Chapter Twenty Eight

Soifon grimaced in pain as she gradually opened her eyes after several hours of unconsciousness, attempting to find a more comfortable position. Her temple was bleeding from the blow inflicted by Brian's gun. Despite her efforts to sit up, she was hindered by being restrained with handcuffs on the bed.

As Soifon surveyed the room with her blue eyes, she realized that it appeared to be the same location as before and she was still wearing the dress she had been forced into.

The woman with raven hair tried to free her arms from the handcuffs, causing them to strike against the bedpost. She berated herself for her own foolishness, questioning how she could have stumbled over a tree root and failed to pay attention to her surroundings. Furthermore, she worried about Erin, imagining the distress her friend must be experiencing.

In her thoughts, Soifon pondered if Erin had successfully escaped the woods with Thomas and if Voight had come to their aid. Her own well-being held little importance to her at present.

Once Soifon heard the door open to her room, she looked up and observed Ace and Jack entering without uttering a word. Both of them proceeded to move her towards the chains hanging from the wall, where Ace had left her before. Despite Soifon's attempt to break free from their grasp, they remained unaffected.

In an attempt to resist their hold, she pleaded, 'Let me go,' however, Ace and Jack disregarded her pleas. Soifon winced as the cold metal of the cuffs tightened around her wrists and feet, even tighter than before. She then attempted to free herself from the chains by twisting her wrists, but all her efforts resulted in was minor scratches on her skin, causing her to cease her struggle.

Ace, with a cough, managed to make Soifon look at him. Disapprovingly, he stated, 'You have been quite disobedient, Soifon. Do you believe you can escape? It is unfortunate that Erin managed to flee, but you will bear her punishment as well.' Ace nodded to Jack, indicating that they needed to gather the necessary tools for the upcoming task.

Ace glanced at Soifon, shaking his head disapprovingly. "What should I do with you, woman?" he inquired, his gaze fixed on her intense blue eyes, a hint of superiority in his expression.

"You will release me, you despicable person. Haven't you obtained what you desired? You won the wretched game," Soifon retorted, straining against the chains in a futile attempt to break free. Ace chuckled at her futile efforts. "Your struggles with the chains will only result in hurting your wrists," he smirked, running his hand gently across her cheek.

"I informed you that I wouldn't release you until you received your final punishment, and since you escaped, the duration will be longer than originally planned," Ace asserted, his thumb tracing the outline of her cheek. Disgusted, Soifon jerked her face away from his touch. "Do not touch me, you despicable person," she gritted her teeth in a hiss. Ace chuckled, withdrawing and taking a step back. "Once Jack arrives with the necessary tools, your punishment will commence," he declared.

Soifon observed as Ace paced the room, her blue eyes filled with intense hatred. She shifted slightly within her chains, her gaze fixed on the ground. 'Erin, please do not concern yourself with me. I assure you, we will be reunited and I vow that nothing like this will ever happen again,' she whispered.

Unaware of Jack's return, Soifon was too preoccupied with her own thoughts to notice him entering with a table of tools. Ace clapped his hands as he arrived, expressing her impatience. 'Finally,' he remarked tersely. Jack placed the table beside him, apologizing for the delay. He glanced at his sister and taunted her, 'You look terrible, you pitiful woman.' With a menacing glare, he approached her.

Furious, Soifon spat at him, thrashing against her restraints. 'You have no right to speak, you despicable person,' she retorted defiantly. 'If you have harmed Erin in any way while she was here, I will not hold back from beating you—' she began, but Jack abruptly backhanded her across the face, causing her head to turn. 'Silence, you worthless trash,' he snarled.

Soifon gazed at her foster brother with an intense glare as she prepared to speak, but Jack spoke first, a smirk forming on his face. 'And if you're wondering if I harmed Erin,' he said slowly, leaning in close to her ear, 'the answer is yes. Do you want to know why?' His question caused Soifon to turn her head away from him. 'Why? Erin has no involvement in this situation. And why in the world are you even assisting Ace? What do you stand to gain?' she snapped.

Jack clenched his fist as he stared at his adopted sister before he swiftly moved his hands, gripping tightly onto Soifon's throat. He could see Ace standing there, observing the entire scene with a knowing smirk on his face.

Soifon attempted to struggle out of Jack's grasp, but he held onto her neck even tighter, his nails digging into her tender skin. 'The reason I am here is for revenge, for what you have done,' he began, his grip tightening around the woman's throat. 'You got Julie killed, and I had to find a way to get back at you that would break you.' He growled as he stared into her eyes.

Soifon attempted to speak, struggling for breath, as she opened her mouth to explain the situation. She claimed that it wasn't her fault, as Ace was the one who shot at her and Julie when Julie picked her up. Soifon acknowledged the immense guilt she felt for Julie's death because Ace was after her. It would be more appropriate to direct your questions towards Ace, as he was the one responsible for killing Julie.

Jack, with a menacing expression on his face, released his grip on Soifon's throat and watched her struggle to breathe. She warned him that his actions would not go unnoticed by Voight and the rest of their team, as they would not hesitate to retaliate. She sternly stated that hurting Erin would not only have consequences for himself, but for Soifon as well."

"I do not care about your excuses, Soifon. You are the one who indirectly caused our sister's death through your foolish attempts to run away from Ace. I am determined to hold you accountable for your actions. And I will hurt you by hurting Erin."

Jack inquired with a smirk, observing the expression in Soifon's eyes. 'I made physical contact with her,' Jack stated while licking his lips, as if reminiscing on the moment. 'And I must admit, it felt quite satisfying.' Drawing closer to Soifon, he noticed her eyes filled with fury. 'Furthermore, I am aware that causing harm to Erin had a greater impact on you,' he taunted, locking eyes with her.

'You despicable individual, once I am liberated from these restraints, I shall unleash my fury upon you… Erin is entirely innocent in this matter and does not deserve any of the suffering you have inflicted upon her,' Soifon growled through tears streaming down her face.

Jack couldn't help but chuckle in response to Soifon. 'I did warn you that I would break you, hence targeting Erin was my most effective strategy,' he commented, dismissive of her threats. 'And I would not hesitate to repeat my actions in order to further shatter you,' he added.

Standing nearby, Ace watched the unfolding scene with a smug expression. He allowed Jack to handle Soifon temporarily, but now he felt compelled to intervene and initiate their punishment. 'That's enough, Jack. Let's proceed with the necessary measures,' Ace finally interjected.

Jack observed Ace and nodded, taking a step back to allow the long-haired man to approach Soifon. "Are you ready?" he inquired, gripping her chin firmly. "Even if you're not, I will not hold back," he asserted while signaling to Jack.

Jack then retrieved a pair of whips, handing one to Ace, and positioned himself behind Soifon, both men wearing smirks on their faces.

Soifon glared, attempting to keep her eyes on both men who tormented her by swinging the whips back and forth. She bit her lip, trying to suppress the impending pain.

Ace glanced at Jack and signaled his readiness to proceed. "You can go first," he said with a smirk. Ace watched as Jack raised his arm and landed a harsh crack on his adopted sister's back, leaving a long gash. Soifon clenched her teeth to stifle any cries of pain, while Ace followed suit and delivered a forceful blow to her stomach, mirroring Jack's actions.

Soifon had lost track of the number of times Jack and Ace struck her with their whips. Each strike seemed to be more severe than the last, causing her to close her eyes in pain.

She did her best to ignore Ace's taunting remarks, questioning why she wouldn't break. While Ace focused on cracking her stomach and chest, Jack targeted her lower and upper back.

Tears streamed down Soifon's face as she endured each crack of the whip, her mind consumed with a whirlwind of thoughts. She couldn't help but question her own foolishness. As the last strikes of the whip landed, Soifon opened her eyes only to witness Ace and Jack casually walk towards a table.

"That was just the first round of punishment," Ace stated with a smirk, reaching for a knife. "Let's add a few more wounds, shall we?" as he returned and placed the blade against her stomach, just a short distance away from her previous stab wound. And so, the torture continued.