Page 44 of Orange Tundra
Again.
Welts rose. Bruises. Blood.
He begged.
Each strike peeled another layer off my soul.
My mind took me to a quiet place as it always did to protect me. I remembered Brynn in that cage, her hands curled over bars. How she hadn’t flinched. How her gaze met mine. And howI chose not to take her then, even though I could have. Even though I was starving for the touch of a mate.
I remembered Roqs, his scent like fire. His warmth that first time meeting him. His hand on my throat. His breath hot against my lips. The moment I let him in.
Another blow.
Another scream.
Vex collapsed. I struck again, calculating each hit to maximize sound and minimize harm. Vex played along, perhaps understanding my restraint, perhaps simply responding to genuine pain. His wails echoed off the stone walls.
"Enough," Kilo called finally, satisfaction evident in his voice.
I stood and stepped back, bloodied baton in hand. The baton trembled. My soul screamed. My breath was even. The effort to punish someone felt like a chore now.
Vex lay curled on the floor, sobbing quietly.
Nialla slinked close. Her claws ghosted over my arm.
My spine locked.
She leaned in, inhaling deep. Testing.
Fuck.
She exhaled.
"Smells like sweat and rage. Good." Nialla purred. "Still unclaimed. Pity."
Kilo nodded. "Good. You’re the one taking Zirc to the pit. Keep him mean. Ready the beast."
Nialla reluctantly stepped back. "Don't disappoint us, Trill. I'd hate to see you join him in the pit."
The threat hung in the air as they left, taking the other gang members with them.
As soon as the guards left, I knelt by the prisoner, slipped a med patch under his arm.
"Shut up. Play it.”
His eyes locked with mine. Saw more than I wanted him to.
He nodded.
Back in Zirc’s cell,I crouched again.
Zirc's condition had deteriorated when I returned to his cell. The crystallization had spread further up his neck, and his breathing came in labored gasps. His beast form flickered beneath his skin, unable to fully emerge or retreat.
I dismissed the guards again and approached cautiously. Zirc trembled in the cell. This time, he didn't lunge. He simply watched me, pain evident in his gaze.
"They're going to put you in the pit tonight," I said quietly, applying more salve to the crystal edges. "You need to control your beast enough to survive."
I wiped salve on the worst of it. He jerked away.
