Before I can have a total meltdown, though, the compartment door clicks unlocked. I jump to my feet to see what’s being slid through it, only to find that it didn’t open. The actual door does, and in walks Mr. Averson. He’s dressed in a grey suit and blue tie, as if he’s going to an important business meeting. Behind him is an older woman with brown hair pulled into a bun, and she’s carrying a leather bag. And just behind her is a tall, muscular man who’s a couple of years older than me. He has eyes as golden as the sun, full lips, and short brown hair. He has an intensity that flows off of him with so much thickness that most people probably get nervous around him. Me? I’ve spent my entire life around dangerous people, so it barely puts a blip on my panic radar. Also, and I have no clue why, but for some reason, he seems familiar.
But he impassively looks at me, so maybe the stir-craziness of being in this room is wearing on my psyche more than I thought.
Tension ripples off Finn's body in thick waves as he moves me behind him. “Why is Aiden here, Dad?” The way he says it makes me wonder who Aiden is because his presence is making Finn extremely uneasy.
“He’s making sure you two don’t try to escape.” Mr. Averson says, flashing us a grin as he steps further into the room.
Finn plunges into silence, leaving me to question just who the hell this Aiden guy is. Someone who clearly has Finn spooked.
“Now sit down and let Dr. Mapleton examine your hand,” Mr. Averson says to Finn. “And then she’s going to check on Maddison.”
My stomach winds into knots as I inch away from them. I wish the bathroom had a door so I could lock myself in there, but since it doesn’t, my only option for escaping is to take on this Aiden guy.
I measure him up as Finn takes a seat on the foot of the bed and Dr. Mapleton examines his hand. Aiden notices me assessing him and shifts his weight, blocking the doorway even more. He’s about the size of Finn, so overpowering him with my strength is definitely not an option. What I need is a distraction, or does he have a weapon on him? I could try to steal it.
I subtly eye him over. The problem is, he’s studying me equally as meticulously.
“If you’re looking for a weapon on him, he doesn’t need one.” Mr. Averson interrupts my dissecting of his bodyguard. “Aiden is a bred killer. He’s part of my experimental program and the only one to actually pass it.”
“Bred killer?” I don’t mean to say the words.
Mr. Averson’s lips pull back into a sinister grin as he steps up beside me. “If you take a child into captivity at a young enough age, you can pretty much program them to do whatever you want. We learned through Aiden that they have to be young enough not to be able to recall anything about their life before we take them, and we were able to program him to kill on my command without having any emotional reaction to the death.”
I want to throw up.
I want to bash my fist into Mr. Averson’s face.
I want to shout at Aiden that he doesn’t have to comply with this bullshit because I don’t believe they’ve managed to erase his emotional ability. He’s just detached himself from it, more than likely because of the dark stuff he’s seen and done.
I’ve been in that place before, where I’ve shut off my mind to cope with the awfulness of my surroundings. Sure, Aiden’ssituation is way more extreme, but he has to hate Mr. Averson for doing this to him, right?
When Aiden simply stands there without reacting, I tear my gaze off him and glare at Mr. Averson. “He’s not a robot, you sick fuck. How could you do that to another human?”
Mr. Averson aims a bored look at me. “Maybe after you’ve been impregnated, we can work on emotionally deprogramming you. A little torture and I bet you break pretty quickly.”
I smile sweetly at him. “Good luck with that, dumbass. I’ve been dealing with sick sadists like you since I could walk.”
Mr. Averson rolls his eyes, but then his gaze lands on the book and map stacked on the dresser. “What do you think about your reading material?”
“Seems like it’s written by an insane person,” I reply boredly. “I’m not even sure why you gave us that stuff.”
“It’s important for you to understand who you are.” He rolls up the sleeves of his shirt. “I own you now, Maddison, and you are going to learn all about that stuff you deem insane, but it’s your family’s insanity.”
“Yeah, I’m not buying into that reason,” I tell him skeptically with my arms crossed. “I have this feeling there’s some stuff in that book or on that map that you don’t understand, and you think I’m the key to figuring it out because I’m an Everford. Not that I believe that. I think that’s just where your crazy mind is at.”
A malicious smirk rises across his face. “You think you’re so clever, but if that’s the case, then why was I able to lock you up? You’re not clever at all. The only thing that’s of any value is between your legs.” His smirk broadens at the way my expression crumbles in shock. Then he strolls over to chat with the doctor about making my examination as uncomfortable as possible.
I stand there, watching him, with my hands balled at my sides. I could sucker punch him right now. He wouldn’t kill me. Punished probably, but it’d be worth it?—
“Don’t do it,” Aiden whispers from behind me.
I startle at the sound of his deep voice and start to turn around.
“No, don’t react,” he hisses under his breath. “Just keep looking forward.”
Why I easily comply is a mystery even to me. It’s not in character for me to do so. But I get this inkling that Aiden isn’t here to hurt me, even if he is, as Mr. Averson so horribly put it, a bred killer.
And then I feel his fingers brush mine.
