Page 4 of Bonds of Obsession

“We’ll get him back,” Killian says firmly, as if he’s reading my thoughts. “Whatever it takes, we’ll bring him home.”

2

ATLAS

I grit my teeth,trying to hold back the scream that’s building in my throat. My entire body is shaking from the strain, and I can feel every muscle in my body suddenly clench as another wave of excruciating pain hits me.

I’m strong. Stronger than most men.

But the current of electricity is stronger. Another involuntary cry escapes my lips, echoing off the cement walls of this hellhole.

Ambrose grins, then laughs, a sound I’ve slowly become accustomed to over the hours I’ve been here.

Hours?

Days?

I honestly don’t fucking know anymore.

He steps back, lowering the electrodes he’s been using to torture me. My skin is still tingling from the electricity, like a thousand spiders skittering across my body at once, and I can smell the faint scent of burned flesh.

A wave of nausea hits me when I realize it’s my own skin that’s burning.

“Had enough yet?” he asks in a tone that’s so fucking nonchalant it’s almost maddening.

I spit a mouthful of blood onto the floor and glare up at him through my one good eye. The other is swollen shut from an earlier beating. “Fuck you,” I manage to rasp.

His face twists into a sneer. “Such a tough guy. I wonder how long it’ll take to break you.”

He turns away, giving me a second to catch my breath. I’ve been hanging from a chain hooked to the ceiling for so long that I can’t feel my arms anymore. Probably a blessing in disguise, since every other part of my body feels like it’s been ripped, shredded, and lit on fire.

I’m going to die here. I’ve made peace with that fact. Ambrose made sure I heard every word of his conversation with Quinn, made sure I understood that the only reason he’s keeping me alive is because I’m still useful to him.

But once he gets what he wants? I’m dead.

I’d almost welcome death at this point, if it wasn’t for what I’d be giving up.

Quinn.

Nico.

Killian.

They’re still out there. They still need me. And I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they’re planning something right now to get me the fuck out of here.

I just hope they don’t do anything stupid—like getting themselves killed in the process.

Ambrose returns, this time with a bucket of water. My heart rate spikes, and I know what’s coming next.

I brace myself, my muscles tensing involuntarily until the cold water hits me like a slap, shocking my system and making me gasp. It’s a cruel break from the heat of the electricity, but I know it isn’t an act of kindness or mercy. I’ve been down here long enough to know what’s coming next.

Sure enough, Ambrose presses the electrodes against my wet skin, and my whole world explodes all over again. I can’t help the scream that tears from my throat, my body convulsing as the current rips through me.

It’s been this same, familiar routine since those mercenaries dragged me down here. My memory is hazy, clouded by pain and the fog of unconsciousness, but a few things still stand out. I vaguely recall hands on me, doing something to the gunshot wound in my back. Stitching me up, maybe?

The fucker needs me alive, after all.

The electricity stops, leaving me panting and trembling. My chest aches with every breath, a stabbing pain that blends in with the lingering burn from the electrodes.

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