Heyyyy! Thanks everybody for waiting, again, for my little delayed update :)
selairalynn, of course it's the annoying ex. They always have a tendency to come back, so why wouldn't he do the same?
Caroline, wow, thanks. I've never been told I've written a best piece of anything. It means a lot. And if you say you have so much experience with these scenes, I will take your word for it when you said it was the best scene you've read *happy dance here*
HonestPassion13, oh, how could I keep them apart for too long? No, they will be together and they will go through it all together. And you'll see Lissa in the next chapter
Tika86, I hope you'll like this action. Unfortunately or not, you decide, the only way Rose will be kicking ass this chapter is mentally
, no, no, no, that will never happen to Dimitri. And of course they will be together. Hoping your uni work is going great. Do you do some home, online classes now, considering the recent events? Best regards too!
GojGoj, thanks! I am glowing here reading your words. Oh, the future is not just a little dark. But it will get brighter soon. And about Olena, oh, I don't want to spoil that for you guys. You will see what's the thing about his family. I don't know for sure how soon, but you will find out. I only hope you won't get mad at me for it :)
I love you lots guys and I hope you're all safe and healthy. Take care of yourselves :)
I am not into extreme BDSM
RPOV
This bastard! I can't believe he is here!
How did he find us?
Who cares? He did and, and oh, I will hurt him! I will fucking hurt him!
But how? A fist won't work that well for all the things he deserves to be paid back, for all the pain he made me go through.
Oh! I have a gun. That will do the trick so damn well.
Yes, I will shoot him in the neck or something, this bastard! I will let him bleed to death and I'll be on my way.
I close my surprised mouth, and getting a good hold of the metal grip, I bring the gun up and point it to his chest, my index already starting to press on the trigger. I am ready to kill. No regrets.
"What the hell you're doing?"
He moves my hands so that the gun points down now, but to hell if I don't hurt him. He won't be able to follow me if I shoot him in the leg. I feel the urging need to hurt him, even though it is just a little.
So I go for it. I press the trigger fully and shoot, aiming to wherever I could hurt him.
But this doesn't work either. He moves his leg out of the way, and before I manage to shoot again, he snatches the gun away from my hands, throwing it into the empty street.
But this doesn't mean I can't still hurt him.
"Rose, I-"
I don't wait to hear what he has to say to me. I just pound my fist into his figure.
Shit! This hurt more than the time I punched that bitch in the bar! I stumbled over his cheekbone or something, and oh, it hurts! I will surely get a bruise if there's nothing broken in my knuckles.
"What was that, Rosie?" he asks seeming offended by my gesture. He has the guts to get upset about this?
I only get angrier and I want to smack him again, but this time he gets a hold of my hand.
"Hey, what's the matter with you?"
"I promised myself that the first thing I would do when I see you is to hurt you!"
I try to hit him with my free hand, but of course, it is useless. He gets a hold of it too.
"Okay, now stop. I guess I deserved it, but-"
"You guess? You fucking guess? Let go of me, you bastard!"
I struggle for him to let go of me, and he does, deciding to lift his arms defensively. This doesn't prevent me from taking some more hits at him, aiming for his face, until I realize it's kinda useless, so I stop.
"Okay, I know I deserved it. Do you feel better now?"
"Not really. I think I would like to punch you some more."
A cheeky smile spreads on his lips. How dare he be like this?! We're so not flirting now! And I won't let his charm work on me ever again.
"Sweetheart, I get it. And you can do that, but you will have to take your revenge on me later, okay? We don't have the time for that now."
We? Since when there's a we here?
"But where did you learn to throw a punch like that?" he asks and there's a big surprise filling his question.
"I have always known how to throw a punch like that."
No, not really, but I am not going to tell him that. I have my ego to look after, after all.
"Okay." he takes my snappy answer and doesn't ask for more details. "Now let's take you out of here. You're not safe."
He reaches for my hand and I pull it away. He's kidding, right? Of course I am not safe. He is here, after all.
"No! What the hell you're thinking? I am not going anywhere with you." the only direction I am heading to is away from him.
"Come on Rosie baby. I know that you are mad with me, but we'll discuss these things later. I need to get you away from him."
"Later? We won't do anything later. No. And I don't need to get away from anyone except you!"
"But I came to rescue you."
Startled by his words, I laugh to his face.
"Oh, really? You came here to save me?"
"Yes. I came here after you. It took me so much to find you."
Why don't I believe a single word he is telling to me? Oh, yeah, I remember why. Because that's what he has always done! He has lied to me each second of the time we've been together.
Those people upstairs are his and they surely weren't coming in peace. And neither is he.
"I missed you so much and I worried sick for you."
He tries to be gentle and to touch my cheek, but I slap his hand away from me.
"Bullshit! Go fuck yourself. I may have been stupid to believe you once, but do you think I am falling for that a second time?"
"Wow, what a language, Rosie. Where did you learn to speak like that? But anyway. As I said, we'll talk later. Now I need to take you to a safe place."
"Well, I was into a safe place until you and your gorillas decided to come!"
"What gorillas?" I can't believe that he is playing the fool card! "Look. I know you hate me now, but I had to do it."
"What? You had to do anything in your power to get me killed? Yeah, of course I get it. You had no other choice."
"No, not that. I had to pretend. I had to say that you mean nothing to me. I had no other choice. I am so sorry for it, but if the Russian would have known how much you mean to me, how much I care about you-"
I start laughing, almost hysterically. It has all been a lie, each word he told me until now, all those months. Just like everything he is telling me now. And he still expects me to believe him.
"I don't believe a single word you are saying to me. You're a liar and I am not falling for that again."
"Come on, hun. Give me a chance to show you. But not here. He may come after you and I am not letting him get his hands on you ever again. I am taking you somewhere safe."
I haven't been safe in such a long time. I have only felt safe in Dimitri's embrace. And that's the only place I will ever be safe in. Not with this bastard.
"I am not going anywhere with you. I don't want to be around you ever again."
"No?"
"No! Of course not."
I turn around to leave, but oh, what was I thinking of, that he'd let me?
He gets a hold of my elbow and pulls me to him.
When he opens his mouth to lie to me again, I cut him short.
"First, do not speak with me. I really don't want to hear it. I am so tired of your pretty lies. Second, do not fucking touch me ever again!" I snatch my hand out of his grip and he lets go of me, without much fuss. "In fact, I don't want you to ever even breathe next to me so keep your distance for your good or I swear to God, I will hurt you!"
Watching my outburst, his expression changes, going dark. I knew it he is still the bastard he has always been underneath those sweet words. I can bet that he's going to threaten me next or something like that. But to hell if I am letting him intimidate me ever again. I've seen some worse things than him.
"Fine. If we can't do this the nice way, we will do it the other way, and you won't like it."
Here he is, threatening me. Oh, his behavior is so easy to predict.
And this time, when he gets a hold of my arm, I feel his fingers digging deep into my flesh.
"Take your fucking hands off me!"
I even take some shots at him with my free hand, but this time he is not so nice to let go of me again.
"Yeah, just try and struggle some more, Rose, and you'll see what consequences that brings," he says and his fingers dig deeper into my skin, making me whelp a little in pain.
"You are some next-level prick, you know that?"
A wicked smile spreads on his face.
"You changed, Rosie. Where is the good, obedient woman I knew and fell in love with?" his tone gets mockingly.
"She died. Just like you will, you bastard!"
The only response I get from him is laughter and his palm coming over my mouth, which I gladly take the opportunity to bite. But my action doesn't bring me freedom. It only brings an elbow pushed against my already bruised ribs, taking my breath away. And as my body gives in just for a second, he starts pulling me after him and no matter what I do, I can't get free.
Half a minute later, he obliges me to get inside a car and locks the door behind me, until he rounds the car and gets inside too, starting to drive.
"You will fucking regret this." I don't know how for now, but he will. I will find a way.
And if I only could manage to flee earlier. I wish I could do it now, but of course, I won't be able to jump out of a moving car out on the street. I need to be smart about this. I'll wait for a lucky chance.
But then, an idea pops in my mind. I'll use his immense ego against him. It will work, without the littlest of doubt.
I start by putting my seatbelt on.
"What are you doing?"
"This," I say locking it. "Isn't it obvious?"
He rolls his eyes a little. "Oh, of course, good old Rose, always playing it safe, right?"
Considering what I am planning to do, I wouldn't call it playing it safe. I would call it one of the most reckless escape ideas I ever came up with. And unfortunately, there's no Dimitri around to stop me from getting myself hurt now.
"Well, with you driving this car, I want to be sure I don't end up dead. I am not taking my chances with you."
"Oh, someone found sarcasm lately," he says and laughs. "Ever since did you become this snappy, huh?"
"Oh, that's not sarcasm. Not even snappiness. I am just stating the truth. You are the crappiest driver I have ever seen, Alexander. Oh, excuse me. You are the crappiest driver I have ever seen, Xavier. And trust me, I have seen plenty of crappy drivers. But you overtake them all. The only good driver I have seen was the Russian." I'll try to use their little feud to my advantage. Supposing there is one. Praying there is one. "I mean, that man really knows how to drive a car."
He gets angrier and angrier with each word I throw at him. Yes! There is a thing between them, maybe some subtle masculinity contest or shit, but it is definitely helping my cause now.
"You should have seen him getting rid of our followers the first time we got followed. Phew! What a race that was."
His hands are gripping the wheel, his knuckles starting to turn white.
I get my voice to sound so excited, even though I remember the fear I was experiencing at that time.
"And oh, one time, he was driving and shooting at the same time and-"
As expected, he does what I hoped he will do. Oh, men and their egos. It makes them so easy to manipulate.
"Oh, yeah? I am a crappy driver? Will a crappy driver be able to do this so well?"
As we've gotten on a little more crowded highway, he pushes the speed pedal and starts dodging the cars here, making swift turns just so close to the other vehicles. I am a little impressed, but I have seen and well, not that I wish to brag, but I've done better than him.
To be honest, I haven't missed this thing from when Dimitri was driving, but thanks to him I got used to it. So instead of filling my brain with fear, I let it fill my blood with adrenaline, preparing myself for what comes next. I just hope I'll pull this crazy thing through.
"Whatever. Go ahead, speed up, crash us into the first pillar you find. At least we'll die and we'll be done with this."
Seeing my indifference, he doesn't do anything to try to impress or scare me further. Which is not a good enough answer for me. I need him angry and distracted and well, I need for him to go faster.
So I approach another strategy, knowing he won't resist it. He likes to play the big, bad guy role.
"Hey, Alex, please, stop this. You are going to get us killed!" I try to sound as scared as I can, mostly faking it, but only like 90%. The rest of 10% is real panic.
"Oh, so now you feel sorry for what you said?" He speeds up some more, just in spite of me.
"Please," I cry. "Stop it!"
He laughs and speeds up some more. Wow, isn't he a cruel one?
"Alex, please!"
And now, we're going just as fast as I think I need us to go for the impact to shake him enough. Me too, but I will take the risk. After all, I am playing it safe, aren't I?
"Say you're sorry!"
"Oh, I am sorry," I say as coldly as I can, and he gets surprised by what I have just said, his jaw dropping slightly. "But I am sorry for you, and for how stupid you are."
Not paying attention to the road ahead anymore, he turns his head and looks at me confused, the change in my tone and attitude being the main reason he does this.
And this startlement of his comes to my advantage, not giving him the time to process whatever is happening and to react to what I do.
"I hope you die!"
I voice my hate for him and get a hold of the steering wheel and pull it towards me fast and hard, making the car jerk to one side, thankfully dodging the nearest car and heading towards the little snow outside of the road.
"Always wear your seatbelt, you fucker!" I yell at him as we get so close to the end of the asphalted area, my hands never leaving the steering wheel and not letting him regain control over the car.
When there's nothing else to do to get back to safety, I let go of the steering wheel and make myself little in my seat, putting my head between my legs and covering it with my hands, preparing for the impact, and well, pray that I won't die. I am expecting some damage, but I pray it won't be unbearable.
I feel it within my whole body as we reach the offroad, the car shaking us pretty good, and shit, it doesn't stop into the barrier, a tree there or something else. Things don't go as smoothly as I wished them to. They go for the worst.
The car starts rotating, and not only once.
I am too busy to scream to count the spins, but my body feels all the hits against the door and the chair, my lungs emptying with every impact.
I hear him growling too and I look at him to see how he hits his head against the steering wheel. Which is good. I hope that at least he loses his conscience from that.
And we finally stop.
It's like the whole world stops around me as I try to cope with the dizziness all this rolling around brought me.
Even though, I force myself to assess my situation because there's no time to be wasted.
First, we're upside down and the only thing keeping my body in a normal position is the seatbelt.
Second, the car is messed up big time, but miraculously, even though the window on my side is now turned into little pieces, I don't feel any cuts on my skin or feel any pain or see any blood.
But third, if the situation wasn't bad enough, I smell gas.
There's only a good thing about this. My shitty companion is unconscious and unable to hurt me or stop me for now. But this doesn't make it up for all the bad things starting to pile up. Because if there's gas, there will be a fire.
So I need to get out of here like, five minutes ago.
I try to get rid of my seatbelt but it is stuck!
No, no, no! Fuck! Stupid safety measure! Couldn't one thing go well from start to finish?
I do my best to slip out from under it and after a minute or so of pulling and dragging and struggling, I hear a heavenly click that announces me that the seatbelt is now undone.
Yes!
The next thing I know is that I crumble onto the car's rooftop, which is, I'll call it, a pretty uncomfortable landing. If I wouldn't have been careful enough, I would have broken my neck.
"Rose," I hear him growl.
Oh, no! He can't get conscious enough to catch me.
I twist and turn and when I see there's no way in hell I could open the door on my side, I say to hell with it and decide to take my chances by getting out the shattered window, doing my best to dodge the sharp edges of glass that didn't fall.
To my displeasure, no matter how small my body is, I still cut my thigh in the process.
But hey, it is a good enough price to pay for my freedom. Because I am out! I am out on my fours, my knees feeling the wet earth underneath me, this being the biggest blessing on this planet for me now.
I have a really big problem with getting up on my feet, the dizziness from earlier only getting harder to bear, but I push my body anyway, fighting it as best as I can, carrying myself away from the car on my palms and knees, despite my brain telling me to stop, despite feeling my body so ready to give in and faint.
He must be coming! You must hurry!
Yes. I can't give up. I can't let him get his hands on me again.
Come on, Rose, you can do this.
I manage to push myself to move faster, to move my hands and feet despite the pain I feel everywhere. Maybe crashing this car wasn't the best idea after all.
You need to focus on what's happening now. Don't look back, don't think of what happened. You're not going back to that. Just keep pushing forward.
Yes. I can do this. Just put one hand in front of the other, and carry your legs along.
It is not enough. You need to run.
Yes. I must get away faster.
I must get up to my feet.
I must-
The second I feel his fingers wrapping into my hair, that's the second my body gives in and I crumble to the ground. I couldn't get away. I wasn't fast enough.
Pulling hard, he turns me on my back and his silhouette is keeping the sunlight from touching my face.
"Who would have thought…" he says breathing heavily himself. "You would be such a continuous pain in the ass!"
When he pulls me halfway up, I let out a little scream, my body feeling very well all the damage that has been brought upon it.
"Yeah. Scream and know you deserve it, you bitch!" he shakes me, making everything ten times more painful. "Ever since you started to think for yourself it all has become really, really annoying."
And this is the last thing I heard from him before his first made contact with my jaw, knocking me out.
When I get conscious again, the only thing I feel are my temples pounding like hell. In fact, this is the only thing that hurts worse than the rest of my body. This bitch of a headache is making it hard for me to even think. Damn, this bastard hit me hard.
Remembering where he hit last, I try to move my jaw, and oh, I don't think I'll be able to chew on something for a while.
But… am I dreaming or are we flying? It feels like that. I bet it is not only my brain playing tricks on me.
Opening my eyes to see what the hell is happening, my headache only gets worse as I meet a strong light that is suddenly pointed directly to my eyes.
"Oh, look! Sleeping beauty broke her curse. All by herself."
Hearing his sickening, mocking voice, I feel my knees getting soft with fear. Good thing I am sitting down. Too bad I am tied up, though.
Coming in front of the light and it emphasizing his features, I see that his face didn't get out unharmed from that car crash either. I think he might be looking worse than I do. Of course, I don't have a mirror at hand to confirm this info.
But seeing his battered face, despite feeling the pain in mine, it doesn't prevent me from smiling when I see my artwork. I harmed him pretty good. I only wonder how bad his body looks because I know mine feels like crap.
"Now I remember why I loathed spending time with you, Rosie. You would always ask me why I was late. It was because I didn't want to be there in the first place and the later I arrived, the less time I would spend with you. So here is the answer you always wanted. You're such a nuisance. And you never ceased to be one."
"It is my pleasure to make your life hard. And from what I see, I am still making it hard, so, yay to me, right?"
"Oh, trust me, honey, it will be such a pleasure to return the favor."
I decide not to gratify his threat with any answer. I just continue to stare at him, trying to seem unimpressed. Everything hurts already. How could it possibly get worse?
"Where are your glasses?" he asks discontented. Oh, so Dimitri was right after all. He was following us through them. "You never took that shitty thing off."
"Go to hell," I say through gritted teeth. He knows whose those glasses belonged to.
"No, no. That's where you're going."
He gets closer and with his fingers under my hurting jaw, he tilts my head so that I could stare into his cold eyes.
"I mean, now that your little protector isn't around anymore…"
Dimitri. Oh, Dimitri! What has happened to him? Is he alright? I hope he is, wherever he is.
"And I see that he didn't only keep you safe, huh?" his fingers get a hold of my cheeks and he turns my head to one side, extending my neck to one side. "His T-shirt?" he asks mockingly. "Love bites?" I want to hit him so badly when he starts lifting the hem of the T-shirt past my ribs, uncovering my body. At least I can pat myself on the back for deciding to put on those panties back on along the night.
"Get your hands off me!" I struggle, but of course, it is pointless, as I am tied to this stupid chair!
"Bruises too? Wow, Rosie. I didn't know you liked it rough. That rough. I guess that this kitten bites, huh?"
"You never cared anyway what I liked." he never cared what I felt either. All he ever cared about was himself.
He laughs. "But really now. You are fucking him?" he asks trying to seem disgusted by this, but what I mostly sense in his tone is envy. Again, his ego is crushed by Dimitri. He never managed to get me into bed, no matter what strategy he approached. "Wow. Wow indeed, Rosie. You continue to surprise ms. First you fight back and now this? Hell, you weren't this feisty when we were together. Who knows, maybe I would have come to visit you more often if you would have shown me this side of yours. Maybe I would have liked you better." he tsks. "You and I could have had so much fun."
"No thanks. I would have rather died than let you touch me."
My comment passes unnoticed because he is so immersed in trying to make me feel bad about what happened between Dimitri and I, but oh, how could I feel bad about what has happened between us? I could never regret last night.
"What, Rosie? You're having daddy issues and you fell into the arms of the first older guy you found? Such a shame."
"Go fuck yourself." he knows nothing about us.
He pulls away with a wicked smile on his lips.
"Fine, fine, I won't intrude some more into your little bedroom adventures. Let's get to more serious things. I know you know what we are searching for."
"I do. But I don't know why everyone thinks I know where that fucking flash is!"
"Oh, Rosie, but you do."
"I do?"
"Of course you do. Do you remember that night we went to the party?" how could I forget? That was one of the worst nights of my life. "You were having such a nice purse with you."
"My purse? You want to tell me that all this mess has started because of my purse?"
"Well, no one wants the purse. It wants what it contains. That's where I hid the flash."
"So you used me? You used me to hide it?"
"I like your perspicacity. Now be the good girl I know you are and tell me where it is.
"What? Couldn't a big, bad spy like you find it all by yourself? With all those resources you have? Such a pity."
My comment upsets him big time because he storms closer to me and almost hits me again.
"I have searched your apartment the very second you left it and I found nothing! What did you do with that fucking purse? Where did you take it?"
"I won't tell you." if I do, I know I am as good as dead. Why would I blow out my only advantage?
"Ah, exactly as I expected. You continue to test my patience. But here is what we're going to do. I am giving you time to think about this until we land."
"You can give me all the time in the world. I won't change my mind."
"Of course not. But we'll see what your response will be later. I bet you'll want us to have this talk again soon, with another ending. Maybe we could even come to make a deal too."
"I doubt it!" I yell after him as he turns around to leave me there.
And oh, he lets me think about it. Under strict supervision. There's one gorilla of his keeping an eye on me the whole time, and to make sure I am always thinking about his request, Xavier told that man to keep me awake at all costs.
All I wanted was to catch some sleep as I was left alone, to regain some of my powers, as I am more than aware that I can't get off this plane without getting myself killed.
But this fully tattooed guy doesn't let me close my eyes, not even for a second. Each time that happens, he comes and pinches, pokes, slaps, pushes, pulls, touches, and not only with his hands, but with whatever he finds at hand, some of my body parts, waking me up.
But surprisingly enough, after hours and hours of him hurting me each time I dared to doze off, he stops doing that and finally lets me sleep for a while.
But it is just for a little while.
I wake up in darkness. And I am again moving. But this time I recognize the movements of a car. Am I in a trunk? Perhaps. It seems to be the most plausible idea.
I feel cold and… wet? Yeah, there's a little puddle under me that has wetted my T-shirt. Was it raining or something when we landed? Where did we land anyway?
I wish I could see what it is all about, but in here is pitch black and it is making it hard for my eyes to see anything around here.
I would scream for help, but my mouth is covered with some thick material, and my hands are now tied too and… and oh… oh, good God!
As the car meets a bump into the street, I feel something touch me, coming over me in this little trunk. Or should I say it is a someone that's touching me?
Extending my hands, I feel flesh.
Yes!
I am not alone here!
This could be a good thing, right? I could wake them up and together, we could fight whoever will open the trunk. We could manage to untie each other and we could make it!
Yeah, this has to work. It is like, my last chance to get away before they lock me up somewhere with some rats to rot until I die.
But no matter how hard I try to wake him up, yes, it is a he, I kinda felt it on my leg as I was pushing him off me, he is unwakeable.
Hey, Rose, what if he…
No, no please no. Someone, please tell me that he's not…
Just so that I would convince myself, I dare turn some more and get my palms to touch the wet spot under my shoulder.
And oh, that is definitely some sticky, old blood. His blood because nothing hurts me that badly so that it would produce bleeding. Yet. Nothing bleeds yet. But it will if you don't find a solution to this situation faster!
I start struggling, pulling, pressing and rubbing my hands together, trying to avoid touching the body next to me as little as possible, and I somehow manage to get my wrists untied, but I don't get to make a plan to get out of here because soon, the car stops. Thank God that I didn't have to take care of my legs. Idiots. But hey, it comes to my advantage.
The car's doors open and I decide it would be better if I pretend I am still asleep. To try to use the element of surprise to my advantage.
As I wait, this minute that passes until someone comes to open the trunk, it feels like forever. I am so, so scared. I need to do anything in my power to get away from here.
As the sunlight warms my face a little, I resist the urge to open my eyes, trying not to give myself away so easily. I hear some men talking in a language I don't understand, and it makes the hairs at the back of my head stand. Foreign mercenaries? Could that be?
Oh, I am in deep shit. How could I fight any of them? Nevertheless, I have to try. This is my last chance.
As the two men talk, from their tone, it seems like they're having a little contradiction, so I decide to take my chances and open my eyes.
The odds are against me with this. They see me.
And so, all the plans of escaping that were forming in my head turn to dust.
All it takes is for one of them to press a white material over my nose, obliging me to inhale some sweet, sleep-inducing substance.
Waking up, I instantly get scared. Everything is dark and it is because a black sack is covering my head.
My body is not tied to a chair as it was in the plane, now only my hands are tied and they're lifted above my head, the rest of my body free to dangle above the floor, only my toes touching the cold wood under me.
I don't even get the chance to try to get out of the tightly tied rope around my wrists because I hear footsteps approaching me.
My heart is pounding so fast against my ribcage as the bag is lifted off my head and I can again see the light of day.
And in that daylight is a figure I hate so much.
"Do you wonder where we are?"
Wanting a response from me, he comes closer to me, taking off the piece of material covering my mouth.
"Not really. But I bet you'll tell me anyway. You always had a tendency to brag about useless stuff."
My response goes straight to his ego. This fucker. How come I never saw right through his bullshit? Through anything he did? How could I feel anything for him beside hate?
And as I predicted, he tells me anyway.
"It's an abandoned circus show building." he walks his fingers along one of the red velvet curtains attached to the ceiling. "They must have left in a hurry."
"And what? Did they give you the key to keep an eye on the place because you're such a clown?"
He smiles devilishly. And not in a good way, like playful. Oh, no. He's planning bad stuff in his head for me.
"You won't be this snappy when I am done with you, Rosie."
And despite the fear I feel creeping in me, I keep on showing nothing. I refuse to let him know I am so afraid.
"Why? Do you plan on stuffing me in your little car? Or better, do you plan to splash some water on me from your little fake flower? Tell me, when will you embrace your true nature and put on that red nos-"
I didn't see it coming, physically speaking, but I should have expected it. Because after all, he is good at hitting people when they say things he doesn't like.
And this time, it's not only a slap, and it is not directed to my face.
This time it's a fist, and it goes straight to my solar plexus.
Immediately, the pain radiates through all my body as my diaphragm contracts, the air in me getting out of my mouth as a whelp, my lungs unable to contain it.
So this is what Dimitri was talking about. It is so goddamn effective and I won't lie, I wanted to see how someone would respond to such a hit, but I never expected for me to experience it first-hand. It hurts like a bitch when it happens to you.
Too bad Dimitri never taught me how to deal with the pain such punch brings. I feel the need to crouch and make myself little, but the way I am tied up is making this impossible. I just have to stand here and fight the nausea rising the bile to my throat.
"You… bastard…" I manage to voice as in my anger, despite the pain I feel, I try to take a shot at him with my foot. An action that wasn't effective, nor beneficial to my wellbeing.
I hear his evil laughter.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did that hurt?"
He comes closer to me again, and I see through my teary vision a proud grin spreading on his lips. I swear I hate this man with all my being.
Getting a hold of my cheeks, his fingers digging deep into my flesh when I try to pull away, he obliges me to look him in the eyes.
"Listen to me, sweetheart. Nobody will save you. Not from me. I will be your fucking end."
I won't let him break me. I will fight him, each step of the way. I will not be that scared Rose anymore.
"We'll see about that," I try to mimic his sick tone and I manage quite well, despite my urging need to spill my guts.
"Sure, sure. Play the brave. But you won't be this brave soon, I promise."
He means it. Whatever it is that he wants to do to me, he means is.
And only to make things harder to bear, only to mess with my mind some more, he doesn't start right away. He decides to let me wait, to let my mind fill in the answer to the question of how is he going to break me.
He turns around and leaves, without saying another word to me, just letting that horrible promise spin in my head.
But little does he know that my brain is way too tired to come up with dark, painful ways in which he could torture me. All it can think of now is sleep, despite the surge of adrenaline the fight response brought to me. I am way too tired to do anything.
So the second the red curtain stops moving behind him, I sigh relieved and close my eyes, diving into a blissful, painless sleep.
A sleep that gets brutally interrupted.
Cold, cold water washes over me, disrupting my rest.
Opening my eyes, I see those evil eyes looking back at me, proudness filling them.
My spine nerves send little waves of electricity throughout my body from that coldness and I struggle a little to keep my body steady and not shivering.
"You bastard!"
"Do you feel like talking now?"
I close my mouth and press my lips together. I won't say a single more word. I won't give him what he wants, not in a million years.
Hate fills his expression.
"Oh, you will speak. And you will tell me everything. About the flash, about your loverboy and about everything I want you to. You will spill it all out without me even asking you when I am done with you."
"You can go to hell! I am not telling you anything, no matter what."
"But you will, Rosie."
"Stop calling me that!"
"Oh, but you loved it when I was calling you pet names."
"I hated you calling me that!" I should have seen that his words never matched his actions, but all I did was to let myself lead on by his sweet words. Never again.
I keep on watching him with a killing glare, hoping somehow that I miraculously gain some superpowers that would help me set him on fire.
He laughs again.
"I am not usually the man to threaten, but let me tell you one thing. If you want your family to be safe, you would better tell me."
"You won't get your hands on them." I don't even think twice before saying this.
I know Dimitri has men around my parents. He promised me. He never breaks his promises and I trust him with that.
I may be bluffing here, but I can't risk it. I can't tell him. I can only pray that if Xavier sends someone for them, Dimitri's men will be there to take care of it.
"Aren't you a little too sure of it?"
Yes, yes I am. But I have no other choice.
"Am I?"
"Yes."
"I don't think so. Because if you'd have them, you wouldn't just threaten me with hurting them. You would have already brought them here and you would have taken action."
His lips curl in displeasure.
"Well, aren't you a smartass?"
Yes! I knew it! He was bluffing too. I guess he doesn't want to take the risk. At least not now, when he still thinks he can break me into telling him. So all I need to do for now is to be strong and hope for a way out of here.
"You're all strong now, but let's see how big of a mouth you'll have when I am done with you."
"Yeah, let's see." I can't let him know that I am afraid. I need to stand my ground.
"I just can't wait to see you begging us to stop."
"Am I supposed to be scared of you now?" because I am.
"You will be," he says as a promise and I know I should prepare myself for the worst. God only knows how he plans to get his answers from me.
"Try all the way you want! I won't ever help you! I hate you! You ruined my life!"
"Don't be so dramatic, sweetheart."
"I am not your sweetheart!"
"Yeah, and you've never been."
"What a relief."
My full of hate response makes him laugh again.
"I will give you one last chance of getting away easily. Tell me, what happened with that goddamned purse?"
"I threw it away. I threw away everything that reminded me of that night. Who knows who has it now? Maybe some raccoon that had a party to attend."
His fingers dig deep into my cheeks as he pulls my face towards his.
"Don't lie to me. I know when you are lying, and you are lying to me right now. You will tell me one way or another."
"I will never tell you. No matter what you do."
"Fine. Remember that this was your choice. Remember that I tried to be reasonable."
"Yeah, because you're such a good guy."
"Like your dearest Mason was?"
"Don't you dare say his name!"
"Why not? Just because he's dead?"
"Stop that!"
He is being more than cruel to remind me of this. He knows how much I suffered after he got killed. Or he doesn't. After all, he was never there and he never cared.
"He was my friend…"
"And I was his end. Where's the point here?"
What did he say? He was Mason's end?
No, no, no. He is just messing with me.
"You're a liar. Just as always. You won't convince me with this." he is just bluffing again.
"Oh, come on, Rosie, think. Do you think that was just a robbery gone bad?"
It wasn't, wasn't it? I always wondered why that guy still shot Mase, even though we were cooperating.
I hoped that you would try to be the good guy.
That's what the shooter said before killing him. He wanted a reason to shoot him.
"If I ever get untied around you I will rip your fucking head off, you fucking bastard! You had no right! No right! He was my friend!"
"Aw, little Rosie bites," he mimics an affected voice, making something rip inside me.
He killed Mason. He did it. He took everything away from me. He still is taking everything away from me.
And I don't even know when my brain sent the signal to my leg to move, but I find myself reaching it upward fast, my foot making contact with his knee, and I've made sure it hurts.
With a growl, he takes a few steps back.
"You bitch!"
"Be grateful I didn't reach the point I was aiming for, you piece of shit! You're a coward! Untie me! I will fucking choke you to death! I will rip your eyes out! Untie me and fight me! Be a man and fight me!"
And maybe my threats said between harsh sobs and tears are hard to believe, but oh, I mean them all. I would kill him on spot and I wouldn't regret it.
But he doesn't care about any of my threats.
"Do you want to know why I killed him?"
"No." I don't want to hear him brag about this. "Please, stop speaking."
I could bear all the physical tortures he'd use on me. But not this.
"He heard me one day."
"Shut up! Shut up, goddamnit!"
"Hey, it's not my fault that you gave your key to that stupid friend of yours that day when he came into town. He wanted to see your new apartment and you so gladly handed your keys to him."
"You weren't even supposed to be there!"
"But I was. I had to make sure I hear everything that happened in there when I wasn't around."
"So you bugged my apartment. That's why you killed him? Because he saw you do that?"
"Oh, not only that. He heard me speak to someone very important. And all because of you. His death is on you, Rosie baby. If he wouldn't have been there that day, in our apartment, I wouldn't have been obliged to kill him later. I had no other choice."
"He was my best friend. You killed my best friend. You're a monster."
All because of you. You gave him your key.
No. He is just trying to break me. I didn't know. I didn't know he'll be there.
But oh, God. I sent Mason to his death. He would have been alive if…
"Oh, trust me, I thought about that too. I didn't want to kill him at first. I convinced him not to say anything to you. Hell, he would have done anything for you, especially when I threatened to hurt you if he doesn't keep his mouth shut. He was so in love with you everybody could see it, except you."
He knew too? I am such a fool. If I would have ever seen that Mase cared for me in that way, if I would have ever given him a chance, maybe I wouldn't have fallen for Xavier. Mase would have been alive now. Maybe he and I would have been something more than friends. Maybe we would have been happy together.
Too bad. Because he's dead. Because of you!
No! I didn't know.
"But you know, I thought better about it and I realized I couldn't take the risk. It wasn't worth the trouble of letting him know. He still could have told you. So I had to get rid of him. This is not my fault. It's all on you, Rosie. You let him in there."
"I hate you! I hope you burn in hell! You're a monster!"
"Oh, no. You see, you will share the same fate as him, not me. But only after you tell me what I need to know. The only thing you get to decide is if that happens fast or not. I am not that cruel, you see. I killed your little friend fast. I didn't let him suffer." no, he didn't. Instead, he left me behind to bear this pain. "I could offer you the same way out. I will, if you decide to be a good girl and cooperate."
"Rot in hell! I will never tell you!"
I don't know what he wanted to get from me by telling me this, but all I know is that I hate him more than I ever did and I will endure everything he does and some more, but I will not break and tell him. Never.
Infuriated by my response, he storms my way and his palms wrap on my neck, preventing me from breathing normally.
"You will tell me!"
"Go… ahead… and… kill… me…"
The hate in his eyes only intensifies. So does his grip around my throat. His thumbs dig so deeply into my trachea, robbing me from the last pieces of air.
"You'll… never… know…"
"Don't you dare play games with me! You will fucking tell me, do you hear me? You will tell me!"
His hands still wrapped around my flesh tightly, he starts shaking me, the anger in him still present in his voice as he repeats those words to me. But I will never let him win.
"Ne… ver… nev… er…" I manage to mumble with the last bit of air in my lungs.
My head already started to cloud and I see him through a blur. He's going to kill me. He will choke me. He-
He lets go of me.
My whole rib cage contracting, I hungrily gasp for air, feeling plentiful the painful process of breathing again, my lungs feeling so ready to collapse.
"Listen to me. That flash will bring me a lot of money. And you won't stop me."
"I am not going to tell you. You or the people you're selling it to could do so much harm with that."
"And since when do you even care?"
"That thing doesn't belong to you! "
"Whose side are you on? Have you switched sides? What? Are you with the Russians now?"
"I am not on anyone's side. I am on my own! Fuck you all! I didn't ask to be part of all this. I never wanted to be a part of this. So I am making my own side. And when I get out of here, I will get that flash and I will destroy it! No one will have it. Especially not you!"
"You're so pathetic, Rosie. Do you think he'll repay you in any way for this? Do you think he'll appreciate your pathetic sacrifice? What do you think, that he loves you? Yes, he loves you as much as I did, and that means nothing at all. He just wants what everyone wants from you. All he did was to use you. Do you think he cares about you? Of course not. He'll leave you the first second he gets his hands on the flash. So come on. I am better than him. At least I am true with you now. I am not lying to you. Tell me where it is and I promise to let you go."
He doesn't know shit. Dimitri is nothing like him. He cares. He wouldn't do something like this to me.
"Go to hell! You won't change my mind with your lies! I won't say a thing! I know you'll kill me the second I tell you." and I want to breathe tomorrow and so many other days after that if possible. "So you can go fuck yourself."
He slaps me and as I haven't seen it coming, I kinda bite on my tongue and now blood starts filling my mouth.
I only laugh in response to his hit.
"You're such an animal, Xavier. Hit me all the way you want. You won't hear a single word from me about that. Death would be much better for me than being your informer. If my life helps a monster like you once more, in any way, I'd rather die."
"Then, I will grant you that wish is you're asking for it with such fervor."
"You won't kill me. You still need me. I am the only one knowing where your precious flash is."
"Yes, but this doesn't stop me from making anything possible to get that information from you."
"Yeah, let's see how that will work. Until now, all you did was bark and no bite. You hit me a little and choke me? Wow. So inventive. You don't scare me." not anymore. All that I've been through these past days, I realize, has made me stronger. And I love feeling this way. "You're nothing but a selfish coward. You have no blood in your veins. You're a caricature of a man. You have no honor, no nothing!"
"Oh, so we're talking bad words now, huh? If you would have acted like this when we were together, maybe I would have liked you more and I would have decided not to kill you now. Who knows, maybe I would have come to like you enough to get you in this too. I could have made you rich. I still could."
He is now trying to offer me money, after threatening me with killing me, after he approached all the other bad guy ways, he now tries to, I don't know, bribe me? This guy is desperate. He is trying all the possible methods to make me speak. Good. Let him struggle. Let him boil.
"How stupid do you think I am?" He just shrugs. "And do tell me, what would I do with all those money you offer me when I'm dead?"
"Get yourself a nice monument?"
"Yeah, like I would have ever agreed with this. I don't want anything from you. No amount of anything would make me speak."
Seeing that I am still unwilling to give in, his jaw clenches and he sighs deeply.
"Before leaving, I am going to give you one more chance to end this the nice way." oh, so we're back to threatening? "Where is the purse?"
He has gotten close to me now and on some disgusted instinct in me, I act very unladylike, but I swear I can't help it. He is despicable to me.
I spit on him, the blood that gathered in my mouth spreading so nicely on his face and shirt.
Wiping his face with the sleeve of his shirt, he smiles at me.
"As you wish, Rosie. Make your last hours painful. It's all up to you. I know I will enjoy watching you struggle."
"Great! I can't wait." I continue to provoke him, even though I know so damn well I have a small upper hand here. But I can't help it. It's like there's a little part of me that's asking for it, for this torture he promises.
But before leaving me alone in here again, he stops and turns to look at me once again.
"One more thing. You don't like the cold, don't you?"
"What?" can you believe that he remembered this thing about me? Out of all the things I told him?
"Oh, nothing. You'll just see."
And I don't have to wait for long to see what he has in plan for me.
At about five minutes after he leaves, the two mercenaries from earlier come to me, and oddly enough, they're carrying two buckets, one each.
Oh, I think I know what Xavier has in plan for me.
But I try to seem like I don't give a damn.
"Hey, guys, how's it going?"
Only one of them responds to my tease, approaching me and studying me from head to toe.
"It is going way better now, sugar," he says with a thick accent I still can't recognize, and a wicked smile spreads on his lips as his eyes shamelessly still examine my body.
And oh, damn me, I remember that I am only wearing a pair of panties and a very thin, now wet T-shirt.
I could shy away, as I always do, or try to turn this situation to my advantage.
"Do you see something you like, big boy?"
"Mhm. Plenty," he says and comes even closer as I don't know, his companion seems busy with opening all the windows in here.
So my thought was right. I only wonder how much longer could my body resist the coldness. But maybe it won't be necessary.
I decide to try my chances and go further with him. Who knows, maybe I'll be able to fool him into helping me.
I wrap a leg on his calf and pull him even closer, so that I would be able to reach his ear better.
"And don't you want some more?" I do my best to sound sexy and seductive, a thing that has never come naturally to me, but hey, desperate times ask for desperate solutions.
"Are you offering more?"
"Of course, with the right price…" I continue to rub my body against his, trying to reach his crotch and I try to seem eager and excited about it, instead of disgusted.
He smiles at me accomplice. "Maybe we could-"
I whelp as I feel the so cold water splash on my back, wetting me once more and I need to suppress some swears as shivers get a hold of my body.
The other guy decided to disrupt our moment and now he comes in front of me too, and starts, I guess, scold my previous conversation partner, who is now wet too. And he sends him away.
Oh, there it was, my little luck, leaving me. Maybe he was too weak and if I would have had enough time, I could have fooled him.
The remaining gorilla gets a hold of the other bucket and pours it on me, this time letting it fall slowly on my body, and with each little wave of coldness that washes over my body, I get shivering harder. I am already freezing!
"Nice job, dickhead," I say, my teeth clattering.
"Boss said he'll come back when you'll be close enough to turn into an icicle. Maybe the cold will make you think better of your options, you know, in the cold light of day."
"Wow! A genius comeback!' I yell after him as he turns his back to me.
And they leave me here alone, hanging for a while, my body soaking wet and the December coldness crippling into my bones.
And oh, this is not all. They make sure they come back regularly and wet me again and again, always making sure I don't have the time to get dry, and they would always ask me if I have something to say. I always have something to say, but it was never anything they wanted to hear.
So here I am, again left alone, with only the cold air to keep me company after the rude mercenary wetted me again.
Maybe by hanging here, I will get a little taller. You know, like my bones will lengthen or some shit like that with the help of the gravity.
What a stupid thought from me in this situation. What a stupid, stupid thought.
I am so stupid.
How could I let myself get into this situation? I won't ever get out of here. What am I going to do now? I am completely alone and no one is coming to save me. I will die here. I will get into severe hypothermia and I will die. I already can't feel my limbs and the only thing that's warming me a little are my muscles contracting so badly they start to hurt.
And after so long time in which I forced myself to be brave, I finally break in tears. And if the cold wasn't shaking my body enough, the harsh sobs do an even better job.
Oh, Dimitri, where are you? Can't you please come to rescue my lame ass one more time? This time I got myself in big trouble and no one can save me but you.
Sometime along the long, long hours I've been hanging here, I don't know exactly when, the cold made it so hard for my brain to think straight, the windows have been closed and the men ceased to come and wet me.
Of course, things didn't get better than before, even though the ambiance in here got a little warmer. I am still wet and I am still freezing and shaking.
I only wonder what comes next. Because I am still not willing to speak. I've gotten this far. Why give up now?
The next time he comes to visit me, Xavier brings a friend. I find his face familiar, but I don't know where I have seen him before. Maybe it's just my hypothermic brain playing with me.
"Hey, there! Welcome to the party!" I do my best to sound excited.
Both men ignore my sarcasm. What a bunch of dicks.
"So? What's your decision?" Xavier asks for the millionth time.
I give him the same answer.
"Go to hell."
"You think you're a badass for putting up with me like this, huh? But Rosie baby, you have no idea who you're messing with."
"I kinda do know who I am messing with. With an idiot that doesn't want to get into his head that I will not say a thing!" I turn my attention to the other guy. "Can you believe him? He won't get a no for an answer."
He smiles at me. "I know. That's why I am here."
"Oh, another bad guy threatening me. I'm really scared." my idiotic response makes him smile wider. "Don't be flattered though. I am only shaking because I am cold as hell. You have nothing to do with it."
I don't even know why I am acting like this, but I have suffered so much these hours and it feels like I have nothing to lose. I feel invincible, even though at the back of my mind, I know so damn well I am not.
"Go on. Have fun, Pyro," Xavier says to the man.
"What? You're not sticking around to watch?"
"No, I have better things to do," he says lastly and goes away.
And here I am, alone with my new tormentor. Pyro. Oh, what a promising name. Let's see what he's up to.
"So? How do you plan to take the info out of me?"
"Oh, but where's the rush?"
"Ah, you know, people tend to say I am rather impatient. My bo- My guy said this a couple of times."
"Then don't you worry about it. You'll find out soon enough. I won't keep you waiting."
I smile, and fake excitement. "I just can't wait!"
"You're a weird one, doll," he says amused and comes closer to me, and of course, his hands have to touch me. What? Haven't they ever seen a semi-naked, wet as hell woman hanging by the ceiling before?
He rounds his palms on my hips as I try to pull away, but oh, silly me, my tied hands don't allow me to get too far and my tippy toes don't manage to help me either.
So if I can't pull away from him, I could push him away, right?
I take a swing with my knee for his crotch, but I somehow manage to hit his stomach instead, my leg not syncing with the impulse gotten from my brain and reaching too far up. Oh, I am just so tired…
"You fucking bitch!" He gets a hold of my hair and pulls me to him. "You're lucky I am only supposed to torture you. But what you have just done, didn't win you my sympathy. I won't make this experience very pleasant for you. But it will surely be pleasurable for me, doll, to see you beg for me to stop."
"Yeah, you wait for that to happen."
He doesn't give up and he starts touching me again, his hand sliding down on my abdomen, and stopping at the hem of my panties.
"Get your filthy hands off me, you bastard!"
He gets closer to my face, his hand advancing over the still wet material over my groin.
"Or what?"
I take the opportunity to slam my forehead in his nose.
"Motherfucker, that hurt like a bitch!" I never knew my head could hurt like this. I feel dizzy. Oh, shit. I don't know how long I can keep on playing this game.
He laughs with blood going down his lips and chin.
"Impressive." he wipes the blood away with the hem of his T-shirt. "You weren't that brave when we first met, doll. What changed?"
"What did you say?"
When we met the first time? So I wasn't delirious when his face seemed familiar to me? But where have I seen him before?
He comes closer, like wanting me to get a better look at him.
"What? You don't remember me? What a shame. I thought you'd never forget me."
He doesn't move away from me, he just lets me analyze him some more.
But my brain is surely not functioning well enough. I can't remember him. Let's see. What seems that familiar?
A smirk on his lips. This I've seen a thousand times before and better versions too. Little wrinkles forming at the corners of his mouth. So, he's way older than me. Not that this would matter, though. His nose is bloody, thanks to me. No news here. Dark, brown eyes looking into mine, expecting. So many people I know have brown eyes. Dimitri has brown eyes. Oh, how I wish I could stare back into them now. How I wish he'd hold-
Focus, Rose. Focus.
Bushy eyebrows enframing those eyes. But there's something wrong with his left one.
Squinting my eyes to see what's wrong, oh, how could I miss it, there is a scar across his left eye!
A scar.
My heart starts beating faster.
Oh, no!
It can't be him.
But that scar is unforgettable. No two people can have the same, identical cut.
I am getting sick.
When the realization of who he is comes to me, he smiles as my eyes widen in fear.
"You killed Mase," I barely dare to say, my voice trembling.
"Congratulations. You remembered. I told you we'll see each other again. It was meant to be, doll. And now, if you don't mind, I have some information to get out of you. But what should I start with? Do you have any preferences?"
I can't even speak to him. I don't want to.
He comes behind me and pulls my head backward, his fingers clasped in my hair as he whispers in my ear.
"Are you going to tell me what I want to know?"
I shake my head.
He pushes his knee into my tailbone, sending painful waves across my whole body. I clench my fists around the rope keeping my body extended and clench my teeth so hard they screech against each other, but I don't let out any sound of pain. I am so, so angry and the pain is helping me exteriorize it all.
"That's all you've got? Pathetic."
He hits me once more, harder, and this time I was so close to biting my tongue off. But still, I don't let out a single sound.
"Oh, this is only the beginning. You don't want to know how far I can take things, doll."
"Why do I feel like you'll have to show me anyway? You shall know I am quite slow at understanding things at times. You may need to explain things to me over and over again."
"Oh really?" he asks as he puts his palm in between my shoulders and pushes, my arms twisting and I whelp in pain. "What about this? Do you need me to explain it to you again?"
"Yes!" I yell.
He pushes harder, and I start fearing he might dislocate my shoulders.
"No? Nothing? Aren't you going to say anything?"
He pushes me some more, and this time, I can't take the pain anymore. I start crying. I feel my joints ready to pop and with each sob, the pain seems to get fainter, but not for too long. It always comes back, stronger and stronger.
"Tell me, and it will all be over. The pain will go away."
"Never," I say out of breath.
"I would hate to have to destroy such beauty, doll. Don't make me do this. Don't make me go further."
"No."
When he lets go of me, I sigh relieved and the hanging doesn't seem as bad as it did before.
"You're a little resistant woman, aren't you?"
Oh, I can't even believe it myself. It's a wonder I haven't broken down until now. I thought I passed my limit a long time ago, but somehow my body still finds resources to hang in there.
I don't know for how long I can take it though.
"So, you're not going to tell me anything?"
"No. No, I won't," I continue to refuse, even though I hear my voice shaking.
His jaw tight, he fists his palm and hits me.
And I swear I have seen it coming. My body felt it coming, I anticipated it. And even though no one taught me how to deal with such a punch, I contracted my core tightly as the impact occurred and I hope that helped a little with the damage it brings. I hope there won't be any internal bleeding.
But even though I resisted the hit, it still was a good punch, sent with the intention to do the most damage, and my already exhausted body senses its effects plentily.
Along with the inability to move a single muscle in my body, an excruciating pain surges through my body from under my ribs and I feel such deep fatigue installing in less than a second. Maybe it's because of the loss of air my brain is experiencing.
Oh, who would have thought that the fucking liver could bring such pain? I feel like dying.
"What about that, doll? You're still not going to spill it out?"
I can't even open my mouth to answer. Not that I want to, but… oh, I have so little control over my body. I let it hang limp as I feel like I am floating, like there's no floor left under me.
When his thumb presses on the already hit spot, I scream.
"Tell me!" I hear him yell at me through a haze.
And I keep on screaming, all my left powers focusing only on that, and they soon consume. I have no energy left. I can't do anything.
And darkness follows. A painless, promising, blissful unconsciousness that I gladly embrace.
I can't breathe!
Oh, God, there's no air left!
I can't breathe!
I can't -
My nose burns as I am allowed to take in a breath.
What the hell is happening?
Snapping my eyes open, I meet that scarred face again, his dark, wicked eyes looking back in mine.
"Glad to see you're awake, doll."
What did he do to me?
Seeing the confusion on my face, he smiles.
"Did you like that?"
Of course I didn't! I am not into extreme BDSM.
"Let's try it again."
My mouth already covered with what I guess is duct tape, he puts two fingers on my nose, preventing again the air to get to my lungs.
And little by little, I start suffocating again.
And no matter how hard I try not to panic, when the oxygen runs out, my whole body starts trembling.
When I start seeing little dark spots in front of my eyes and I am so ready to faint again, he lets go of my nose and I can breathe again.
"So? Are you ready to tell me?"
I don't give up. I can't. I know I have to hang in there. I shake my head.
He doesn't stop at this. He repeats the scheme two more times, always with the same response from me.
And even though I should start crying and beg him to stop because my body can't take it anymore, for whatever stupid reason my brain finds, I start laughing.
It annoys him to see me like this.
"Why the fuck you're laughing?"
With a painful tear of the duct tape off my mouth, he asks me that question again.
I only get laughing louder now that my mouth is free.
"You are crazy."
"And you won't kill me." my laughter gets hysterical. I guess this is the only certainty that keeps me alive.
"What makes you so sure of it?"
"You need me. I am the only one who knows where that goddamn flash is."
"And what? That doesn't make you indispensable."
"It kinda does, you idiot. If he could have found it without me, I wouldn't be here. You wouldn't be here trying to get that information out of me. I would have been long dead."
"Yeah. But this doesn't mean that you can't be hurt."
"And what you're gonna do now?"
I don't think that my challenge was a good idea because he seems so willing to show me.
Oh, he shows me right away.
He unties my left hand and getting a hold of my little finger, in a swift movement, I feel its upper part slipping out of its joint, the pain of this radiating all the way up to my shoulder.
And oh, that screaming voice was mine.
"Will you tell me?"
He squeezes on my finger and I only scream louder. I scream a "No."
"You see, doll, I have twenty-eight chances to make you say yes. If we count your toes too, the chances only get more numerous."
He gets a hold of my ring finger and starts to play with my joint.
"Come on, we don't have the time to play with you."
"Oh, but I do. I have so much time I don't even know what to do with it," I say despite I know so damn well what he has in store for me.
But even though I tried to seem so fierce a moment ago, when I feel him starting to pull my finger to one side, my will breaks.
"No, no. Stop, please, please, stop." I am crying so hard it is hard for me to speak. "Please don't."
"Will you tell me what I need to hear?"
He gets a better hold of my finger and I take a deep breath in, preparing to feel that pain again.
"No. No, I won't tell you."
I'd rather die keeping this secret. I would do anything to keep my family safe. I would die for them.
"As you wish. Don't you ever say I didn't try to be reasonable… "
He pulls my finger to one side and I scream so hard that my throat feels sore.
Twenty-six chances left. How many can I take until I faint again?
"Scream all the way you want. No one is going to hear you."
Taking a step back, he crosses his hands over his chest and looks at me.
"You're not going to give up, huh?"
"No. Never." I barely say through harsh sobs.
I see some emotion appearing in his eyes, apart from the cruelty and the insanity, and call me crazy or not, it seems to be compassion? Pity?
"Impressive, doll."
He comes closer to me again and this time I let the fear in me get the best of me, and I try to pull away from him as his hand reaches up to my face.
"Please… please…"
"Shhh." he wipes my cheek with his thumb. "?You know, I've seen fiercer men breaking faster than you did."
"I… I haven't… broken… yet."
He smiles. "Yeah, I see. And you keep on making me hurt you." his fingers under my jaw tilt my head. "Why do you oblige me to destroy such beauty? You're so beautiful, why don't you want to be a smart girl too?"
"I am. Me not telling you… it is my best chance."
Smiling and nodding, he pulls away.
"You're right. And you see, I guess I could try my other twenty-six chances, but you still won't give in, am I right?"
I nod. I promised myself I won't say a thing. He could try my toes too. I will do my best to take it all.
"But you know, I get easily bored. And when I see that one thing doesn't work, I usually like to make things harder."
Going towards a table, he comes back to me carrying a metal object in his hand. An object I don't think I like seeing.
"Do you know what this is usually used for?"
I don't want to answer. The sight of that object he is showing me already brings dark thoughts to my mind.
"Oh, come on. Someone has told me you are a smartass. Don't you want to impress me again, doll?"
I still don't speak. Saying its name would make it more real.
He presses the metal against my sore flesh, just over the spot he so skillfully hit before, making my eyes water once more and leaving me breathless.
"What is this?" he presses harder. "What is this?"
"A branding iron!" I say starting to cry again.
"Good, very good, doll. And you know where I am going to use it?" I shake my head no. I don't want to know. "Let me tell you then," he says, his filthy fingers walking across my hip under my T-shirt, heading shamelessly towards my navel. "The skin is thinner here and easier to burn, to hurt."
I pull my body away and try to hit him with my leg, but I can't even lift it off the floor, not even an inch. I am depleted of all the energy I had.
"Go… fuck…yourself..." my mouth is the only thing I still manage to move.
"Oh, doll, we'll see how much of a badass you will still be when I break you. Because I will. No one escapes me."
I won't lie, his threat gets to me. It really does. I am scared out of my mind. Because things don't look favorably at all for me. Things look really bad, in fact. I might have no escape. And by no escape, I mean no chance to make it till tomorrow. I guess I ran out of lucky chances. I'll die. Now. Here.
He starts lifting my T-shirt and ties it just under my breasts, his eyes never leaving mine, and it's like he's asking me to give in and talk. Call me crazy, but he looks like he wouldn't want to brand me. But...
"You're not giving me any chance, doll." he voices my thoughts.
"I know. That's when they call you Pyro?"
"That's what you want to know?"
"What else would you want me to say?"
"Aren't you going to beg me for your life?" he asks as he pulls away and puts the plug into the socket into the wall, letting the branding iron heaten.
"Why would I? You will kill me regardless. So I would rather die with the dignity I still have."
"What dignity do you still have after you had sex with the enemy?"
I laugh. "He's not my enemy. And I still have the dignity of not helping people like you."
"I quite like you, doll. More and more with each passing minute. Maybe if you impress me enough, I might make your death less painful at last, when it will come to it."
"Not gonna happen. Not in a million years. I don't live to impress you. And I won't beg you for anything."
"As you wish. It's all up to you. It has always been."
He goes away for a little while, and all I can focus on now is that metal turning red with each passing second.
Oh, God, it will hurt so badly.
When my tormentor comes back, Xavier is accompanying him.
"Come on, Rose. For how long are you going to be so stubborn? End your pain now. It is worth it?"
"Yeah. Each second of it."
"You're doing it for him? You think he- What's his name after all?"
"Like I'd ever tell you that."
He laughs a little. "Of course you're not going to tell me. But do you still think he'll come and rescue you? Because he won't."
No. He won't break my will. Dimitri will come. He wouldn't leave me alone. He would never-
"Your loverboy is dead, Rosie."
"I don't believe you. And I will never tell you! You can try anything you want. You won't break me. You won't make me tell you!"
"Whatever. She's all yours," he says and goes away, leaving me again with Pyro.
"So what's it gonna be, Rose?" it's the first time he doesn't call me doll and I feel the seriousness of the situation I am into.
"Do what you have to do."
A proud expression appears on his face.
"That's my girl. I knew you wouldn't give in."
"I am not your girl."
He smiles. "But you know…" he says picking up the red iron. "This thing is quite permanent," he warns me.
"I'll take my chances."
Approaching me, I can feel my whole body heating with the anticipation of that metal touching my skin.
"Just so you know, I won't stop with this. This is the only thing I never get tired of."
"I kinda figured it out when I made the connection with your name."
He laughs a little. "You're funny too. Crazy as hell, or funny. I still can't tell which one." from the back pocket of his jeans, he takes out a piece of material. "Here, doll. Don't you bite your tongue off." he puts the material in between my teeth and I must say I appreciate the gesture. "One last time. You won't tell me?"
"No."
He brings the hot iron closer to my hip and I can feel its heat radiating so close to me.
"Not even now?"
"No," I keep to my response, big tears strolling down my face now. "No," I whine.
I first feel the burnt flesh smell invading my nostrils, then the excruciating pain that comes along with it.
My jaw joint is ready to break from how hard I am biting on the material in my mouth and soon, everything breaks in me.
There's a hand soothing my hair and I feel an arm wrapping over my middle as my body goes limp. I take the chance to get some more support and rest my damaged hand on the shoulder of whoever is holding me, my good fingers trying to grip on him.
Shh, doll, it will all be over soon. The pain will fade soon.
I hear someone speaking to me, but I can't understand a thing I am being told. It all feels heavy and my ears are muffled, just like I would be dipped into a big, big jar of honey. Hm, I'd like some honey.
Oh, what a stupid thought.
I would laugh, but I can't. I can't even scream, I can't express the pain I am in.
In fact, I don't even feel anything after about three or four seconds of terrible pain. My brain suppresses it all with a blissful surge of dopamine as I faint for the millionth time now in how many hours?
XPOV
"I didn't tell you to kill her! You just had to scare her enough to tell us."
I see him letting go of Rose's body and turns to look at me, an upset glance in his eyes. I would be mad too if my methods wouldn't work. I am pissed! Nothing I tried worked.
"She is not dead. At least not yet. But she didn't want to spill it out. What was I supposed to do? Not do it?"
"No, of course not. But I never thought she'd be such a resistant bitch."
I never thought she'd take it and be so resistant. She, again, exceeded all my expectations, only managing to create obstacles in my way.
"Look. If we don't make her talk soon, I don't know for how much longer I can torture her until her body gives in. This was quite a lot and surprisingly enough, she took it. But I don't know if she would take it a second time."
"Fine, then. You won't torture her anymore. We will try something else."
Good thing Tasha arrived here. She will help me.
RPOV
I wake up as someone shakes me. And with each shake, the pain in my hip only gets worse.
I open my eyes already crying, and I see a blurry image of a person in front of me. I don't even know who this is. But I know what I endured so far, and I don't want that anymore.
"Stop, please," I murmur.
"Sorry, Rose, but I can't stop. I need to get you untied."
Tasha? Is this Tasha speaking to me?
Opening my eyes wider, I get the confirmation that it's her.
But why is she here?
And why is she helping me?
She cuts the rope around my wrists, finally freeing them after so many hours of hanging and it feels heavenly.
And if it weren't for her to support me, I would have crumpled to the floor.
My whole body hurts and there are parts on me that I didn't even know could hurt so badly. It's a miracle I am still alive.
But they do and there's one spot hurting worse than all the others. My hip. I can still feel it burn.
I move my palm over it and find out that it has been bandaged. Wow. I never thought they cared so much as to do this. I wonder who accomplished this task. I wonder who was human enough.
"Rose, you're with me?"
She shakes me a little and I think this is not the first time she asks me this.
"How did you find me?" I ask her as she starts dragging me along, heading towards the now pulled curtains.
"We followed you. I was always watching your backs and when I saw Haynes take you, we came here after you."
"We?"
"Yes. Me and my partner."
"But you wanted to kill me."
I gain enough strength to pull away from her and to assess my surroundings, finding three bodies lying on the floor.
"What happened to them?"
"I knocked them down."
"Why?"
"So that I could rescue you."
"But you wanted to kill me." I stick to this. This woman wanted to kill me and she shot Dimitri! Because of her, I thought I would lose him.
"I am sorry about that. I had to. My orders. But I realized I was wrong. Let me help you now and make it up for it."
"No. I don't believe you. You're taking me to them, aren't you?"
"I knew it would be like this. He thought about it too."
"He?"
"Yes, he. Haven't I told you we're both here?"
"He is here too?" she mentioned her partner, but I didn't think she was referring to Dimitri.
"Yes. And he gave me this to show it to you so that you would trust me," she says and takes out of her pocket the silly bracelet I gave him yesterday. Or who knows, an eternity ago. He promised he won't ever take it off. "He gave it to me to show it to you," she says as an explanation to my unspoken statement. "He said you'll understand."
My eyes filling with tears, I nod. I knew Xavier was bluffing. He is not dead.
"I understand. Where is he?"
"He'll come too. I was just lucky to find you first. He is maybe kicking some ass around the building. But I am taking you to meet him if you let me."
And I let her. After all, they both came to rescue me and oh, I missed Dimitri so much. All I wish is for him to hold me tight in his embrace and not let go. Everything will be alright then.
I let her put an arm around me to help me walk better, and we get moving. I let her guide me as we pass through some more thick, red, curtains. These rooms look like they're part of an intricate labyrinth. But I don't care. I am getting out of here soon.
I've made it out alive.
"Look, I know it might not be the best time to ask you, but I need you to tell me, did you tell something to Haynes?"
"No, I didn't. He wanted to know where that purse is, but I didn't tell him."
"What purse?"
Of course, she doesn't know.
"The purse the flash he is looking for is into."
"Phew, good thing you hanged in here and you didn't tell him." yeah, I literally hung in there. "But now you need to tell me. We need to take that back so all of this would end."
Yeah, she and Dimitri would know what to do with it.
"It is at my parents' house. The purse is my mother's so I gave it back to her."
The next thing I know is that she lets go of me and as I wasn't ready for that, my legs give in and I fall to the floor. And if this wasn't worse enough, as I tried to stop my fall, I placed my palms on the floor, and all I managed to do was to mess up my two broken fingers even more.
"What was that?" I ask her through tears, after I suppress my whelps in pain.
I hear someone starting to clap its hands as a grin spreads on Tasha's lips.
"What is happening?"
"Good job." I finally see the person who was clapping, and it's Xavier. "I didn't know you were such a good actress, darling."
She heads his way and she kisses his cheek as he wraps an arm around her middle, pulling her close.
"Well, I only did my best, baby."
"You're with him? You lied to me?"
"Boo, hoo. Someone hurt Rose's feelings," she mocks me.
"But… but what does this mean? The bracelet?"
"This?" she asks taking the bracelet back out and throwing it to me. "Oh, Rose. He's gone. I took this off his dead, cold body."
I burst even harder in tears.
"No... no… he can't…"
I keep on crying and mumbling as they pull me up and start dragging me out of the room we are into.
He can't be dead. He promised me he would come. He promised he would come to meet me. He wouldn't leave me.
But then again, he promised he wouldn't take this bracelet off.
When we stop moving, I take a look around the room we've gotten into. And when my eyes land on a big tank of water, all I can do is to start laughing nervously.
"Really? You're going to use that?"
"Why not? It was here anyway and no one was using it."
"Just kill me already, Xavier. Why even bother with all of this? Why waste so much water on me? Don't you care about the environment?"
"Oh, so now you get funny again?"
Yeah, funny. Considering the hollow I feel in my chest now, funny is the last thing I want to be.
"Then let us be funny. It will only be a pity that we won't stick around to watch you drown slowly. Who knows, maybe you'll turn into a little Houdini and you'll get out of here." they both laugh at his shitty joke.
I don't put up the littlest of resistance as he drags me into the tank and he puts a chain around my ankle. And even if I wanted to fight, my body wouldn't have helped me much.
"See, Rosie, things could have ended the nice way for you. But you chose this."
"Yeah, sure. It is all my fault. I started this mess. I am the selfish bastard here."
Not liking my response, he curls his lips and getting out of the tank, he traps me in here.
But I just don't care anymore. Nothing matters anymore.
Everything being already prepared, all it takes for them to do lastly is to let the water start filling the tank. And it is so cold and it feels so good on my battered body. The coldness numbs everything.
"So I guess this is where our paths part, Rosie."
"For the last time. Don't you call me like that, you fucker."
He smiles. "Always a pleasure to speak to you."
They turn their back to me and want to leave.
"Hey, you two!"
"What?" I see that he doesn't let her say anything, just like he didn't let me say much when I was around him. He can't help it but be a dick even with the woman he claims to be in love with.
"Fuck you both. You won't get away with this."
Both laughing, they lean closer to each other and kiss.
"Aw guys, this is so sweet it makes me sick. You're disgusting."
"Oh, don't you have an attitude now? What? You're suffering because your loverboy is gone? Because you have finally realized no one is going to save you? Let's see where your attitude goes when the water reaches your lungs."
With that, they say goodbye to me and they let me drown in here.
And I just rest on this floor, letting the water pile up and soothe all of my pains away, the coldness being my best friend now.
All I have left now is this water and this silly, pink bracelet that Dimitri wore last. He's gone. I can't believe he is dead.
And what would be the point of me trying to get out anyway? I have no-
I have a reason to live. I have two. The only two persons left on this earth that I care about. My folks. I can't give up on them.
I can't let these two bastards get their hands on them too. They're going to my home because I was stupid enough to trust Tasha, and my parents have gotten back from their trip already and they'll be there and I am sure Haynes will try to kill them. Now that he knows, not even the best of Dimitri's men would be able to save them.
No. I can't let this happen. I can't let Xavier destroy everything I love. I can't let him take away the last things I treasure on this earth. He won't. I am not allowing it.
I need to get out of here. After this, I don't know. I'll call Ivan and beg him to help me. Dimitri said that if he… oh, God, how I wish they were lying to me.
When I decide to do something, I have wasted precious time, the water already reaching my middle as I hardly find the power to stand up.
I first try the thick, metal chain that keeps my leg pinned. But oh, I would need a chainsaw to get rid of this. And even if I would have the strength… which I don't. It's a miracle I can still move, considering what my body has been through.
How I wish I was Houdini now.
But the more I try, the less hope of getting out of here I have. It is fucking impossible to escape! And my left hand hurts so badly! Those two messed fingers are so not helping me.
And the water level is rising so fast!
As that happens and the water carries my body upward, all I can try to do to preserve my life is to try to be afloat for as long as I can. Good thing that the chain is quite long. For now at least.
I tried to reach for the sides of the tank, but the chain is placed in such a way that it prevents me from reaching any of the walls of the tank. Shit!
So I resume to staying afloat.
But for how long can I do this?
Response: not for too long.
Soon, the now too short chain doesn't allow me to stay afloat anymore and I need to struggle for each little breath of air, and the water stings my eyes each time I can't float any longer and I find myself obliged to take a dip into the water, only to come back to the surface again.
But it is bearable.
Until this trick doesn't work either.
And ultimately, I need to test for how long I can hold my breath.
I just need to focus and stay calm.
Breathe, love.
I smile like an idiot. Dimitri's words invade my thoughts, but in this situation, breathing is out of the discussion. If I do this, I'll die.
Won't I die anyway? Why struggle? Why fight it?
There is no use in lying to myself. I will die here.
What is up to me is how painful the process will be.
As the water is invading my nostrils and threatens to get further into my lungs, I do my best to remain calm.
I close my eyes and I go to my happy place. I go back to last night. Or could it be two, three, countless nights before? I have no idea for how long I've been here and it doesn't even matter now. I couldn't survive it enough.
"Dimitri?"
"What, love?"
Tilting my head and looking at him, a silly smile spreads on my lips.
"Nothing."
He smiles too, and his fingers slide upward on my back until they reach my shoulder, where he starts drawing little circles.
I smile even wider when I see the little pink beads attached to the bracelet he's wearing. It looks so funny on him. But I love it. It takes quite some courage from a man to not give a damn and wear this just because his- well, because I gave it to him. I still don't know what we are and I won't attribute myself any titles in his life.
"Maybe I shouldn't have told you that," he teases.
I frown at him and in response, he just holds me a little tighter, bringing our bodies closer together.
"No. I am glad you did." him telling me his name means so, so much to me. "And I-" I bite on my tongue before I let these words out.
"What did you want to say?"
Oh, I just wanted to say I love you.
But…
Wouldn't it be too early to say that?
I just shrug and cuddle into him, my lips placing little kisses over the spot I feel his heart beating, and laying my head back on his chest, I let myself soothed by that wonderful sound.
How I wish I didn't shrug it off. How I wish I had the courage to let him know how I feel. How I wish I wasn't afraid again.
But now, he will never know.
There is a hand that pulls mine. I feel it tightly wrapped around my wrist.
I wonder who could that be.
Death? This is how death feels like? A warm, promising hand pulling you towards darkness? A hand promising painless oblivion?
DPOV
I have searched through all the rooms this building has and there's no Rose in any of them. Around the rooms, I only see objects that bring up some nightmarish scenarios into my mind, but I pray that's all they will ever be. I wouldn't bear knowing Rose went through all the things passing through my mind now.
But now, entering one last room, I stop dead in my tracks at the sight before me.
I don't even remember commanding my legs to move, but I am already next to the tank and my fists are pounding into the wall that keeps Rose away from me.
When my fists hurt and there's not the littlest of damage done to the tank, I try my luck with a chair around the room.
But this doesn't work either. The glass is way too thick.
Nothing works!
She is there, in the water, floating, drowning- already drowned? No! I still see little bubbles of air getting out from her parted lips, so I won't let these dark thoughts take over me. She is still fine. But I am still not doing anything helpful!
I need to get her out of there now!
Maybe I could pull her up enough so that she could breathe again a little. To get ourselves some more time. To get her conscious.
But as I climb up onto the tank and I dip my arm inside, reaching for hers, when I get a hold of it and pull her to me, I realize there's something that keeps her pinned to the ground. And it is preventing me from bringing her to the surface.
So I need to find another way to get her out of there. But how?
Be calm.
Come on, Dimitri, think, you idiot!
Think, but don't panic. You won't help her if you get irrational.
A wrench! I've seen a wrench around the building!
I run as fast as I can to the room where the wrench is and as I come back to Rose, I see her body slowly getting towards the bottom of the tank.
To hell if I am letting this happen. I promised her something and I won't break my promise.
Getting inside the cold water, I smash the chain keeping her leg trapped and getting a hold of her unmoving, so little body, I take her out.
Catching my breath, I lay her body on the ground.
She doesn't move!
"Roza."
I take her wet hair out of her face and shake her, but I get no response.
"Shit! Come on! Don't do this to me. Come back to me, love."
Checking for her vitals, I find none. No breathing, no pulse, not even the faintest of beats of her heart.
No. She has to live. I can't lose her too.
"Come on, Roza. Don't you leave me. Please, love. Stay with me."
Don't panic, Dimitri, goddamnit. She doesn't need you to panic. She will be alright. Just think straight and do what you need to do. Don't be an idiot. Bring her back.
Getting the proper position, I find her sternum and start the chest compressions, alternating them with the breaths, past her cold, cold lips.
After a minute, I get nothing.
"Come on, Roza. Please. Don't you dare leave me too. Don't you do this to me. Please, please, please."
Ignoring the pain in my shoulder, I press a little harder and I keep the same pace, trying to send away the thoughts of breaking her ribs. I will deal with that later, when she will be breathing again.
"Oh, Roza, I love you so much, please don't leave me too. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, but please, don't you die on me, love. Please. Don't die."
It brings me to the brink of despair to see her dived into the claws of death.
"I will never, ever, ever leave your side. Never again, I swear. You won't suffer a second more, but please, please, come back to me. Give me time to love you. Give me time to make it up to you. Please. Please, love. Don't you leave me too."
RPOV
"Hey, Roza."
Hearing his soft voice, I open my eyes and I find myself embraced by him, his body warming me whole, washing away the remnants of some old coldness out of my bones.
We're sitting on a beach, before my eyes being the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen. The sand is warm too under us and the air is humid and salty and filled with Dimitri's scent that I absolutely adore.
But even though I know I should be happy about where I am, even though I am with him, cuddled in his arms, something feels off inside my chest. I can't pinpoint what. But it makes me cry. Something is wrong. Very, very wrong.
His arms get tighter around me and his nose nudges on my neck.
"Love? Why are you crying?"
"Because… we're both idiots."
I don't even know why I said this. It's like, I am more of a spectator of whatever is happening, not having control over my actions and words, but I sure do feel it all. Both physically and inside my chest, which is, I don't know why, breaking from all the sadness I feel.
"Why?"
"Because we wasted so much time running away from each other and now, and now we don't have any more time left."
He laughs lightly. "Yes, love. We are. Or, let's say that we were idiots." He kisses my forehead and rests his lips there for a second longer. "But not anymore. We won't be idiots from now on."
"How can you say that? From now on? We... we don't have tomorrow anymore."
Why? Why don't we have any more time left? Why isn't there a tomorrow left for us? Is the world ending? It feels like that to me, but it doesn't make any sense. Why am I saying this?
"Maybe," he sighs. "But we have today. We have now. This second. And it is enough for me."
"But… but I want you forever."
He sighs deeply into my hair.
"We only have this second, Roza. This beautiful, last second."
Last second? Why? What's wrong? What is happening? Why can't we be together forever?
In my head, I am panicked, I am sad and on the edge of despair. But nothing transmits to my body. It is still relaxed into the comfort of his embrace.
"It is indeed beautiful here, Dimitri. With you. I'd love to have more moments like this with you. To… grow old with you. Like this. To keep on coming here and be happy with you. It's such a pity it will never happen again."
Turning me to face him, he smiles so warmly as our eyes meet.
"Don't you worry. I will love you forever, Roza, even if it lasts for only a second."
I am hearing these words from him now, for the first time, and oh, it's like a dream has come true.
Closing my eyes, I snuggle into his embrace, taking in his smell that feels like home. Ever since I met him, I feel like I have found the place I have always belonged to.
"Oh, Dimitri. I-"
Come on, Roza. Please. Don't you dare leave me too.
Dimitri?
Leave him?
Why would I? All I want to do is to stay.
Please, please, please.
Why am I hearing him from so far away? He is holding me after all.
Or is he? I can't feel him anymore under me. His warmness left my body. All I feel now is that coldness creeping back into my bones.
I open my eyes and I see that now I am alone into this darkness that surrounds me all of a sudden. The beach is gone and he? He is nowhere to be found.
What happened?
I pat my way into the darkness, but I can't find him. I can't feel anything but coldness. All this void… it's scaring me.
And why do I have control over myself now? How come I can move at my own will?
...Roza...
Where did he go and why is he calling me?
What is happening?
…never…
…ever…
...swear...
"Dimitri? Dimitri? Where are you?"
...love…
...you...
I start running through the darkness, but I get nowhere, no matter how far or how fast I run.
Why can't I find him? Where is he?
And why does every piece of my body hurts so badly now?
Don't you die on me, love. Please.
Die? I am dying? I am not-
I am. I am dying. I am drow- I feel my lungs filling with water and it is so hard to breathe.
I am drowning. In that tank.
I am dying.
The second I remember everything, I start falling. I start falling into this darkness like I would be sinking into the deepest ocean. It is pulling me towards its bottom and I can't do anything to stop this powerful force pulling me towards it.
I don't want to go.
But I can't fight it.
I don't think I want to fight it.
It promises so much peace, this darkness. It is starting to soothe all my pains away too. I can feel the numbness taking over each part of my body. And it doesn't hurt anymore. And it feels so good.
But… but there is so much I haven't done. So much I haven't said. So much I haven't seen. So much I haven't felt. So much I haven't loved.
Him. I haven't loved him enough.
He is still calling my name. Or at least that's what I am imagining it's happening.
My brain is messing with me so bad. I wish so badly that I could see him one last time, and all it does it to remind me of his voice. Of his sweet, sweet, soothing voice. I could listen to it forever.
But even though I have sunken into this numbing darkness, my chest starts hurting so badly out of nowhere, robbing me from my air once more.
It feels like someone is pressing on it. I feel my ribs ready to break under this pressure. It hurts. It hurts so badly. Everything hurts once again.
But… but I see light.
With each hard press on my chest, the little dim light in front of my eyes gets bigger and bigger.
And with each press, his voice gets louder and louder. It's like he's coming closer to me again.
Or maybe I am heading towards him.
