Page 62 of Repossess My Heart

A loud ringing fills my ears as he turns away again, content to drag me behind him, even though he knows I’ll follow. Even now when he’shurtingme…

My hand flutters up to rub at the pain, not in my scalp but the soul deep one brewing in my chest. My heart races, a loud whooshing sounds in my ears as concrete turns to elaborate tile and the sound of life filters in through the ringing.

“You have some fucking Nerve, Nine.” A booming voice fills the wide-open space.

“And your security is lacking.” He calls out, his voice sounds louder and bigger than I’ve ever heard it.

Why are you doing this?

I’m panting now, my veins filling with adrenaline until my head goes light and my vision doubles. Two of every horrible thing doesn’t help my waning composure.

“Why the fuck are you here? Evenyoumust know that’s stupid.” A new voice chimes in this time. God, there’s so many people. He can’t fight them all. That voice starts a swarm of angry ones, each one hurling visceral threats at him. Spewing curse words, I’d never even heard and can’t begin to understand the meaning of.

“Enough!” The loudest one booms again, making me flinch. What is this feeling? Above it’s terrible. Like when I was in the duct, but sharper, so much sharper. “Why are you back? Migs just got a track on you in another district, but you know that, don’t you?”

I can feel him shrug before he wrenches me upwards. “I brought a peace offering. Maybe that’s the wrong word for it… a trade.”

An impossibly tall man stands along a line of black-clad men and women, all with that eerie beauty that comes from the heavily enhanced. The Officials… holy fuck.

Holy fucking fuck.

The man’s dark eyes meet mine. “The collection you threw your life away for?” The laughter from the other Officials sends chills bracketing down my spine, “You think a collection with a broken heart is going to fix this?”

I don’t miss the irony of that.

“Not exactly. You see your Migs they haven’t checked in for a bit, have they? Seemed like overkill sending so many for one man, but you fucks always liked to make your points, didn’t you? Or was it Anton? He still kicking down there?”

The man glimpses behind him at a woman with slicked back red hair, her eyes glaze for a moment before she shakes her head.

Nine laughs, “You know I was just going to destroy them, but I have a better idea. You get my debt,” he jerks me forward shaking me about, I cry out as tiny strands of my hair pull free from my scalp, “and I don’t blow all of your incapacitated fuck bots to shit, oh or your world. I let you fix your shiny little reactors-“

“Reactors?” One of the other men pipe up, not the gaggle of pissed off looking Repo Men but from the just as pissed off looking Officials.

Nine laughs again, “Oh Above that’s fucking funny, he didn’t even tell you! Anyway, you get to keep running this little cesspool of yours and I get a one-way trip topside. Sound good?” I scream as he throws me into the rough arms of another Repo Man. He quickly wraps his arms around me, despite my attempts to break free. My skin is clammy with sweat, and each breath feels like a struggle.

“You c-can’t do this.” I say it to myself, a blinding pain ripping through my chest. One that settles so deep I know it’s already changed me irrevocably. That’s when I feel it, I feel all of it. One solemn tear shed in shock turns into two, and then they burst free, spilling down my cheeks. My sobs leave me, and I make no move to stop them as I fight against the hold of the man holding me. A Repo Man, the wrong one.

“You can’t!” I sob. He won’t look at me… it’s all he’s wanted and he won’t look at me! My insides scream as I shatter, “Look at me, you asshole! We had a d-deal! You said-“ I lose my words to my own guttural sobbing when he looks at me. WhenNinelooks at me.

“I can and I will. You shouldn’t have believed a word I said sweetling.” He stares unmoved, his eyes avoiding mine like the plague.

“Look at them!” I scream, the sound so loud it breaks into nothing.

“Shut her up.” The Official commands, Nine tenses as the Repo Man’s gloved hand bands around my mouth. It does nothing to stop the torrent, countless years of tears being shed all at once and all for him. For a stupid, horrible man that won’t even look at my eyes.

“They’re ready!” I scream, but the sound is muffled. “I’m ready now! You promised it’d be you! You fucking piece of shit! I hate you! I hate you!” I sob. My nails and teeth clawing and digging where they can.

“Shut up. Fucking-“ The Repo Man holding me hisses closer to my ear.

“Let me have her. I’ll put that mouth to better use.” Another one chimes in.

Shoot him!

I send the command to his drone seconds before a shot rings out, the force of it sending the Repo Man holding me backwards as I jerk free from his arms.

Please! I don’t want to die like this! I don’t want to die, Nathan.

I run for him, only seconds before the Repo Man regains his footing, jerking me backwards. The breath jolted from my lungs as I’m slammed into him.

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