I feel so bad for keeping you guys on your toes after the last chapter !... Thank you so much for your patience, really ! I've been involved in other projects and it was hard to keep up with everything, although I enjoy every single thing ! Anyway, I really want to say that I don't forget you, lovely readers nor... Varian's predicament ! Your comments are awesome, and I like so much that the last development made you react, how should I put it, vehemently ? XD I'm not the best at action, but I'm trying to include some more.
So action it is and WARNING FOR GRAPHIC DEPICTION OF VIOLENCE, BLOOD, BAD LANGUAGE (I hope I didn't go to far...)
Note : Hans' opinions are not representative of the author.
CHAPTER 88
Varian felt he was caught up in a bad dream. His brain had stopped working altogether. He couldn't believe it, he didn't want to believe it. No, no, no… the words kept chanting in his head. Even without the threat of cold metal against his throat, he wouldn't have been able to utter a single word.
He quickly started to hyperventilate, as panic rushed through his veins and drowned out all rational thinking. The smirk of the man who was leering down on him, the only thing his flailing mind could register, only increased the sense of dread that was mercilessly filling him to the core.
Ironically enough, it was the man's voice that somehow brought him back to reality and grounded him.
"Now you listen to me, you little piece of scum," he whispered menacingly, pressing the pointy tip a bit further against Varian's skin, "It was hard enough to catch that stupid squirrel to distract your babysitter. Because of you, the King and the Captain have interrogated me, and you know what ? I don't like it when people ask too many questions."
Varian couldn't suppress a gulp, but his body was so stiff and his throat so tight it hurt. His breathing hitched and he panted through parted lips. As badly as he wanted to scream, only a raspy rattle made it past his lips.
"I've been humiliated by two chicks before, and now, all my plans for this kingdom have gone to waste because of you, half-wit !" Hans ranted and raved, barely containing his hatred in his rising voice, his grip on the sword in his right hand getting firmer.
"I... ", Varian painfully managed through his fear, "I don't even know what you're talking about…"
"Oh don't play dumb with me, little brat," Hans spat, "and mark my words, I'll make you understand what a burden you are."
Varian's stomach dropped at the stinging words. He hated the man, so why did his opinion even matter ? Why did it hurt ? Why would it ?
Something in him snapped like a coin flipped between skillful fingers, shoving the fear and the pulsing of his blood in his ears at the back of his mind. A soft chuckle found its way out.
"Then I guess… you and I… make quite the pair."
Varian regretted his sassy remark straight away as Hans bust into a fit of raw rage. With a snarl, the man released the hand holding Varian's shirt collar to wrap it around his slender neck and squeeze it like a snake, earning gagging sounds from the teen. He removed the sword from Varian's throat, leaving a red pinprick where the tip had been driven a bit too far, but the relief was short-lived for Varian. The teenager couldn't tear away his shocked gaze from the man's fiery eyes and felt, more than saw, the sharp edge run across his cheekbone as long as it could, digging into the skin and drawing blood. Varian's body completely froze in shock. Without that, he would probably have fainted right there and then, but he didn't get to escape his torturer that easily.
Once he was done, Hans let the sword hang loosely by his side, the shiny blade tainted with a scarlet trail, but didn't let go of Varian's throat.
The boy had no time to draw a breath as he felt the hand tighten around his neck, pinning him harder against the wall and then lifting him from the ground.
"So you prefer to do it the hard way ? Fine with me", came the menacing voice.
Varian automatically brought his hands up to his neck, desperately trying to pry the vicious fingers open. His feet were dangling in the air, and he tried to thrash and kick, but the pressure on his neck was radiating through his whole body and he couldn't summon the strength to fight back. He could hardly breathe, the feeling of thick blood trickling down his right cheek and the metallic smell much too overwhelming. The struggle to stay conscious was soon stripping his lean body from every last bit of energy.
"I have to leave and lie low for a while, but I promise you this : no matter how long it takes, no matter where you go, I will find you and get back at you. And that day, believe me, you will wish you were never born", Hans growled in a cold voice.
Another sarcastic remark popped in Varian's cloudy brain and, under any other circumstances, he would have gladly explained how every day was so hard for him that the thought crossed his mind more often than not.
"So now, before I'm on my way, I'll make sure that you don't raise the alarm too soon." His lips drew a pleased half-grin and he added mockingly : "Goodnight."
With that, Hans gave a harder push against Varian's windpipe, completely depriving the boy of air. In a last surge of panic, Varian's mouth opened wide in a silent scream while his lungs burned, begging for air. His small frame started to be wracked with uncontrollable tremors. Within seconds that seemed to drag into hours, stars flickered at the corners of his vision and his ears started to buzz as his brain shut down from the outside world. Wordlessly pleading for mercy, his eyes rolled at the back of his head as consciousness left him.
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"Varian !"
Phil's voice tore as he cried the teenager's name. After the interview with the Queen, he and Alden had made their way back to Remyus' chambers only to find Varian sprawled on his back, unmoving on the floor. On the wan face that had slightly rolled on the side, the blood still oozing from his cheekbone had spread over the skin, some of it pooling into his earlobe and sticking to his hair. Elora and Ruddiger were nowhere to be seen.
The blonde felt his insides turn and churn. Repressing the urge to be sick, heart pounding hard in his chest, he ran to the fragile frame and slid on his knees, his hands hovering over it for a moment, not knowing what to do.
"Varian, what - ? Can you hear me ? Varian ?" he finally grabbed the boy's shoulders and started to shake them. "Varian !"
"Phil, Phil, calm down, don't move him," Alden advised, gently pushing the younger man out of the way so he could lay his head on Varian's chest.
"He's breathing", he said with immense relief after a few seconds. Phil released the breath he didn't realize he was holding, his brain overflowed with questions and panic.
"What happened ? Why is he unconscious ? And why is he bleeding ?". An idea crossed his mind that was already clouded with the Queen's words still ringing in his head and he looked up, not able to see the tabletop, but knowing what Varian was working on.
"Did…. Did he use the glass to… ?" he couldn't finish that sentence, this was way beyond his understanding.
"Phil, calm down !", Alden repeated, fighting to stay calm himself. He was older and also a father, so he had his fair share of nasty falls and cuts to deal with. But he was still feeling he could lose the battle by the second if he let Phil's stress get at him. "Not now. We need some water to get him back to his senses."
Trembling, Phil obeyed, focusing on that simple task, if only to keep himself from breaking down.
Within seconds, his trembling hands shoved a bowl of cool water and a rag at Alden, and the man dabbed Varian's face in different places, smearing the mixture of blood and sweat in the process.
"Come on, boy, come on," Alden coaxed. "Open your eyes."
Varian's face crunched and he frowned, a hoarse moan passing his lips.
"He's getting around !" Alden exclaimed. "Can you hear me, Varian ?"
The boy wearily pried his eyes open and tried to sit up. He hissed between clenched teeth as his body protested. Everything hurt. His throat, his cheek, his arms and legs, his head.
"Easy, kid, easy. Lie still. We've got you," he said, stroking his hair. Either because he was listening or because he was too much in pain to do otherwise, Varian relaxed a bit and laid back on the floor, shivering slightly.
As on cue, Phil stood up to get his blanket and his pillow. That he could do at least. He kept his jaw set, no words coming out. He was both so scared and so angry. His overstressed mind was more and more convinced that Varian did this to himself when he was alone.
"We need to get help," Alden said. "We need Remyus."
Silently, Phil nodded and unfolded the blanket and covered Varian. His hands lifted the jet-black head to slip the pillow under it with more gentleness that he thought he would be capable of, a sharp contrast with his feelings inside.
Varian's head limply lolled to the other side, and they both gasped when they saw marks on his neck sticking out of his shirt. Alden shifted the collar away with two fingers, revealing reddish bruises that were already turning to black.
There were clearly the marks of several fingers.
Alden's eyes grew wide and darted back and forth as his brain worked through this horrific vision. There was no doubt that someone attacked the boy. They had to get the Captain and the guards in order to…
Across the broken form, Phil was faster to draw conclusions and even faster to act on them. Before Alden could speak, the young man stormed out of the room, his whole body tense and full of rage. He knew only one person who was able to hurt Varian in such a sadistic way, and he was going to find him.
