Chapter 29: twenty-nine

Olivia

It wasn’t long before Annabelle sauntered in, flanked by her two hulking vampire companions. I attempted to shrink into myself, to become invisible, but she merely snapped her fingers and Owen hoisted me over his shoulder.

I knew they couldn’t kill me now, so I began to thrash, kicking my legs wildly. He tossed me onto a table as if I were nothing more than a sack of potatoes.

As they began to secure my arms and legs with leather straps, I couldn’t suppress the violent trembling that overtook my body.

“You don’t have to do this! Can’t you see? He’s just using you,” I pleaded.

She shot me a glare and retrieved a needle from a small table nearby.

“Do you know what this is?” She held it up to my face and I shook my head, hoping against hope that it would render me unconscious for whatever was about to happen.

“It’s called jasper venom; it paralyzes your whole body. You’ll be fully aware of everything but unable to move. I’ll enjoy your screams, however.”

Before I could respond, she jabbed the needle into my neck. The effects were immediate, my body going numb.

I let silent tears streak down my cheeks as she perused her tray of instruments. Her hand glided over them until she flashed a sinister smile and picked up a small blade.

She walked around, gripped the hem of my dress, and slowly pulled it up, bunching it around my rib cage. A shiver ran down my spine as her hand made contact with my skin.

“I think we should give Cole a daily reminder of what you are,” she said, her voice icy.

Without warning, without any numbing agent, she dragged the blade across my skin. At first, it was a mere burn, but the longer she dragged it, the more it hurt.

By the third or fourth line, I couldn’t suppress my screams as my body convulsed. I could feel the warm liquid seeping from my stomach, dripping onto the table and down my legs.

I couldn’t see them, but I could hear Owen and Jax pacing, their heavy footsteps echoing off the walls.

“Give us a taste, Belle,” one of them said.

“Not yet,” she snapped at the interruption.

My screams began to fade, but I was still shaking, choking on my sobs. My hair was matted to my face, glued there by my tears.

My body started to regain feeling, and I could wiggle my toes and fingers.

Annabelle noticed and let out an annoyed sigh, “Must have been a low dose. No matter, I’m all done.”

Owen and Jax quickly began to release my sore limbs from the table straps and I tried to regulate my breathing. They were all looking at me like I was their last meal.

“Oh no,” Annabelle said mockingly, “we got blood on your pretty dress. We should clean you up.”

Before I could process her words, she doused me with a bucket of ice-cold water. The shock of the icy water stole my breath and I gasped, taking in huge gulps of air.

I couldn’t focus on anything other than my numb limbs and the chattering of my teeth. Annabelle said something but I couldn’t hear her.

It didn’t matter, though, because she yanked me up by the collar of my dress and ripped it down the middle.

Suddenly remembering my mark, I rolled off the table and landed in the dirt. Groaning, I used my hand to mix the dirt and water into a paste and began smearing it over my chest.

“Put her back,” she demanded, and I felt strong arms under my arms dragging me back to the corner.

I moved my wet hair out of my face and let my fingers slide down to my stomach where she had carved the words “Blood bag” into my abdomen.

I let the sobs come more freely and didn’t hold back my tears.

At some point, I had fallen asleep. I was cold but not shivering anymore. I sat up and realized a dirty shirt was draped over me.

“Little Olive,” I heard Brayden whisper. He held me close and gave me a sympathetic smile. I wanted to cry but I didn’t think I had any more tears to give.

“Brayden, you’re back,” I whispered. “What did they do to you?”

“Nothing worse than what they did to you,” he said, looking at my belly with worry.

I looked down and saw the letters, a few of them had already started to fade. I furrowed my brows and peeked up at Brayden who was looking at me curiously.

“Fae creatures heal so quietly,” he muttered to himself.

I wanted to ask him about it but the doors opened again and in strolled my torturer and her lackeys. I glanced down at my chest and my makeshift patch was still there, covering the mark.

I sat there trembling in just my bra and panties as Owen roughly snatched me up once again.

I winced as he threw me against the table.

“Leave her alone! Fucking hell, Annabelle, you don’t even know what you’re doing,” Brayden shouted.

“I ~know~ exactly what I’m doing,” she said calmly. “I’m branding Cole’s human for him. He’ll thank me when I’m done.”

“Thank you? He’s going to fucking slaughter you.”

“I’ll be long gone before that happens.” She rolled her eyes and gathered my hair in her hand and swept into the front of me.

“Hold her down,” she demanded and they each grabbed one of my arms and pulled my body flat against the table, so I was on my stomach.

My breathing had become irregular, and my body trembled with anticipation of what was to come. I couldn’t see her, so I tried to focus on Brayden, who was using his hands to pull his body toward me.

Had they broken his legs?

I silently mouthed to him, ~It’s okay~, even as a few tears slipped down my cheeks. I tried to steady my breathing, to picture Cole’s face in my mind, but nothing could have braced me for what was about to happen.

She held a glowing branding iron, and without hesitation, she pressed it cruelly against my back. The scream I’d been suppressing tore from my throat, a bloodcurdling sound that echoed in the room.

The acrid scent of my own burning flesh filled my nostrils, and I could feel the bile slowly creeping up my throat. She held the iron there for a few agonizing seconds before finally pulling it away.

I was sobbing uncontrollably now, and without any warning, the bile surged up, spilling from my lips and splattering onto the floor between the two vampires who were still gripping my arms.

Annabelle leaned in close, her hot breath fanning my face as she whispered, “There, now everyone will know what you are. A slave.”