Page 19 of Blood Caged

I realize I’ve been staring, lost in my internal struggle. Mortified, I snap my gaze away, willing the heat in my cheeks to subside. “The only problem here is you,” I spit out.

But even as the words leave my mouth, I can feel the war raging inside me – hatred and attraction battling for dominance. It’s maddening, and it only fuels my anger further. How dare he make me feel this way? How dare my own body betray me like this?

“I think you’ll find that I am the least of your problems. Especially if you choose not to cooperate,” he says.

Cooperate? I still don’t know what that even means. He hasn’t told me what he wants yet.

I take a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down. Maybe there’s another way to approach this. I search Soren’s face, looking for any hint of compassion behind that icy facade.

“Look,” I say, softening my tone, “I know you’re just following orders. But surely you can see this isn’t right. I’m a person, not some object to be used and discarded. Don’t you have family? Friends? People you care about?”

For a split second, I see something in his eyes. A flash of…regret? It’s gone so quickly that I almost think I imagined it.

“Please,” I press on, encouraged by that tiny crack in his armor. “You don’t have to do this. There must be another way.”

Soren’s jaw tightens, and for a breathless moment, I think I might have gotten through to him. But then his expression hardens, becoming even colder than before.

“Your attempts at manipulation are futile, Miss Blackwood,” he says, his voice devoid of emotion. “I suggest you save your energy for more productive endeavors.”

The dismissal in his tone stings. I’d allowed myself a glimmer of hope, only to have it ruthlessly crushed.

Fine. If that’s how he wants to play it, so be it. I straighten my spine, meeting his gaze with renewed determination.

“You’re right about one thing,” I say, my voice low and steely. “I won’t waste any more energy trying to appeal to your non-existent humanity. But make no mistake, Soren Daire. I will fight you every step of the way. Whatever you’re planning, whatever sick game this is – I won’t make it easy for you.”

“That would be regrettable…for you.” He shrugs with a nonchalance that makes me want to slap him. “Now, since we’ve gotten the formalities over, I’ll leave you to settle in.

Settle in? He’s got to be kidding!

I watch Soren turn to leave, his broad shoulders tense under his perfectly tailored jacket. My heart races, a mix of angerand unwanted attraction coursing through my veins. But I push those traitorous feelings aside, focusing on what really matters.

I won’t let him win. I won’t let any of them win.

I take a deep breath, centering myself. My magic might be suppressed, but my mind is still sharp. I’ll find a way out of this. I have to.

As Soren reaches for the door, I make one last attempt. “Wait,” I call out, forcing my voice to remain steady. “You still haven’t told me why I’m here. What do you want from me?”

He pauses, his hand on the doorknob. For a moment, I think he might ignore me completely. Then he turns, those midnight eyes boring into mine.

“You’ll learn soon enough, Miss Blackwood,” he says. “For now, I suggest you rest. You’ll need your strength in the days to come.”

I open my mouth to demand more, but he cuts me off with a raised hand. “Patience,” he says. “All will be revealed in due time.”

With that cryptic statement hanging in the air, he strides from the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts and a growing sense of unease.

I slump onto the hard bunk as the door clicks shut behind Soren, my mind reeling. Anger courses through me, hot and fierce. How dare they do this to me? How darehestand there, so smug and self-assured, while I’m trapped like an animal?

But beneath the anger, there’s a current of confusion that I can’t shake. Why me? What could they possibly want that requires kidnapping a witch? And why won’t Soren give me a straight answer?

I run a hand through my hair, frustrated by the lack of information. My fingers catch on a tangle, and I wince. It’s such a small, normal thing, but it reminds me of how far from normal this situation is.

And then there’s…that other feeling. The one I don’t want to acknowledge. The way my breath caught when Soren first walked in. The electricity that sparked between us when our eyes met. The inexplicable pull I felt toward him, even as I wanted to claw his eyes out.

“Cut it out, Mia,” I mutter to myself, disgusted by my own weakness. “He’s an animal. Never forget that. It doesn’t matter how attractive he is.”

I stand up abruptly, needing to move, to do something. I pace the small room, my mind racing. This mix of emotions – the anger, the confusion, the unwanted attraction – it’s all too much. But I can’t let it overwhelm me. I need to channel it into something productive.

With each step, I feel my resolve hardening. They may have taken my magic, but they haven’t taken my will. I turn and stare up at the camera, injecting every ounce of defiance into my expression that I can muster. Whoever is up there watching me…let them see my anger. Let them see that I won’t be broken.

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