Page 33 of Corrupted Torment

“I know what your name is,” he says. A sly grin quirks up at the edges of his mouth. “Kid. Now sleep, please.” I try not to chuckle at the dick, but it’s exactly the sort of thing I would have said in his position. I give a slight nod, finally giving into his demands. He obviously isn’t trying to cause me any additional harm. I can only truly be grateful for what he’s done tonight.

“Thanks, Raff,” I murmur as I shut my eyes. I don’t hear him reply, if he does, as sleep claims me.

* * *

My dreams are wild, full of chaos and unbridled pain. Flashes of howling, beastly laughter crashes through my nightmares. Person after person takes injection after injection. Their bodies succumb to death in different, volatile, and disturbing ways. A mass grave fills with the flesh, blood and bones of all the victims of this heinous society we can never escape.

I run through a labyrinth of never-ending woodland. Going nowhere and always circling back to where I started.

A cool palm of a hand presses against my forehead. It pushes me back into the sinking mud beneath me and I’m drowning. Every crevice of my body fills with the syrupy sludge, talons wrapping round my sides that tear into me from beneath. Dragging me further below into the murky depths of nothingness.

I try to rip my eyes open, to free myself from the torment, only to see Rafferty lit up with firelight. A needle is in his hand, injecting the poison into himself. I swear, I can see as the tendrils of blackness creep through his veins. Another type of monster coiling and clawing at him, devouring him from the inside. My vision wavers, darkness colliding into me and in a blink, he’s there, in front of me, with whispered words I can’t hear.

I scream, the sound silent to my ears. The terror within me is unlike anything I’ve experienced. Is this nightmare a reality or am I still inside my head, filled with demon-like dreams?

Calloused hands soothingly trail through my hair, across my cheeks, wiping away the tears I don’t realise I’ve shed. His head lies next to mine and our breathing syncs in time as one. As once more I am sinking into the floor beneath me.

This time, I am not alone as the darkness of the world pulls me under, down and still further down. Arms curl around my waist protectively, gently with utmost care, they never leave me. Not until the morning light comes around and it’s time to painfully go home.

* * *

I never did take the injection that night. He knew I had been too weak to survive it. The next time the sirens called, I was the first in line for my injection and every time after that.

Running and fighting, after all, had been my worst mistake.

It had been a fool's game all along.

CHAPTER14

NIXI

Age Twenty-One

I haven’t gotten far enough. I left it too late to run. Multiple sets of boots thud behind me as I flee. I haven’t felt this vulnerable in years. I don’t even dare to look over my shoulder as I speed through trees. Greenery and flowers flashing past my vision in a blur of colour.

My heart feels as though it will beat right out of my chest any second as my footsteps pound the floor, dry earth kicking up behind me. I can’t stop, won’t stop, not until I’m far enough away to hide from these hunters, these monsters, these demons in the night. I won’t let their vile touches taint my skin like they have so many years before.

I can’t let it happen again.

Hands catch hold of my dress as I run, tearing the fabric in their clasp. They’re too quick, too close. They’ve always been too fast, it’s not normal. I push myself harder, but I stumble; my logic leaving me as fear ratchets up. Momentum moving me forward but slower than I need. Fingers twist through my hair and a scream rips out of me as I am forced backwards. My world blurs with intense motion.

Bile reaches my throat as I see who has me caught in his grasp. This creature has haunted my nightmares for years. With eyes that are soulless depths of pitch black and hair to match, he is the epitome of a demon. He holds no interest in my comfort as he uses his grip in my curls to force me down, crashing onto my knees.

Another body collides into him, and he lashes out with one hand at his attacker, while keeping me in place. Two dogs clawing over a bone, a toy, a treat, or in this case, me. They both war to burn in the pits of hell, but perhaps we are already there. I don’t know what I did wrong, but maybe I am the reward for the devil's children.

“She’s mine tonight.”

“I’ve waited too long to fuck this tight cunt again.”

“You’ll break her.”

“I’ll let you use her mouth, then give you the leftovers.”

The laughter as they agree upon sharing my broken body sickens me. I barely take in their words as they continue their bantering back and forth. My world turns into a haze of memories thrust to the forefront of my chaotic mind.

I can’t breathe, can’t think, can’t move as anxiety floods through my body. Where is he? Where is my predator? Taking in a choked breath to ease my panic only helps me slightly. I’ve taken advantage of his protection for too long and now I need to remember how to fight. I’m not a little girl anymore.

I try to crawl from the pair, yelping out in pain as my captor yanks me back towards him. The momentum flinging me to the floor and crashing my head against the solid ground beneath. I spin to look back, unsteady, but determined, as I stare up at the two men. One still gripping a lump of my tangled hair within his grip.

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