Chapter 26

Kiara

I stare at the empty breakfast tray of food they left for me. I had to force down the bowl of what looked like day-old oatmeal to keep my energy up. If I'm going to figure a way out of here, I'll need every ounce of it. It's been three days since that bastard locked me up in here. He hasn't returned since, which is my only reprieve.

The sound of the locks disengaging and the door opening has my body on high alert. A shadow appears, taking up the entire doorway.

"Let's go. The moon is almost full." His gruff voice scrapes across my skin like a thousand tiny needles. He holds the chain like a leash and drags me through the door.

My eyes squint, adjusting to the brightness of my new surroundings. Lights surround the rock walls, and it appears that we're underground.

There's a set of stone steps he's forcing me to walk up, but my fate hinges on uncertainty, and I won't come quietly. I yank on the chain enough to annoy him until he pulls me in close. So close that I can smell the stench of his breath.

"I told you to fucking behave." Those amber eyes glow with a warning that I don't heed.

I throw my head forward hard enough to hear something crack as I nail him in the nose. Blood runs down, covering the tops of his lips.

"You bitch," he growls out through the pain and slackens his hold on the chain.

I use the opportunity and attempt to make a run for it, but I don't get very far before he yanks me back, pinning me against the stone wall. Ridges from the rocks cut into my skin from the movement.

"I'm going to punish you for that." He shoves his hand inside the front of my flimsy underwear and thrusts two of his fingers inside me as he grinds his erection against my ass.

Tears sting my eyes from the burning pain of him violating my dry pussy. The force of his movements feels like sandpaper being scraped along my inner walls. I grit my teeth and fight back the nausea threatening to crawl its way up my throat as I try to push off the wall to put some space between us, but he isn't allowing that.

"When he's done with you, I'm going to rip you apart." He bites down on my cheek until he draws blood, making me scream.

"What the fuck are you doing, Tibor?" The sound of that voice has him stopping his assault.

He rips his hand away and steps back to face Farkas. "I was teaching this bitch a lesson of who's in charge."

"By touching what doesn't belong to you?" Farkas steps closer until he's towering over the two of us.

"She disrespected me." Tibor swallows, but there's no missing the tightness in his shoulders. It appears Farkas is the top dog, and he's at the bottom of the hierarchy.

"I don't fucking care if she cut your dick off. You don't touch what belongs to me unless I allow it. Is that understood?" Those amber eyes of his glow with such intensity that I can almost feel their power myself.

"Yes." Tibor grinds his teeth so hard I'm surprised they don't crack.

"Good. I'll take it from here." He rips the chain out of his hands and tugs me closer to him. I fall against his chest as Tibor spares me one last glance before he storms off.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Farkas does a once-over.

"Like you'd care if I was." Disdain bleeds out of my words.

"Silly, little pet. What have I told you?" He presses his thumb into the side of my cheek that is still throbbing from where Tibor bit me. "I'm the only one allowed to break you."

"I hate you." I spit in his face.

He wipes the trail of saliva off his cheek and licks it off his fingers. "Be that as it may, you are my property, and no one touches you without my permission."

He starts walking up the stairs again, pulling me along behind him. I have to run to keep up or risk being dragged by my neck. The steady pace never slows as he leads me up the stone steps and into a narrow hall with no windows.

When we reach a small wooden door, he forces me to a stop by yanking on my chain like I'm his dog.

"That's far enough." He steps into me, and before I can ask what he's doing, he bends down in front of me. When he stands, the air is knocked out of me as I'm lifted over his shoulder. The short bottom of my nightie rides up, exposing my thong and bare ass to the world.

"What the hell are you doing? Put me down, you son of a bitch." My fists pound against his muscular back.

"Quiet." His hand comes down on my bare ass with full force. It's enough to stun me into silence. "I'm not risking you trying the same shit you did on Tibor."

My hands clench into fists as visions of what I'd like to do to him fill my head. The cold air hits my backside the moment he steps outside. I'm forced to stare down at the ground as he walks a long, winding path with many uneven slopes.

Low chanting hums through the closer we get to wherever we're going. Shivers wrack my barely clothed body from the cold, and goosebumps form along my arms. My teeth begin to chatter, but he pays me no attention.

His steps slow as he approaches the edge of the water, but instead of putting me down, he walks in. He wades further and further until the water reaches the middle of his chest.

Without a word, he slides me off his shoulder and holds me in front of him. I gasp in shock at the water's frigid temperature. My limbs begin to ache from the shivers racking me, but I focus on taking slow, deep breaths as I glance around.

A crowd is gathered around the front side of the water as if they're on a small cliff. They're wearing black robes with hoods covering their faces. Nothing about this can be good. They're all watching as he keeps me pressed against him.

"Where are we?" Tremors rack my body as fear settles in.

"The Danube River." He turns me to face him.

My eyes widen at his words. Being in a body of water with him has my stomach turning. I start thrashing around like a wild animal, but he's ready for me. He tugs on that stupid chain, jerking me into his chest. My fingernails scratch at anything I can, drawing blood, but he won't release me.

"This is holy water, and it will rid you of any last remnants of those leeches. You will be cleansed of your sins and those that came before me. Because after this, you are mine, and you will never have another inside your cunt unless I allow it," he growls against my ear.

He grabs me by the metal collar around my throat and spins me around to face the onlookers. Most still have those hoods covering their faces, but two have their hoods pulled back and are glaring at me.

Tibor licks the fingers he used to violate me earlier as he sneers at me. Next to him, Anna is holding his other hand and watching me with a blank expression.

"We have been treated as an abomination since the day we were born, but that ends now. Fate has sent us our savior. With her blood, we shall become one. We'll breed her to build an unstoppable army of strength. And together with the witches, we will make the others pay for thinking they're better than us." The deepness of Farkas' voice vibrates against my back with every vile word he speaks.

Everyone is watching us in silence as they absorb every word of this bastard.

"But first, she must be cleansed of her sins against us and reborn." The grip on my throat tightens as his other hand goes to the top of my head. "I wonder how long you can hold your breath?"

Fear crawls along my neck as I fight against him, but he's too strong. His hand shoves me underwater. Water burns as it rushes up my nose. My arms flail, trying to make it to the surface.

An electrical buzz hums through my body as I feel the first stirrings of my magic coming back to me. Being in the water is giving me a stronger connection to the elements. The protection shield on my collar is weakening, but it isn't down yet. I need to bide my time until it does.

Pressure builds in my head the longer he holds me under. The reality that I could die stirs something to life inside me. I close my eyes and clear my head. If I'm going to call on the elements, then I need to be calm. I focus on the energy coursing through me and call to the earth. What was a faint hum is now a full-blown explosion, and I unleash it all, forcing him to let me go.

I push to the surface and gasp for air. The earth shakes, and things go from bad to worse. A rock falls from the side of the cliff between me and Farkas. He dives to the side to avoid being crushed. I move to the other side and am about to swim to land when I'm jerked back and forced underwater. Water fills my mouth as I shout for help. I pull on the chain, but it's stuck on something, dragging me deeper into the murky abyss below.

The weight is almost too much. I'm fighting with everything I have, but the longer I'm under, the less strength I have. I've been in the water so long that the coldness is affecting my ability to move. Each movement is sluggish and delayed.

My lungs burn the longer I'm deprived of oxygen. Soon, my sight narrows as shadows fill my vision. Dizziness overcomes me as I fight the urge to breathe through my nose. It's all too much. My eyes roll back in my head as my limbs go limp.

The shadows overtake me, and I welcome it.

I'm finally free.