Faye left soon after that introduction leaving me to wallow in the darkness. I fumbled around until I found my way to the bed. If I hadn't spent a few months in the city without electricity, I probably would have been creeped out by the darkness but I was used to it. In a way, I found solace in the darkness sometimes. It was simple and true to itself. The darkness never lied to you and it had a way of bringing out the worst in people.
I tried but I couldn't fall asleep. I missed Darius. I could only imagine how he would feel. I hoped he didn't blame me for Amy although I wouldn't have faulted him if he did. If she had not wanted to protect me then she would have never been hurt. I hoped she was fine because if she died then I would have never been able to forgive myself.
Staying awake was torture in itself. Staring in the dark with no clue what was staring back was terrible and it was a hassle to keep my eyes open because I was so exhausted but I didn't want to be taken unawares by Faye again. I didn't know her well but I could tell that she was someone to be wary of. I didn't know what she wanted from me but I had a feeling she would tell me soon.
I had just started to fall asleep when I heard the locks. I muttered a small curse under my breath and I forced myself into a sitting position just as the doors opened. Faye stood there looking refreshed with a smile on her face. There was something in her hands and she tossed it over to me. It hit me square in the face and that was when I realized it was clothes- rags would have been a better fit.
"Change," she instructed and I raised a brow. "You can either do it yourself or I can have one of the men do it for you, I really don't care which you choose. You have five seconds to make a choice before I make one for you."
I knew she wasn't bluffing so I held her gaze as I worked the zipper behind me and pulled it down. I was wearing nothing underneath my dress and I saw her smile widen as she realized. I slipped on the threadbare shirt and the cotton shorts. They were a bit tight on me but I did not complain.
Once I was dressed, she snapped her fingers and the men walked into the room. They grabbed either side of my arm and I tried to protest but they were too strong for me. I repeatedly asked where I was being taken but none of them answered me. Faye walked ahead without a care in the world and I watched with shock at the sheer number of people in the cave. She had somehow turned it into her headquarters.
They dragged me into another room and strapped me into a chair. There was another chair opposite the one I was tied to and Faye sat there. She was handed a plate of fruits and I watched as she popped one into her mouth. I knew she wasn't normal but in that moment, I realized just how crazy she was.
"What do you want from me?" I asked but she didn't respond. "I didn't do anything to you. I don't even know who you are. Why are you doing this?"
"It's quite simple really, I don't want the wolves of Lunarius to regain full control. You are the only thing standing in the way of my victory. It also helps that I get to spite Darius using you."
"You're psychotic."
Her eyes narrowed at my words and I realized there was something about that word that triggered her. She nodded at one of the guards and before I could process anything, there was a hard punch to my temple. My vision darkened for what felt like a minute and by the time I was able to regain my sight, there was blood dripping down the side of my forehead.
"I already told you, Leindra. I can be your friend or your enemy, it is entirely up to you," she giggled almost maniacally. "Are you hungry?"
I tried to refuse the food but Faye wasn't having any of it. She had the guards force- feed whatever porridge concoction they brought it and judging by the taste, I already knew there was something wrong with it. I didn't realize what was wrong until almost ten minutes later when I began to feel nauseous and a little drowsy.
"The game we are about to play is very simple," Faye stood to her feet and walked over to me. "I will ask you some questions and if you answer me truthfully then I will give you the antidote to the poison. If you do not, I will sit here and watch you die. If your answer annoys me, my men over here will be sure to make sure that you are not recognizable. Is that clear?"
"Go to hell," I spat and I received another sharp punch to the abdomen.
"That is not the answer I was looking for but I hope you've learned. I already know you're not mated to Darius but I want to know why. Why hasn't he marked or claimed you yet? I can smell him all over you so I know he's fucked you. Why haven't you completed it?"
"I don't know."
She sighed and stood up straighter then nodded to the guards behind me. I expected another hit but I was shocked when I saw him hand what looked like wires to her. She stuck them over different parts of my skin and all I could do was sit there and watch her. Once she was done, he handed her what looked like a small remote.
"I think the first method isn't working quite well so why don't we increase the odds?" Faye pressed something on the button that had a bolt of electricity running through my body. It went away so quickly that if not for the aftermaths, I would have thought I imagined it. "For every lie, I increase the voltage. If you don't die from the poison then you will die from this. You understand, don't you?"
I gritted my teeth and nodded making her smile widely. I had no idea what I had just walked into.
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I was with Faye for what felt like years. My teeth were chattering and I could barely feel my own body. It didn't matter that I told her the truth, if the answers were not what she wanted then she would electrocute me. She seemed to be having fun with the entire thing and a few minutes into it was when I realized that she didn't care about the answers, she just wanted to torture me.
By the time she was done, I was cut out of my binds and I fell to the ground in a heap. She walked over to me and poured what I assumed was the antidote down my throat. I was weak so I couldn't refuse it and for all I knew, she could have been poisoning me again. Once she was certain I had swallowed it, she tapped my cheek in an almost affectionate manner and stood up.
"It actually hurts me more than it hurts you to do this," she said in a soft voice. "I know what it means to have collateral damage and I hate that you are caught up in this but don't blame me, blame the universe for pairing you with Darius."
"The universe didn't strap me to a chair and torture me," I retorted but she ignored me and kept talking.
"All of this is the goddess' fault. If she didn't make us wolves or pair you with him then you wouldn't be here. You would be with your brother and your grandma." "Stay away from my family."
I didn't know where the energy came from but I knew that I was going to kill her if she so much as laid a hand on my family. She was shocked by my outburst but there was something deep in her eyes that looked almost like pride and approval. She gestured for her men to pick me up and they placed me back in the chair and tied me up..
"You surprise me, Leindra," she said more to herself than to me. "I admire the fierceness you have for your family. Whether you believe it or not, I used to be like that too. I would have died for my family but they couldn't understand. They wouldn't do the same for me so I had to find my own family."
"Darius loves you. He would have done the same for you. You are the one who betrayed them and not the other way around."
Anger- pure and undiluted rage took over her features. She stormed over to me and grabbed my face in her hands. "You know nothing. Do not speak about things that you do not know of Leindra, You are nothing but an inconvenience in all our lives."
"I know enough," I spat back. "I know enough to know that you were a power-hungry bitch and you left because you couldn't get the throne."
"Do you know why I wanted the throne?"
"Does it matter? You were greedy and you wanted what wasn't yours."
She hit me so hard that I tasted blood. She exhaled deeply as if trying to expel all the anger out of her body. By the time she was done, she turned to me with what looked like a wry smile.
"Since you know everything then I assume you know about George."
My brows scrunched. "Who the hell is George?"
"You were so confident a few minutes ago. I should be asking you that."
"I don't want to play your games, Faye. You can either tell me or you don't. Who is George?"
"I am not surprised that Darius didn't tell you. He rarely ever likes to admit to his own shortcomings," she began then laughed humorlessly. "Well then, Leindra, allow me to fill you in on the parts of the story that you don't know."