a gruesome sight, yet none of us move to intervene. Eventually, Taren pulls back, panting heavily. His knuckles are raw and bleeding, but he doesn’t notice.

His icy gaze meets mine, a silent promise that he won’t let Matias touch me again. Matias groans on the floor, a bloody, beaten mess. I don’t feel a shred of sympathy for him.

The tension in the room is palpable. Taren’s outburst has left us all shaken. A cruel reminder of the violence that lurks beneath the surface of our captors. Worst of all, Blake is going to be sold.

The room spins as the reality of our situation sinks in. Blake is going to be taken away, and nothing can stop it. We’re going to be separated. The thought is like a punch to the gut, intensifying the pain that’s already there.

Her absence will leave a gaping hole in our little group, a painful reminder of the friend we’ve lost and the dire situation we’re stuck in. I don’t want to imagine a day without Blake’s humor to lighten the mood, without her strength to lean on. But I have to.

Because in this hellhole, reality bites, and it bites hard. It’s a brutal awakening from the bubble we’ve been living in, assuming somehow we’d make it out of here alive and together. A bubble that’s now burst leaving us cold and scared.

We’ll fight. We’ll survive. But for now, we’re just four broken souls held captive in a nightmare, praying for dawn.

19

TAREN

I stop outside of the Red Queen’s office, grinding my teeth. She rarely summons me to her office, which means she’s angry. My meeting with Estrada is meant to be tomorrow, and I fear she might know somehow. If I get any sense she knows, I’ll have to cancel. And Estrada isn’t a patient man.

I knock and wait for her reply.

“Come in.”

I open the door, narrowing my eyes when I see her splayed out on the couch, eating grapes. “You asked for me?”

“Indeed, Taren.” Her voice is as cold as the frost outside. She tosses a grape into her mouth, watching me with a predator’s interest. “I hear you’ve been meddling with the girls’ training. Matias and Thiago aren’t pleased.”

I cross my arms, holding her gaze, “They’re not doing it right. Gaston?—”

She raises a slim finger, cutting me off. “Your job isn’t to question their methods. You’ll step back or bear the consequences.”

I shake my head. “We almost lost Gaston’s sale when he witnessed what Matias was doing with the girls,” I protest, unwilling to let this go that easily.

Her eyes narrow. “I’ll confirm that with Gaston directly, but until then, I’ve got another job for you.”

“Go and meet with Damien Vasquez today,” she commands, her voice dripping with authority. I clench my fists, seething beneath the surface.

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