Panic has me rushing over to my towel and snatching it off the sink basin. The door opens while I try to wrap it around myself, barely covering myself when Tobias walks in. He sneers at me, but his eyes run the length of me while I stand clutching the towel awkwardly. I watch as his face twists in disgust, like he just can’t bear to look at me. Shame washes over me. How could I be so stupid as not to check if the door was locked? I would have saved myself this sort of humiliation. I don’t think I am that horrid to look at. Nothing that warranted the look of disgust he gave me.
If I repulse him with just a towel on, I would hate to see the look on his face if he got a good look at the burns on my back. I consciously make sure they’re covered at all times. I have Darius to thank for my mutilation. Gym class was always the worst when in school. I hated it. The girls would stare in pity; they never said anything, but a look could sometimes express more than words could. And to think my mate did this to me when he killed my parents—he branded me permanently.
“Hurry up. I haven’t got all night,” he snarls, slamming the door as he walks out and back into my newly designated room.
The bang of the door makes me jump, and I scramble to dry myself and then put on the T-shirt Kalen gave me. It falls to my thighs, but I have another issue. I have no underwear, and I definitely can’t put back on the ones I was wearing—a little nasty to wear them again after having them on for days while in the dungeon.
Tugging the shirt down as far as it will go, I suck in a breath, trying to calm myself as I open the door to see Tobias sitting by the fire in the armchair.
He points at a bowl of something that smells delicious. “Eat.” His voice is cold as he turns his attention back to the fireplace. Frankly, anything would smell delicious at this point. Seven days without eating will make the grossest food smell and look appealing.
“Now, Aleera. Or would you prefer I bring Darius in here to force you to eat?” he asks, turning slightly from where he sits by the small fireplace. Shaking my head, I force my feet to move, slowly walking past him toward the tray on the bedside table. Nausea swirls in my stomach at the smell. Maybe I should have eaten the bread, I think as I watch my hands tremble as they clutch the bowl. Carefully I place it on my lap.
The spoon rattles against the porcelain as I grab it, trying to scoop the soup on the spoon. Most of it spills back into the bowl as I bring the spoon to my lips. Seven days without eating, and the smell of hot food shows how weak I have let myself become. I can't even remember the last time I ate hot food, mostly living off fruit and veggies I could scrounge up in the forests. It was the first time that I had stepped into a city in months.
And I wouldn’t have even left the forest, but the cold and snow had frozen my water source, and most of the vegetation was frozen or dead. At that point, I had no idea how much further the human communities were, and I was too weak to continue walking, so I dared to go to the city in search of water and food. Only that was a mistake because look at where I ended up… in the clutches of men who want to kill me.
Movement makes me flinch as Tobias moves toward me, his aura rushing out like a protective barrier. Except it isn’t for protection. No, he wants me to know he can hurt me, inflict pain on me if he wants as he stops in front of me. I swallow nervously before I strain my neck to look up at his angry face.
“I warned you, and still you fucking refuse,” he spits at me, then walks out the bedroom door, disappearing into the hall. The door clicks shut behind him, and I wonder what he means; I am doing what he asked. Turning back to my chicken soup, I place the spoon down and quickly glance over my shoulder to make sure no one comes back in before I drink the soup straight from the bowl. The spoon was useless to me, having managed to get none in my mouth with the spoon from the trembling of my hands.
They continue shaking as I bring the bowl to my lips, and the warm liquid spills into my mouth. A moan escapes me at the first mouthful, and some runs down my chin. I nearly choke as I hungrily gulp it down when I hear the door handle rattle. I pull the bowl away from my lips and hastily grab the spoon from the bedside table so they won’t think I’m some pig with no table manners.
My belly feels warm from the chicken soup, and I try to scoop some onto the spoon when a shriek leaves me as Darius suddenly appears next to me, his hand reaching toward me. I scramble back, nearly spilling the bowl onto my lap. Tobias grabs it before it ruins the bed and splashes over my legs just as Darius grips my hair. I clutch his hands, tears burning my eyes as I try to figure out what I have done wrong. I’m doing what they asked.
“You were fucking warned,” Darius snarls, pulling a piece of flexible hose from his pocket and a funnel. “Hold her down,” Darius says, shoving me back, and my eyes widen as I see him connect the funnel to the hose. What is he doing? What did I do?
Tobias grips Darius’ forearm. “Wait, she has eaten half of it.”
I blink at them. Darius looks over at Tobias, and I scramble back on the bed to get away from him. My heartbeat pulses in my ears as fear envelops me. How I wished I’d never wasted my magic. Now I wish to go back in time and choose differently. If I had my time over again, I would have tried to take on the Lycans instead of calling on them.
Darius takes the bowl from him and holds it out to me. “Fucking eat, or I will force-feed you.”
My hands tremble as I reach for the bowl, my eyes going to the hose and funnel as I take the bowl and sit back against the headboard. Tobias throws the spoon in my lap when I realize my shirt has ridden up, but neither pay attention as I quickly tug it back down. I just manage to cover myself when Kalen appears. His eyes widen as he rushes into the room. Lycus grips his arm as he steps toward the bed.
“Now, Aleera,” Darius’s angry voice sends a jolt of cold fear up my spine. I fight the urge to scratch myself, my body becoming itchy. It’s a nervous thing. I hated it. Whenever I am scared, my skin itches. I can't explain why, but Darius and Tobias make my skin crawl just by being near their intimidating auras.
My hands shake, and this time not just from hunger, as I try to scoop the soup on the spoon. Their eyes watch me, making me even more nervous. Please, just leave. I need them gone. Their presence makes me feel sick as I sense Darius glaring down at me.
The soup spills from the spoon before I get it to my lips, and a whimper escapes me when I see Darius’ hands clench into fists and my eyes burn with tears.
Darius leans toward me, and I cringe away from him. Shrinking, as my body tenses, wondering what he’s about to do.
“Aleera!” His demonic gaze bore into me, and I can see my reflection in his black, menacing eyes. The frightened look on my face makes me feel pathetic; I should not be subjected to this.
“And still, you deliberately disobey me.” I shake my head and glance at the funnel clutched in his hands as he steps closer. His hand wraps around my ankle, and his fingers dig into my skin painfully. I know he is a demonic fae, his temperature hotter than mine. But this feels different, with his hand searing hot against my cold flesh, making me wonder if he is intentionally trying to burn me.
“You will learn to obey,” he spits at me before nodding to Tobias. I watch, horrified, as Tobias moves toward me, his hands reaching out and he takes the bowl, setting it down and my chest rises and falls harder as panic sets in and Tobias pins me to the bed.