Page 29 of Dig Your Grave

My mind was gone as we left Anubis behind.I was dead from utter embarrassment.They spoke to me, but I couldn’t hear them.I couldn’t believe this was happening.But once we got back to the school, to the campus security office, I knew something was wrong.The men didn’t offer me anything to cover up as they escorted me into a single holding cell.A single cot lined the wall, usually meant for detaining unruly students overnight.They had handcuffs.Thrust onto the mattress, one of the men shackled one of my wrists to the bed frame before leaving me, locking me in the cell.

Naked, I laid there for hours in total silence, thinking about how sick this school was.The overhead fluorescent light buzzed, an irritating hum that gnawed at my last shred of calm.I noticed a red blinking light in the corner, a security camera.Someone was watching.

I feared for my life.How could I not, being dragged naked into a cell and handcuffed?No due process.No nothing.I cried finally.Afraid of what might happen to me, I finally broke down, wailing out in a loud sob.I knew once I got out, I would slip away.Leave this school for good.

Then I heard a noise.When Anubis appeared in the doorway, my heart lurched.He looked as grim as I felt, his knuckles pale from how tightly he gripped the doorknob.

I sat up, relief washing over me.“You’re breaking me out?”

He came in the cell, shaking his head.“No, sorry.This is all part of it.The humiliation.They would’ve gotten to you the other night.All I did was postpone it because I was tied up at the party.”

“So, let me go.I’m done with this.With everything.I’m leaving Edenvane.”

He laughed, but there was no humor in it.It sounded almost evil.“You’re going to break that easily?I told you, if you fail, what they’ll do to you.What they’ll do to me.”

“So, if you’re not breaking me out.Why are you here?”

Anubis started undressing, and I knew why he was here.To bury his bone.To humiliate me again.

As he stood before me naked, that skull tattoo across his chest mocking me, I pulled on the handcuffs.“This makes no sense.I’m willing, obviously.You talked me out of my clothes in a parking lot.”

“I told you, Nubia.This has to be hard on you.It’s about pain and fear.You were afraid and now you’ll suffer for my enjoyment.”

Though part of me was afraid, the other part was curious.“How?What do you plan to do to me?”

“This is just another test before the first trial,” he said.“Get through it, or they’ll make life impossible.They’re forcing me to do this,” he said, voice low, stepping closer.

Feeling a jolt of anger, I glanced over my shoulder at the black dome camera perched high in the corner.They were recording everything.

“They were clear.I comply, or all the footage they have on me gets out.”He exhaled, tension rippling through his shoulders.“We’ll make it quick,” he murmured.

Chapter 11

My cheeks burned at the awareness that everything we did would be captured on video, the watchers would even possibly show the footage to the higher-ups who controlled the Skulls.But all I could do was cling to the fact that, in our twisted arrangement, I still held some sliver of agency.As in, I didn’t think Anubis would seriously hurt me.

Quietly, Anubis braced one knee on the cot, positioning me across his lap so the camera would capture the angle they demanded.My breath fluttered.

“What are you doing?”

“Punishing you,” he said simply.

I peered at the drab wall.This moment felt surreal, some sick performance, yet dangerously intimate.

Smack.

The first swat on my naked bottom was light, almost a test.Yet, I startled at the sudden impact, inhaling sharply.The camera lens, the watchers, the entire threat overshadowed us, but in that instant, it felt like the world narrowed to his hand on my body, and the roiling wave of sensation sparking my nerves.

The next strike was firmer, delivering a sharp sting.My cheeks warmed.Not just my ass cheeks.From part embarrassment, part nerves, and part that confusing swirl ofyes, longing.I closed my eyes, shutting out the blinking red recording light overhead.

Smack… smack…Each swat carried a building rhythm, not purely painful but definitely pushing it.I swallowed a moan, mindful that everything was being recorded.The watchers would be analyzing my reactions.I refused to appear broken or helpless.

A trembling whimper escaped my lips despite my resolve.In response, Anubis’ free hand slid up my spine in a comforting stroke, silently grounding me.The mild burn blooming on my rear pulsed in time with my racing heartbeat.

The watchers wanted a show, but I refused to give them any real sign of fear.With each measured smack, I bit my lip to stay composed.Anubis’ free hand rested on my shoulder, reminding me we were together in this mess.

In any other context, maybe this moment could’ve been a private exploration of trust.Instead, it felt like a performance for an invisible audience, a currency in the watchers’ cruel game.Regardless, his hand moved to a more private part.The game was just starting to get interesting.

“Nubia, this is going to hurt,” he explained before he made his next move.

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