Page 79 of Psychological War

My second mistake was leaving Uncle Walker behind without thanking him. I should have stayed and talked to him. Instead I went quiet like I once did before.

Zane had become my happiness, had become something I had no idea had so much power over me. Not until I realized I never wanted to speak again. I wanted to give up. I lost everyone in my life that meant something to me.

Aziza would be okay. She went to see Killian. I knew she did. She would be okay. My uncle would be okay. And Tobias would be okay. Even if I hated Dimitri, he was a great father and could protect him. He didn’t need me.

No one did.

Which is how I found myself captured by what I had assumed was Luca’s men until the first night. When they came to beat me.

Instead it was Carlos' brother. Carlos, who I killed a long time ago. His brother was apparently very mad that I killed him.

My body was shutting down, I could feel it. Every time I tried to breathe the sharp pain ripped through my body. I don’t even know how many ribs were broken. I barely could look anywhere with both my eyes bruised as fuck. Every time I even opened my eyes all I saw was red. The gash along my forehead had bled down my face and gotten into my eyes. I knew I was missing several nails from both my hands and my feet. I wouldn’t be surprised if all of them were gone. I barely felt all the cuts that wrapped around my body, mainly my stomach and legs.

I couldn’t even remember how many days I’ve been here. I think four but after the first night I had been beaten so badly, I probably couldn’t tell you what my name was.

“Wakey wakey,” the bald guard, whose name was Aaron, said barging through the door. He was a big dude; all the fuckers were. At this point they all looked the same, huge men and tattoos with either brown or blond hair.

I still didn’t speak. It was what made them mad, they wanted me to scream. Wanted me to beg them to stop. But I refused to give them what they wanted. Instead I kept my head down and closed my eyes.

“Oh, no. I just wanted you awake so you can see our new plaything.” Aaron laughed walking in front of me, I think. I could barely open my eyes without the sting of blood coursing through them. “Want to meet him?”

“You know I’m jealous. I love being your plaything,” I wanted to say. But I didn’t.

It was a smile that lasted only a moment before I saw a small shaggy brown-haired figure being dragged across the floor. Surely my mind was making this up; it couldn’t be him. He was supposed to be safe with his family. Surely, he wouldn’t be stupid enough. But as soon as his little voice called to me my eyes snapped fully open, ignoring the fiery burning.

“Salem,” he sobbed.

“Let him go,” I hissed out. My body protested against me sitting up straighter in the chair I was tied to.

“Tie him to the chair in front of her,” another guard snapped. I couldn’t focus on who was talking or if they were talking anymore. I could only look at Tobias crying, throwing his tiny weight around trying his best to get out of their grasp. His pants were covered in mud, and his white shirt was no longer that white, covered in small amounts of blood and mud.

“Aw, look the lad is pissing himself.” A guard laughed. Snapping my gaze down I noticed he was. “You gonna piss more when he starts the real fun?” he taunted, tying Tobias’s small body to the chair in front of me. The rope was wrapped around both his legs, his wrists on the arm rest like mine were, and then for extra measure they tied rope around his chest around the chair. His sobs had turned into screaming and high pitched. One of the guards roared and brought his hand back, ready to smack him.

“Touch him and I will kill every single one of you.” My voice came out calmer than I thought it would. I watched both guards hovering over Tobias turn to look at me. Even the guard by the door snapped his gaze to me. I kept mine on Tobias. His crying stopped, and he made no sudden movements. “I will make you piss yourself. I will flay every part of your skin from your body,” I continued, a smile praying to erupt on my face. “Do not touch a single fucking hair on his body, or I will make everyone wish they were dead. Every. Single. One. Of. You,” I warned.

I don’t know how long the time passed until the guard by the door laughed, causing the other two to laugh as well. Tobias closed his eyes, dropping his head. I promised I would protect him, no matter what. I may not have been able to protect my own brother, but I refused to let anything happen to him. He didn’t deserve this; it was all my fault for bringing it to them.

“I would like to see you try, littlegirl,”Aaron said as he reared back again before his hand connected with the side of Tobias’s head. His ear and the right side of his face instantly turned beat red. All I felt was rage, and all I could see was red. I don’t remember the last time I was this angry. When my family was killed, I was angry, but I was scared. So scared I didn’t do anything, but now I felt the rage rushing around me. I didn’t feel the hurt anymore. It was all anger, coursing through, and my heart sped up, adrenaline pumping through my soul. My eyes narrowed at the laughing guards, taunting me, thinking I wouldn’t do anything. I refused to let

Tobias be hurt. He didn’t deserve this, not even Zane.

My mind worked on autopilot mode. I couldn’t think. My body was working without thought of what I was doing. It was as if I watched my body move from the screen above.

I threw myself backwards, the chair breaking on impact, the legs and arm rest still tied to those parts of my body. The guard by the door charged at me, trying to grip my arm. Pulling back I wrapped my legs around his leg before plunging my right arm still tied to the wood armrest into his stomach.

Dead.

“Fuck fuck fuck,” someone in the background yelled. I don’t know who, but I couldn’t stop as I continued stabbing him with the wooden stake. Everything in my mind went blank. I was working like a machine, one that couldn’t let the little one down, even if it was the last thing I did.

My mind went somewhere dark, a place I didn’t want to be, but I went there so I could save him. “Little one, remember to close those eyes,” I remember saying before the darkness in my soul took over.

***

Zane

Fourteen hours.

Fourteen hours since Tobias went missing.

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