A/n: I want to thank evolution-500 for spitballing ideas on this story with me.

Irina came to on the floor, stirring plumes of dust every time she took a heavy breath. Where was she? The factory, she was sure. But where? The room she woke up in was dim; the only source of light coming from the bay shop panel above her.

Why wasn't she dead? Heisenberg spared her for some unknown reason; Irina wasn't sure she wanted to know. Her hopes of surviving this nightmare had been taken away from her; he made sure of this.

So why? He promised to kill her. Could he not strike her down while she lay unconscious? At least then she'd never wake up, having to look that bastard in the eye again.

Irina blinked away tears. She never had any chance of escaping. There was no cheese at the end of this winding metal labyrinth.

Easing into a sitting position, she moaned in pain. Her side and arms burned immensely. A warm tightening feeling washed over her and for a moment, Irina feared that she may pass out again.

The silver lining was that the shackles had been cut at the chain; the cuff remained on her wrists, but at least her hands were free.

Irina eased out of her torn coat, groaning as metal slivers in her hands brushed against the fabric. Beneath her coat, she wore a white blouse with short sleeves; a rust-colored stain bloomed across one side, torn to ribbons where the auger made contact.

Peeling strips of cloth from her skin where the blood had dried, she examined the wound in disgust. It looked as though she had gone through a meat grinder; chunks of bloody flesh hung from her side.

She nervously laughed, despite wanting to cry. At least the green herb she picked up would not go to waste.

But where was her bag? Heisenberg must have taken it.

Irina searched for it, but she couldn't see well enough to locate it. Standing on her feet, she became unsteady. Her brain sloshed inside her head like a bowl of soup. She leaned against a table to steady herself.

This room he put her in was small; a fraction larger than a living room. A pair of spring frames sat against the far wall, but the mattresses were gone. There were some tables and shelves placed around the open space, but nothing of importance. The only thing that caught her eye was a barred window – she doubted that the door would open for her.

Irina sighed. She eased towards the window and peered out; she was in the heart of the factory. How unfortunate. At this point, she hoped for nothing.

Backing away, she sat down on the floor and waited. Her mind was too tired to think.

For what seemed like hours she sat there, listening to the low roar of the machines. She considered resting, but before she closed her eyes, the lock on the door clicked; the gears rotated against the other until the door came open.

Heisenberg sauntered in.

His eyes wandered over to Irina, taking in her heated expression and unkempt appearance. Grinning, he ignored her and grabbed a grease rag from one of the tables, cleaning his hands with it.

Once he was done, he tossed the rag onto the floor and drug over a chair, sitting on it in front of her.

"Let's have a heart-to-heart talk," he ordered.

Irina curled up her nose but agreed with a nod. There were some questions of her own she wanted to ask.

"Why are you here? You must have known how dangerous it was coming here."

Duke warned her, but she didn't expect there to be monsters in the factory. She also never expected Heisenberg to attempt to murder her.

"I already told you," Irina declared. "I came for the treasure."

Heisenberg snorted. "The only thing worth anything here is in an ossuary on floor 4."

"I saw, but there was a piece missing; a ball or round object to navigate the labyrinth."

He hummed. "That sounds about right. I suppose there's a mold down there somewhere to make it."

"You don't know?"

Irina thought he was the one who crafted the labyrinth.

"I have no damn clue," he explained. "That fucking thing has been here since way before I inherited the factory and surrounding land."

He witnessed her scowl and shake her head as if she were having an internal battle in her thoughts.

"I don't know how you found out about it, but I assume you planned to sell it. Say you did. What did you plan to do with the money?"

Irina narrowed her eyes. It mattered not – he was going to kill her – but she reckoned it wouldn't hurt to tell him.

"Leave this place... I planned to start a new life."

Heisenberg laughed. "That bitch Miranda would never let you leave this place. But hey, I get it. You want to be free."

"I do," she agreed.

She wondered why he addressed Mother Miranda in such a manner; as though he loathed her. Weren't the lords supposed to be loyal to her? She was the divinity of the village and the surrounding territories. No one ever spoke ill of her.

And what did he mean by Mother Miranda would never let her leave? Residents up and moved from the village all the time. Perhaps Irina just misinterpreted him.

"Then you understand why I came here," she mentioned with confidence. "I want more; much more than this prison can give me."

Heisenberg scowled. "And you know about prisons? Don't fucking insult me."

She didn't understand what he was indicating. Maybe she wasn't chained to this place, but since her brother died, leaving her alone, it sure felt as if she was.

"And you thought by stealing from me, you'd be free?"

He raised his arm and the air thinned as a screwdriver flew across the room and into his hand. Grabbing Irina by the head, Heisenberg pressed the flathead against her neck; she cried out in fear and pain.

"Open your damn eyes. No one can be free from this fucking place; not me and sure as hell not you."

Irina dug her nails into his arm. "Let me go. I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

He released her, humming. The flathead shot from his hand and hit the wall somewhere in the room. "My apologies, darling. Thinking about her and this place boils my fucking blood. You'd do well not to get on my bad side."

Noted, she thought bitterly, rubbing her neck.

Irina scooted away from him.

Heisenberg laughed. "Where were we? – he paused to snap his fingers – oh yes. I meant to ask, but just how in the hell did you get into my territory? That gate you passed through has a special lock on it."

"I used a lock pick to open the lock – though it wasn't easy," she explained.

He whistled in awe. "Now that's some skill you have there. Shame you're wasting it."

"Wasting it? How else would I use it? I hate that I chose to come here, not knowing that I'd be killed before putting it to use, but I know of no other way to use it."

Heisenberg hummed. "I knew there was something about you that I liked. That mouth can only get you so far."

Her face heated up.

"Run some errands for me," he suggested.

What?

Irina puckered a brow. "Errands?"

"I have projects to finish and limited resources," he explained. "You can sneak into anywhere and get them for me."

She was no pack mule.

"And if I say go fuck yourself?"

Heisenberg stared at her a minute, yellow eyes gleaming, then stood up, knocking the chair onto the floor with a loud bang.

"Then I will smash your fucking head in and toss your worthless ass into the river. There is no other option, darling. It's do and live or don't and die."

Irina shivered in fear. She had no choice. Perhaps if she said no, then her death would be instant, however, she did not want to die.

Bobbing her head, she held back tears.

"Whatever you need," she made clear.

He grinned, taking a deep and uneasy breath. "That's the answer I wanted to hear – I'll have to make a list."

But not the answer she felt was best. Not that she could do anything about it at this point. Her only option was to do as he ordered and if she played her cards right, maybe she could find a way to escape him.

But first.

"I got hurt down there," Irina mentioned weakly. She eased up her shirt and showed him the nasty gash on her side. "I need medical aid – and perhaps some rest – if you want me to do my best There's an herb in my bag … please, I need it."

Heisenberg sauntered over to a cabinet across from her and took out her bag, retrieving the herb from it before tossing the bag into the cabinet again. He broke the stem into pieces and urged her to open her mouth, shoving them inside once she did so.

"Eat up," he said with a grin.

Irina choked. His fingers tasted horrible. Why did he not just give her the herb? She could have done this by herself.

Her face heated up.

"Get some rest. You start as soon as you heal," he ordered, looming over her.

Taking out a key, Irina recognized it as the one Heisenberg tried to offer her earlier. Was this the room it went to? She swallowed the last of the herb.

"If I had taken that ––

"I would have cornered you in here and killed you," he answered easily.

She scowled at him. Leaving her alone and locking the door behind him, Irina contemplated using her lock pick on the door. She'd do best not to piss him off though. No telling how far she'd get.

Using her torn coat, Irina rested on the icy floor and shut her eyes. She doubted that she'd be able to fall asleep, not with the roar of the machines in her ears, but she was determined to try.

She may not ever get the chance again. Tomorrow never knows.