22. Levy

Chapter twenty-two

Levy

F uck my head hurt, I could swear my skull was going to split open with every breath I took. Someone touched a cool cloth to my face, and I groaned desperately, wishing it could wrap around my head and numb the throbbing.

“That’s it honey,” they soothed, and somewhere, deep down in my chest, an icy-cold tendril of fear took hold. The cloth moved down my stomach, traveling lower, too low, and I slapped the hand away, forcing my eyes open. The room I was in was empty, the woman gone, like she’d never been there. I sat up, clutching my temple as nausea rolled through my gut. I was concussed and hallucinating, that was the only explanation.

Where was I? I looked around blearily, not recognizing the sterile-looking room around me. Where’s my shirt? I looked down at my naked chest, frowning in confusion. My jeans were still on, but the button was torn off, the pants loose around my hips. I shifted my leg, and a metal sound had me frozen on the spot. There was a thick chain on the floor by my feet, bolted to the concrete floor I was sitting on. The chain connected to a metal cuff on my ankle.

No… this wasn’t possible.

I stood up, my legs shaking as I tested the strength of the metal. It was real, I would have to chew my own foot off to get out of this thing. “No, no.” I ran my hands through my hair, pausing when I realized that it was… longer? I could nearly see the dark brown strands. No, this couldn’t be happening. I never let my hair get this long. What the fuck is going on?

The door in front of me swung open, slamming against the wall behind it. A group of men walked in, ones I wished I didn’t recognize. I willed myself to vanish, to hide away, at least for a moment, just to buy some extra few moments of peace. I backed up as far as the chain allowed as they approached, surrounding me.

“Are you going to be a good boy?” one of them called out, and the others jeered as I spun around, my fists raised. I wouldn’t give them anything; they’d have to take it, and I would make it fucking hard for them.

“He doesn’t want to play,” another man pouted. “Maybe we should play with Gracie first, that might loosen him up.” My hands dropped to my sides, terror seizing my lungs, making my head spin. They couldn’t have Grace, I wouldn’t let them touch her.

“No, please,” I rasped, and someone kicked the back of my knee, forcing me to the ground. A hand gripped my hair, threatening to rip it out completely as it wrenched my head back.

“Then be a good boy and behave,” the man in front of me intoned, tugging his belt off and quickly wrapping it around my throat. I felt the buckle biting into my flesh, the familiar pain sending a white-hot lance of fear through my brain. I started to struggle, and that was when the beating started. Six against one was shit odds, and I never stood a chance.

It’s not real, Levy! It’s not real !

The thought filtered through my head as my lip split, my mouth forced open as the belt around my neck cut off my air. My scalp burned as chunks of my hair tore out, the men uncaring as they simply adjusted their grip. I didn’t understand how they’d found me again. How did they know where to go? Soon, my brain severed the connection between my mind and my body, allowing me to fade as they used my body over and over.

“Levy, wake the FUCK UP!”

No, please, I don’t want to feel it anymore, please.

“LEVIATHAN!”

My heart felt like it was going to explode, and I gasped for air, grabbing for the belt around my throat. The belt was gone though. My eyes cracked open, and my body ached all over as I forced myself to sit up. I was wearing a shirt, although there was some blood on it now, and my pants were on and still done up. What? What the fuck? I looked around, and I was still in the room, my leg still chained to the floor. Movement in my periphery made me flinch, my body trying to curl up into itself for protection.

“Levy, it’s just me,” Anders croaked out, and I looked properly this time. He was chained to the floor as well, far enough away that we couldn’t quite touch. He looked in rough shape, his hair a mess, a black eye beginning to form.

“I don’t understand,” I rasped, my throat aching from the assault. Or… whatever had happened. I was so confused, and my head hurt so badly that I wanted to throw up.

“We were ambushed at the house,” Anders snarled, shooting a glare at the door. “We almost made it inside, but one of them pointed a gun at my head and you stopped. Why did you fucking stop?!” he hissed. This still didn’t explain what had happened, how they’d found me.

“They-” My throat closed up, that invisible belt tightening and preventing the words from coming out.

“It’s Douglas, Levy. He’s making you see things. They aren’t here, it’s not real,” Anders insisted, but still, my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. “He can’t hold us as well as regular people. We can fight it. Just remember they haven’t found you, okay? I would kill you myself before I’d let them touch you again.” The venom in his words grounded me, and I curled my knees up into my chest, resting my chin on them as I made myself smaller, willing myself to shrink down until nobody could find me.

“I need you to stay with me, okay?” Anders hissed, and I nodded dully. “It’s like hypnosis, I think, when you’re awake. But he can get you when you sleep too, so we should take turns, just in case.” I didn’t even want to close my eyes for fear of what I’d see if I did. “Try not to look him in the eyes, and if you feel like you’re dozing off, stand up quickly.” A tremor in his voice told me that he was afraid too.

I agreed to stay awake so that Anders could doze for a while. I guessed he’d been awake since we got here, whoever had knocked him out hadn’t done as good a job as the one who got me. I stared at the door, listening for any noises that could mean someone was drawing near. It felt like I was watching it for hours, my eyes beginning to burn as I traced the grain of the wood over and over again with my eyes. The concussion wasn’t helping matters either, it made everything hazy, and I was having a hard time focusing my thoughts. There was an old analogue clock on the wall above us, and each tick made my teeth ache with the brute force of it .

Footsteps outside caught my attention, and panic sparked through my limbs. “Anders!” I half-shouted, and he stirred, blinking his eyes open and sitting up immediately. We both looked up as a small slat in the door slid open. Anders turned his back on it immediately, and I dropped my gaze to the floor, curling up tighter.

“Nice to see you awake, brother-in-law,” Douglas drawled, and I winced as the ticking clock grew more pronounced, practically echoing through the room. “And your scarred-up ghost as well. It’s quite a party now, isn’t it?”

“Levy, look at me,” Anders hissed, drawing my gaze. “Focus on my voice, alright? Think about me.” My body flooded with heat, and I forced my eyes to stay open, even when my vision swam and nausea clenched in my gut.

“You’ve got some neat tricks, Howell, but you’ve got to sleep sometime. And Levy here, well his poor brain is half-asleep already, isn’t it?” Douglas mused. “I’ve got someone here to see you, Levy. Some old friends. They’ve missed you.” He chuckled, and my vision swam, Anders growing hazy as the clock ticked louder, drowning out his words. The door rattled like someone was trying to get in.

They’d found me, they knew I was here!

I tugged on the cuff connecting me to the floor, wrenching my ankle until blood started to well up around the edges. “Please god, not again,” I whispered, and the door swung open as my tormentors appeared, grinning wickedly. I tensed, but they ignored me, walking over to Anders instead. “No!” I croaked, dragging myself to my knees as they surrounded him, one of them laughing as they kicked him in the face, breaking his nose and knocking him to the floor. “Leave him the fuck alone!” I couldn’t get close enough, the chain on my ankle stopping me just out of reach.

“No, please!” I begged as they pinned Anders down, one of them pulling a knife as he struggled, blood pouring down his face. “Hurt me instead!” I insisted, feeling the blood running down my ankle as I pulled against the chain. “Hurt me instead, you fuckers!” I watched the knife arc downward, and my heart stopped beating when he buried it in Anders’ chest. They released him, leaving the knife protruding out of him as they advanced on me next. I struggled as they grabbed me and pinned me down, forcing my to watch Anders gasp out his last strangled breaths as they began their torture.

I wish that they would just kill me too.