Carnage: A Dark Revenge Romance

I run down the dimly lit hallway, looking over my shoulder. My hair sticks to my tear-streaked face. Sucking in air, I hold my side, trying to ignore the sharp pain.

“ASH!”

My breath hitches, and I stumble over my own feet but manage not to fall flat on my face. I sidestep into a dark room and yank the door open to shield me as I push my back into the interior wall, allowing the door to cover me. Maybe if they see it’s open, they won’t think to look in here. My bloody hands come up to cover my face to quiet my sobs.

Don’t let them hear you.

“Ash,” Kashton calls out, making me jump. “Where the fuck did she go, man?” he growls.

“I don’t know. But we better find her. You go that way; I’ll go this way,” Saint suggests and just the sound of his voice makes my chest tighten.

“Where the fuck is Haidyn?” Kashton asks.

“I told him we needed to split up. He’s covering the hospital. If he finds her first, he’ll call me,” Saint answers.

I close my eyes after they go quiet, pressing my back into the cold wall, praying it’ll swallow me up and I won’t be seen.

Footsteps grow heavy as someone approaches, and I bite my tongue to keep from whimpering. Prying my watery lashes open, I turn my head to peek through the slit in the door and see Kashton walk by while typing away on his cell.

I knew I’d never survive here, but now I have no choice. The Spade brothers are free to come and go as they please. They’re not prisoners here like I am. As much as they mean to me, they’ll never understand my need to leave. To escape. Especially Saint. No matter how much it physically hurts me to know I won’t have him in my life. That once I’m gone, he’ll move on and be with another woman. That’s part of being a Lord—marriage, kids. They have to provide the world with more of them. That way, when they die one day, they’ll have an heir to carry on their name.

Once Kashton’s out of sight, I push my back into the wall once again and inhale a deep breath before pushing off it. My shaky hand wraps around the edge of the door, and I slowly push it away from me so I can get out from behind it. It squeaks, and I hold my breath for a second as my heart races. After a moment of silence, I go to step out of the room, but a hand hits my chest, shoving me back inside.

“We’ve been looking for you, sweet cheeks.” Kashton’s chuckle fills the concrete room, making my heart skip a beat. “Playing hide-and-seek, huh? What do I get for finding you first?”

I look up into a set of blue eyes through my watery lashes. His narrow on me when he realizes I’m covered in blood. “What the fuck happened, Ashtyn?” Kashton snaps, his playful banter now gone.

“Shh.” I yank on his black T-shirt, pulling him farther into the room to keep from being seen and heard. “Keep your voice down,” I whisper harshly, panic starting to set in. I can’t let them stop me.

“I’m not going to be quiet. What the fuck happened? Is that your blood?” He yanks my shirt up, but I shove him away, pushing the material down. “You’re in some deep shit, Ash. Everyone is looking for you. Come on.” He grabs my hand and goes to remove me from the room.

I yank back, and he spins around to face me once again, but I slam my fist into his nose.

“Fuck.” He stumbles back, grabbing it. “What the fuck, Ash?” When he removes his hand from his face, blood gushes down his chin to fall on his T-shirt.

I knee him in the balls, and he falls to the floor groaning. I rush into the hallway and run the opposite direction that I came from. Coming to the end of the hall, I slowly peek around the corner and immediately slam my back to the wall when I see Saint approaching. My eyes dart back the other way to make sure Kashton isn’t chasing me.

“Ash—what the fuck? Where are you?” Saint adds, calling out. “We’re going to find you, sweetheart. But we can’t protect you if you don’t surrender.”

He’s right. If I hand myself over to them, they can protect me, but it still won’t be enough. Three guys can’t save me from an army of men. They’ll destroy me. Rip me apart. All I have are the Spade brothers. My mother is dead, my brother left me here, and my father…who knows where the fuck that bastard is. And the baby…I can’t leave its life to chance like that. It deserves a better life than I was ever offered. It won’t survive in this hell. And even if it did, they’d never let me see it or be a part of its life. And I refuse to let them be punished for my actions. If they tried to protect me, they’d be in trouble. I’m not worth that.

I place my hand in my front pocket and feel the keys as fresh tears run down my face. At least I had one person on my side. That’s all I needed. A chance.

“Don’t make a sound,” a voice whispers in my ear, making me whimper. “Or you’re dead.”

I inhale sharply through my runny nose. “Can you do that?”

After I nod quickly, he removes his hand from my mouth, and I suck in a deep breath. He takes my hand, and I feel something placed in it. I close my fist around the keys and let out a sob, my shoulders shaking.

“Good luck,” he whispers, and I swallow the lump in my throat.

I can do this. It just means leaving everything I love behind. But nothing lasts forever. My world teaches you that at a young age. You can’t sell sweet dreams to those who constantly live in nightmares.

Taking in a deep breath, I hold my hair back and slowly peek around the corner again just as Saint walks into one of the rooms. I push off the wall and keep running, needing to get as far away from them as possible. I expect to hear his cell ringing any second with Kashton giving him my location away.

Shoving open a door at the end of the hall, I ignore the loud bang it gives off from hitting the interior wall of the stairwell and run down three flights of stairs to the first floor. No one is down here this time of night. The morgue is the last place anyone wants to be. It smells of death and reeks of formaldehyde. I have avoided it at all costs the past few weeks but desperate times call for desperate measures and all that.

Carnage is a city of terror. A prison that you cannot escape, not even in death. It collects your soul and demands your mind. Trap a person for long enough, and they begin to believe their only purpose is to serve. It’s like a hamster running on a wheel—you never get anywhere.

I swallow down the vomit that rises and wipe the tears from my face with my bloody hands. Making my way down the hall, I see an EXIT sign hanging from the ceiling, and I let out a cry of relief.

So close.

I turn the corner and come to a stop. My tennis shoes squeak on the floor. My stomach sinks, and my body begins to shake when a set of green eyes land on me.

“Noooo.” How did he beat me down here? He must have taken the elevator.

Just seeing him is making this harder than it already was. I wanted my last memory of him to be of us in his bed earlier this evening. His lips on mine and his hands in my hair while he called me his good little whore. Afterward, he passed out with me in his arms and his cum running out of my pussy. I’m still wet from it.

I whimper, taking a step back.

Saint’s steps match mine, stepping toward me. His six-foot-five frame towers over my five-five. “What in the fuck are you doing, Ash?” he snaps, making me flinch. “What—?” His eyes drop to my bloody clothes. “Jesus!” He hisses, raising his hands to run through his disheveled dark hair. I did that to him when his head was between my legs before he fucked me.

I left him two hours ago. It’s now three in the morning. No doubt he was woken up to collect me. “Who the fuck did this to you?” His voice echoes down the hall.

“Shh.” My lips tremble.

“Are you fucking serious?” he demands. Reaching out for me, he grabs my upper arm and yanks me to him. His clothes now covered in the blood from mine. “Everyone is fucking looking for you. You’re lucky I’m the one who found you.” He drags me back down the hall, letting me know that he has no clue Kashton had found me first upstairs.

“No, please … Saint—”

He spins me around, shoving my back into the concrete wall and steps into me once more, pinning me in place. His large, muscular body vibrates with his anger that I’m not doing as I’ve been told. “Where do you think you’re going to go? You can’t escape—”

“I have to try.” I interrupt him.

He lets go of me and takes a step back. “You’re serious?” His dark brows crease. “You’re going to risk your life to leave here?” His voice softens. “To leave me?”

I swallow the knot in my throat but don’t respond. I can’t. I hate this. Our life. Deciding to leave here was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make, but I have no choice. The Lords always make sure you’re backed into a corner. They live to test you, and if you fail, you’re dead anyway.

I could tell him the truth, but I know what he’s hiding from me. It’s a lose-lose situation. I won’t be the one who gets him in trouble, so I’ll just remove myself from the situation.

He quickly looks me up and down. “I’m going to kill whoever the fuck touched you, Ash. But you’ve lost your goddamn mind if you think I’m letting you leave me.”

Come with me. Those words come to mind, but I can’t make my lips work. Saint will never leave Carnage. This is his home. His world. His future. I’m just a girl he’s fucked. A Lord never picks pussy over his title. No matter that we haven’t already made promises to one another. I knew I’d break mine one day.

I wrap my arms around myself. Not sure why I suddenly need to protect myself. Not from him. Saint is one that I know would never hurt me. Not to inflict harm. Do I allow him to do some fucked-up shit to my body? Yes. But I love it. He’d never torture me for his own pleasure. He’s protected me and saved me from the worst. But I’m no longer safe. He’s no longer my biggest threat in this hell.

He reaches out, his knuckles running down my tear-streaked face. I must look awful because I feel like shit. The action so simple, delicate. It makes me rethink my entire plan to leave him behind. “Sweetheart—’

“They’re down here.” A guard speaks, coming from the stairwell I just came from. I’m guessing into the radio that they have attached to their bulletproof vests. “Morgue.”

And just like that, I’m reminded why I have to get the fuck out of here. I push off the wall and run the opposite direction, and Saint pulls me back. Yanking on my shirt, he practically chokes me. “Ash…”

“Ple—ase?” My legs give out, and he releases me, letting me fall to the cold floor. I start to scoot backward on my hands and ass. My legs kicking out so he can’t grab me again.

“There you are, you little bitch!” The guard runs past Saint and grips my hair. He yanks me to my feet before shoving me face-first into the wall, making me cry out. His forearm presses into the back of my neck, smashing my face and the front of my body into the wall. His beer belly squishes me, and I can feel his dick against my ass. It makes me want to vomit.

“Stop,” Saint barks, pulling the man off me. I take a step back from the wall, sucking in a deep breath. “You don’t have to be so rough with her. She didn’t do anything wrong,” he defends me. That’s one thing about Saint, he’s always got my back. That’s what makes this decision so hard.

The guard pushes Saint’s hand away. “This is your fault.” He points a finger in Saint’s face. “You allow her too much freedom.”

What? Why would he say that? Saint has no control over what I’m allowed to do. Freedom? No one here at Carnage has freedom. Not unless you’re a Spade brother. But even they are called to serve the Lords. They wear the brand on their chest, so they must pay their dues.

Saint, Kashton, and Haidyn are a product of Carnage. One day, the next generation of Spade brothers will take over this hell, and I can’t be here when that happens. The truth is, I’ll be dead before they even get the chance. That’s why I have to get out now. The only person who can save me and the baby is myself.

I can’t hold back the whimper that escapes my shaking lips, and the guard’s eyes slam to me. He reaches up, pushing the button on his radio, and speaks into it. “Bring the jacket.”

My chest squeezes. Please, no. I can’t let them put me in that. They could leave me for days. Forget about me. I’ve seen others pee and shit all over themselves when in that. Not to mention starve. When Saint and Haidyn strapped me in it, it was only for about an hour, and the time I was awake to experience it was torture.

My watery eyes shoot to Saint, and his sharp jaw flexes at the guard’s order, knowing exactly what it means. “That’s not necessary,” he snaps.

“Shut the fuck up, boy. I don’t take orders from you.” The guard dismisses Saint.

“You’re not fucking putting her in it!” Saint informs him.

“I’ll do whatever the fuck I want to the whore.”

While they argue, I decide this is my best chance. I push to my feet and start to run. The back of my hair is pulled, pin pricks like a thousand needles penetrate my scalp, and I’m yanked up off my feet before I’m slammed down onto the floor on my back. My breath is taken from me, and dots dance across my vision. I roll onto my side, hugging my stomach, coughing as pain explodes behind my eyes and runs down the back of my neck along my spine. My fingers and toes start to tingle from the blow.

“Don’t fucking touch her,” Saint shouts, followed by the two of them struggling.

As I get to my hands and knees, a loud bang rings through the hallway, momentarily deafening me. My hands cover my ears to subside the ringing, but it doesn’t work.

Looking up, I see the guard fall to his knees and then flat on his face. The sound of the ringing in my ears intensifies as I watch Saint lower the gun that he must have taken from the guard. He tucks it into the back of his waistband of his jeans, glaring down at the dead guard.

I jump to my shaking legs and slide my back against the wall to get around the pool of blood that grows under the guy. I have enough blood on me already.

“Saint,” I breathe, running up behind him.

“Let’s go.” He grabs my arm and drags me down the hall back in the direction I came from. I can’t do it. I won’t go back. I’m too close.

Yanking his T-shirt up, I grip the handle of the gun tucked into the back of his jeans and pull it out. We both come to a stop, and time slows as I press it into his back, knowing there’s no going back after this.

He stiffens, the thin material of his T-shirt straining against his taut muscles, hands down by his side. Slowly, he turns around to face me. His eyes narrow when he stares down the barrel. “Jesus Christ, Ash. You really have lost your goddamn mind.” He sighs, and his eyes soften with empathy as if I’m that pathetic that he actually feels sorry for me.

I am, but I refuse to become my mother. I will do anything and everything I can for my child. I will put them first and make sure they have a safe and healthy place to grow up. If I don’t break the cycle, then who will?

Tears run down my face while the gun shakes in my hands, but my legs are spread wide, anchored to the floor as if I’m a ship bracing for a storm.

Lifting his arms out to his side, he takes a step toward me, the gun now pressing into his chest, and I take a stumbling step back.

“Sweetheart.” He calls me by my nickname, and it makes me whimper. “We both know that you won’t shoot me. Come on.” He motions with his raised hands to give him the gun. “I’ll be right here with you. Nothing is going to happen to you. I’ll make sure of it.” He’s referring to being punished by their fathers. But he doesn’t know what I know. Not yet, anyway.

No one leaves Carnage. Ever. And those who have tried were caught and never saw the light of day again. The world already thinks I’m dead; no one would miss me if they killed me in here.

Saint adds, “Whatever happened is over, and whoever touched you will pay.” His eyes drop to the bleeding corpse behind me before meeting mine again.

I’ve never doubted what Saint would do for me because I’ve seen firsthand how he protects those he loves. But even I know some things are beyond his limits. I’m not meant to be his wife or the mother of his children. I’m just the whore he uses until she comes along. And that is the hardest pill to swallow. The vows we took will mean nothing to the Lords when they find out he betrayed his oath

A laugh escapes my lips. I feel manic, like a ticking time bomb. The littlest thing will set me off. “Over? It’ll never be over,” I choke out, hating how careless he is. But he grew up in this life. He’s a Lord. His bloodline guarantees he’ll never have to go through what I’ll have to endure. He’s a man. I’m just a whore for them all to use until I rot in this place.

I hear faint sounds of voices, followed by the sound of shuffling feet. They’re coming to take me. And I know one of them has the jacket in their hands. They’ll secure me in it and drag me down the hall by my hair…if I’m lucky. Or like the woman who had the rope wrapped around her neck that they dragged her by.

“Come on, sweetheart. Be a good girl and hand me the gun.”

Good girl? My knees almost buckle at his choice of words. I’ve always been that to him. I’ve given this man everything I had to offer. His friends too. But my life? At some point, a woman has to stand up for herself and draw a line. This is where I make a stand. I either escape or let them kill me trying. I’d gladly let him kill me than me kill him. But nothing about my life has ever been easy. Especially our love. “Would you kill me, Saint?” I ask, fresh tears running down my cheeks. Maybe they would keep me alive long enough to give birth, but after that? They’d just torture me. “Would you end my life if it was the only way to save me?”

He told me he’d hurt me if it meant he could keep me. But would he kill me to save me?

His head tilts to the side, his features showing his confusion. “No,” he answers softly. “I never want to exist in a world without you in it, sweetheart.”

I don’t know if I should laugh or cry at his answer. But he told me what I already knew—he’ll never let me go.

He reaches for the gun, and I shove it into his chest. He raises his hands, softly chuckling. I suck in a deep breath. “I’ll do it,” I warn, my body trembling but knowing this is my only way out of this hell.

“No, you won’t.” He sighs heavily as if I’ve lost my mind.

That’s what this place does to you. People weren’t meant to be caged. Do you know what it feels like not to exist? To know that no one is looking for you? It’s crippling. Mentally and physically. And then you find out that you have a life inside you? That there is something good to come out of something so awful? I want better for my child.

There is a life outside of this place, far past the Lords, and I’m going to get it. By shooting him, it gives me an out. I’ll be free. It’ll only cost my soul and the love of my life. But freedom always comes with a price.

“I’m… sorry,” I choke out, my throat so tight all I can do is whisper the next sentence. “I love you.” He’s said those three words to me several times. This is the first time I’ve said them to him.

His green eyes narrow on mine, and he takes a step toward me. “Ash—”

I pull the trigger.

I stand, shaking with the gun down by my side. His body lies on the floor, blood pooling underneath him. He’s coughing, body jerking at the movement.

“Saint?” Kashton calls out. His shoes echo off the concrete walls as he stomps his way down the stairwell. He heard the gun go off. Everyone had to.

I take a shaking step back as his body continues to convulse. Tears fall from my cheeks as my throat closes. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper. “I—”

“Ash-tyn.” He coughs my name, blood splattering across his face.

“Saint?” Kashton yells once more, and he’s getting closer.

I lick my wet lips and turn my back to him, needing to leave. I didn’t shoot him for nothing. I rush out the hallway and down the corner. I scream when I hit a hard body. Looking up into a set of hard eyes, they drop to my gun.

My shaking hand tightens on it, ready to shoot anyone to get out of this place. “Get the fuck out of here. As far as I’m concerned, you’re dead. Do you understand me?” he growls, not making a move to take it from me or step back.

“I…understand.” I manage to say through a sob with a nod.

“Saint! Fuck!” Kashton shouts from around the corner. He just found his brother bleeding out in the hallway.

The man steps into me and lowers his lips to my ear. “We all pay for our sins, Ashtyn. You are no different. You can run from them all you want, but they will catch up with you no matter where you go.” Pulling back, he turns and walks back in the direction he came from, going away from the hallway I ran from.

Taking a deep breath, I run toward the EXIT and shove it open, entering the black night and run deep into the woods. I’m sucking in breath after breath, and my lungs burn. I try not to trip over the uneven ground as I come up to the door that’s hidden inside a hill.

I sniff, my shaking hands unlock it, and yank it open. Bending down, I pick up the flashlight left for me and turn it on, closing the door behind me.

The sound of dripping water and rats scatter away from the light. I feel the bile rising, and I can’t stop it. The smell, the fear, the blood…

Bending over, I hold my hair back as I vomit. My head pounds from the guard tossing me around, and my ears ring. I try to take a calming breath and get myself together. I can’t stop now. We’ve come too far.

SAINT

The gunshot echoes through the hall. One second, I’m staring at a blood-covered Ashtyn, and the next, I’m blinking up at the ceiling as it fades in and out.

“Christ,” a familiar voice hisses, and then Kashton hovers over me. His bloody face in mine.

“What … happened?” I’m having a hard time talking. I can’t seem to get the words out. Why is he bleeding? Did he hurt Ashtyn? Is that why they were both covered in blood?

“The bitch shot you,” he shouts before placing his hands on me and presses down.

“Nooo.” He can’t be talking about my sweetheart. She wouldn’t do that. She’d never hurt me. She loves me. The pain that shoots through my body makes me arch my back off the floor. I go to scream, but nothing comes out as my breath is taken away.

“You’re okay,” he rushes out. “Hang on.”

My body relaxes into the cold concrete floor, and I blink, my eyes heavy. The fluorescent lights that run along the ceiling fade in and out.

“Saint!” he screams as he looks up from me and down the end of the hall. “Haidyn, call the medics,” he orders.

“Ash-tyn?” I choke out. The guards were coming for her. Maybe they shot us both? Is she lying next to me bleeding out? If so, he needs to save her before they get to her. They’ll save me and leave her to die. She’s no one to them, but everything to me. That’s why I couldn’t let her leave me. I almost lost her once. I won’t let it happen again.

“She’s gone, Saint.” Kashton growls.

They killed her? “No.” I cough, and I taste blood. “Save her—”

“She ran,” Kashton snaps at me. “Haidyn, he’s been shot. She fucking shot him! He needs Devin! Now!”

“I—” My tongue won’t work. My lips are no longer able to move. I try to reach out for her, to hold her hand, but they don’t move either. She has to be next to me. Why isn’t he helping her?

“Fuck,” Kash curses, ripping my shirt open, and I feel like I’m floating. The lights dim, and the floor gets colder as he fades into nothing. The last thing on my mind is if they killed Ashtyn, I hope I die too.

I’m putting on my belt that Jessie had brought me this morning, finally getting out of my hospital stay here at Carnage.

They’ve kept me drugged up in here for two weeks, and I’m losing my goddamn mind. Ashtyn got away, and that’s two weeks that she’s had the opportunity to run. Every time I woke up and went to leave, they’d give me something to knock my ass out. Said I wasn’t ready and that I needed to take time.

She shot me in the chest. She was either a really good shot and knew it wouldn’t kill me. Or she was a bad shot and missed my heart. Either way, I’m still alive, and I’m going to find her and bring her back.

We still don’t know who was after Adam, and I’m still not clear if they wanted her dead or to use her as bait. So, the Lords need to assume she’s dead. She won’t be able to survive out in the real world without me.

The sound of my hospital room door opens, and I keep my back to it as I pick up my shirt and gently pull it over my head. I’m still sore as fuck. “Where are Haidyn and Kashton?” I ask, knowing it’s Devin. He came in this morning, and I told him I was done putting up with this shit. He said he’d be back to give me some meds in case I needed them. Fuck the drugs.

“Hello, Saint.”

I spin around at the sound of a woman’s voice, knowing that was not Devin. She stands in my room in a tight-fitting white pencil skirt that hits her knees with a pair of black high heels and blood-red top. It’s tucked into her high-waisted skirt with a deep V-cut neckline showing off her enlarged breasts. Her dark hair is up in a tight bun, showing off her neck, and she wears a pair of red-rimmed glasses that showcase a set of dark green eyes. They drop to my combat boots and run up over my jeans and T-shirt.

“Can I help you?” I give her my back and pick up my watch off the hospital bed and place it on, clasping it.

“Actually, I’m here to help you,” she says cheerfully.

I snort; no one can help me. Not right now. Not with this. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone or how I’ll find her, but I’m not coming back until I have Ashtyn in my arms. Whatever she did, whatever happened, I can fix it. I can protect her.

Locking my cell, I put it in my pocket, zip up my bag, and toss it over my good shoulder and turn around to leave. “Move,” I bark when she stands in my way. I’m really not in the mood to hit a woman. I don’t give a fuck who she is.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that.” Just then, the door behind her opens, and four men step into the room, all coming to line up behind her on either side, and the door shuts once more.

I take a deep breath, about to lose my shit. “Dad, what the fuck are you doing?” I bark, looking over their cloaks and masks. If they think this changes our agreement, it doesn’t. “I don’t have time…”

“Your father is dead, Saint,” she speaks.

My eyes scan the four men once more before I look back down at her. “Listen.” I fist my hand. “I don’t know who the fuck you are or why the fuck you’re here, but you need to get out of my way before I body-slam you into the fucking wall.” If my dad were dead, I’d know.

A smile graces her done-up face as if the idea of being tossed around like a rag doll turns her on. “Things have changed, Saint,” she says cryptically.

“Get the fuck—”

“Show him, boys.” She interrupts me.

One of the men move out from behind her and picks up the remote to the TV that hangs on the wall to my right. Pushing in a code, it goes to the surveillance system here at Carnage. It’s of the pits.

The view is from the corner of the room, pointed down at the concrete floor. Both pits on the outsides look dry and empty but the one in the middle is full of water. My chest tightens remembering what it was like to be in there, suffocating, cold and mind fucking. “What am I looking at?” I growl through gritted teeth.

“You asked where Haidyn and Kashton were. I’m giving you an answer.”

My head snaps to look at her, my heart racing. She remains smiling. “You’ve been out for two weeks, Saint. A lot has happened since then.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” I look back at the TV. Stepping closer, I watch the water spill over the top of the bars onto the concrete floor. The five vertical bars recede three inches into the pit and lock in place. That’s why I couldn’t breathe when I lifted my nose through them when it filled to the top.

The water is dark, and given the angle, I can’t see down into it, but there is a tube of some sort popping out of the top where the head would be if someone were lying down. It’s black and rubber, maybe four inches past the water with a valve on the end. My eyes shoot to the wall across from the pit looking for a timer but I don’t see one.

“Your fathers are dead, and you and your brothers are to blame—”

“They’re not dead! And Haidyn and Kashton would never do that!” I shout, a sickening feeling in my stomach. “Who the fuck is in there?” I point to the TV, glaring at her.

She ignores my question. “They’re dead because of Ashtyn.”

I shake my head. “No.”

“You let her escape, Saint. The Lords didn’t like that.” She steps closer to me and I take one back trying to figure out what the fuck is going on. I’ve been in and out for two weeks but I haven’t been in a fucking coma.

“The Lords think she’s dead,” I grind out. I can’t lie and say she’s dead. This woman obviously knows she isn’t.

Her laugh makes my teeth clench. “If they wanted her dead, she’d be dead,” she says cryptically.

My eyes go back to the TV. “Who the fuck is in there?” I demand once more, a throbbing pain in my right arm. The last pain pill they force-fed me last night starting to wear off. Dropping my bag, I clench and unclench my right fist. My hand numbing.

“That is Haidyn,” she answers. “Sensory deprivation…”

I wrap my hand around her neck and slam her back into the wall below the TV. I hear the guys shuffling behind me and she raises her hand to stop them before her dark green eyes look up to meet mine.

“You better be fucking lying.” My body vibrates against hers. “Where is Haidyn?” I bark in her face.

Her eyes grow hard, and she lifts her chin. “He’s where he belongs.” They search mine, and she adds, “Go ahead, show him.”

My eyes look up at the TV that we stand underneath. The screen still shows the pits, but the middle one is empty and all three have the bars off.

The double doors open to the room and two men enter pushing a stretcher. Haidyn lies on it. He’s dressed in an all-black dry suit that divers wear. It’s unzipped down the front though exposing a cut and bruised chest. He’s also unconscious. His face looks swollen, lip busted. Whatever happened, he put up a fight that he ended up not winning. Something tells me it wasn’t a fair one.

I let go of her neck and step back, watching as the blood rushes in my ears. They bring him to a stop and lift up his head and shoulders, pulling a hood up from underneath him that’s connected to the suit. Lying him flat once again, one of them begins putting stickers on his chest. Four of them in various places before zipping it up to his neck.

The other man pulls out two small plugs and shoves them up his nose, taking away his chance to breathe through them. Then they both maneuver the tight hood over his head, covering every inch of his face except for his mouth. There’s already some sort of mouthpiece in and they connect a tube to it that has a ball valve on the end.

My eyes shoot to the pit as it starts to fill with water. So high to the point it slowly flows over the top and onto the floor. Their shoes splash the water as they step in it and pick him up before lowering him into the watery pit. One holds onto the tube to make sure the bars don’t knock it off while the other closes the hinged bars down into the pit and locks them in place.

The one holding the tube, twists the valve while the other guy pulls out his cell. He looks at it and nods a few times mouthing words that the video doesn’t allow me to hear.

Then they turn and walk away, pushing the stretcher with them, while locking my brother inside.

“He’s been in there for—’

“Fucking bitch!” I slap her across the face so hard it throws her to the side. I reach out to grab her by her bun, but the back of my legs are hit, knocking me to my knees and my arms are yanked up and behind my head, held by my wrists. The position has pain shooting up my chest momentarily taking away my breath.

“You’ve pissed off the Lords, Saint.” She rubs her cheek, coming to stand in front of me. “And I’ve been sent to train the next generation of the Spade brothers before you’re allowed to step up and take your position here. For the next six months, I will put the three of you through hell.” She kneels in front of me. So close I can smell her expensive perfume. Her smile makes my stomach drop, “I’m going to teach you not to let pussy get in the way of your oath.” Reaching out, she takes a red-painted nail and pushes on my chest where Ashtyn shot me.

I clench my teeth to keep from screaming while holding my breath.

“Haidyn and Kashton already have two weeks of training done, so you’re going to have to catch up.” Her eyes drop to my lips. “I have a feeling that you’re a quick study.”

I take the opportunity of her closeness and ram my head into hers, knocking her back off her heels and onto her ass as her back hits the wall. My arms are freed as they go to help her, but before I can get to the bitch, I’m pushed down onto my stomach, and they’re yanked behind my back. This time, they place me in handcuffs.

Breathing heavily, I try to roll over so I’m not lying on my burning chest but someone steps on the back of my neck, pinning me down.

She snaps her fingers, “Let him see.”

I’m yanked to sit up, and I glare up at her. If I wasn’t so enraged, I’d enjoy the blood running down her face as she shoves a phone into mine. “I control everything. The water is forty degrees, but he’s burning up inside of the dry suit. The stickers on his chest…those are wireless chest monitors and they show me his vitals.” She points to the screen with the tip of her nail. “See that? His core body temperature is up to a 103. 107 is brain dead, by the way.”

I can’t speak, I can barely breathe from the weight on my chest.

“He woke up some time ago.” She goes on. “His current blood oxygen content is around fifty percent. Probably experiencing problems with circulation, possible hallucinations, body spasms…” She pauses. “And this one here, it controls the valve on the end of the tube—his only access to air. I can give him more or take it away…”

“I’m going to fucking kill you.” I manage to say through gritted teeth, cutting her off. If it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to hang this bitch by her fucking neck on the gates of Carnage for all to see as they drive by.

She laughs and signals for them to get me to my feet. I bite down on my tongue as they lift me by my arms and try to ignore the pain that shoots down my side. The cuffs are undone and I take a step toward her, ready to knock her fucking teeth out when she speaks.

“You have a choice here, Saint. Stay and willingly give yourself over to me. Or go and chase your whore while I play with your brothers.”

My hands clench. “She’s my …” I refuse to finish that sentence. She arches a brow. A very select few know what Ash and I did that first week she was here. And right now, both of them need me.

Fuck Ashtyn for doing this. For making me choose. For making me let her go! And fuck this bitch for thinking she can give me an ultimatum.

I’ll do what must be done now, but I won’t forget Ashtyn. She can’t run forever.

“Pull him out,” I demand. “Right now.” My eyes go to the screen and my already tight chest seizes when I see the black tube and valve. How many times has she taken it away? Who knows how long he’s been in there and it’s such a tight space it gives little movement to begin with. I had barely any and Haidyn is taller than me.

“And you’ll stay?” she asks, and my eyes drop to her as she arches her brow. “Because I could really use your help. The other two have not been cooperative, Saint. I’ve had to force my power—”

“LET HIM OUT!” I shout, my throat burning, tired of her fucking voice. I want to shove that black tube down her throat and slowly fill it with water and watch her drown.

She smiles and dials up a number on her phone. Placing it to her ear, she speaks one word. “Enough.”

My eyes shoot to the screen and two men enter the double doors once again pushing the stretcher. They go to the center pit and unlock the bars, pulling them up. The water remains as they reach down and grip his shoulders first sitting him up, then drag him out. They lie him on the floor, and he doesn’t move.

“If he’s dead…”

“Take him to Devin,” she says into the phone. “I want a full checkup.” When she hangs up her phone, my eyes shoot back to the surveillance.

They remove the hood, and his eyes are closed, but I can see his chest moving in the tightly fitting suit. His body is shaking and his hair and face are soaked from sweat. They remove the plugs in his nose and the tube with the mouthpiece. Then they place him on the stretcher and push him out of the room.

My breathing is erratic, muscles tight, and my blood is boiling. Someone will pay for this. Even if it takes years to get my revenge, it will happen. That’s what I’ve been taught to do, and I let Ashtyn fool me into forgetting who the fuck I am.

Lowering my eyes from the TV, I look at the unknown woman. She smiles at me while addressing her four men. “Take him down to the observation room, strip him naked, and get him ready for his initiation.” Stepping into me, she places her palm on my heaving chest. Her eyes light up when she feels my racing heart. “I’m looking forward to making you a good boy, Saint.”