Chapter Twenty-Five
CORA
The first thingI noticed was the smell. An earthy smell, like dirt, only heavier. Mustier. Like something left to rot. Mixed with it was the lingering scent of stale sweat and old rubber.
My head throbbed as I sat up. Something cold and rough scraped against my palms. Concrete. Cracked and uneven.
Where was I?
Thin shafts of light filtered through small windows near the ceiling, just enough to make out shapes in the gloom. I was sitting inside what looked like a large wire cage. Torn boxing gloves, weights, and other boxing-type equipment filled the rows of shelves. Through the mesh, I could see abandoned exercise equipment sitting rusting in corners, and old wrestling mats stacked against bare concrete walls.
I pushed myself to my feet, gripping the cold metal of the cage. As I tested the door, which was locked, a noise caught my attention. When I turned, my breath caught.
Right next to my cage, Kane was chained to the wall, wrists shackled high above his head. His feet touched the ground, buthe hung limp and unconscious. Dark hair covered his face as his head lolled forward. Blood stained his shirt.
“Kane?” I whispered.
He didn’t move.
From inside the cage, I could see the extent of what they’d done to him. His face was swollen. Deep cuts and large bruises covered his arms. Dark stains marked his shirt. They’d been torturing that poor man.
“Kane,” I said louder, gripping the mesh between us.
This time his head lifted slightly. When he saw me, his good eye widened as much as it could. “Cora?” His voice was barely a whisper. “You…” He grunted as he got his feet under himself and stood, using the shackles to help him stand.
The closer I looked, the more I noticed. There wasn’t an inch of him that didn’t look bloodied… and with burn marks. His clothes looked singed, and then I smelled the distinct scent of soot.
“I should have killed him a year ago.” I spun around and found Colter standing in the doorway. He strode from the stairs toward the middle of the room. “It’s good you’re finally awake.”
“Where is Elias?”
“Safe.” He stepped inside the basement, followed by four men. My brain and my body found the same page and I pressed myself against the back of the cage. “For now.”
“What do you want?”
“Well, like I told your sister, I want custody.”
I wasn’t a naturally violent person, but all I wanted more than anything in the world at that moment was to find a baseball bat and use his face as a target. He was talking about my child.MY CHILD. “Why? So you can just give him to Daisy’s sister?”
“Well, that depends on you and your willingness to cooperate. I’m open to putting him up for auction.”
My lungs felt squeezed. “What?”
Colter smiled. “It’s really quite simple. You sign over custody to me, and I’ll graciously hand him over to Daisy’s sister. Or you could be difficult and refuse. In which case, I’ll put him up for auction to the highest bidder.” He stepped closer to the cage. “And there’s no telling where or with who he winds up with.”
I took a step forward. Yes, I was terrified of this man. I knew without a doubt he’d kill me, dump my body, and never think twice. But if he thought I’d just lay down and do what I was told, he was mistaken. “He’s your son.”
“So, I never wanted kids. When I found out Maya was pregnant, I was already trying to convince her that Daisy’s sister was the better option. They were willing to pay fifty grand for that baby.”
Kane wheezed and his knees buckled. “Leave her alone, Colter.”
Colter crossed the room and rammed his fist in Kane’s stomach over and over until Kane’s ragged breathing filled the room.
Visions of Jason, tied in a chair, resurfaced. I swallowed down the urge to vomit.
“Haven’t you hurt him enough?” I squeezed my eyes shut. “Stop.”
The other men joined in. How the man was still alive with the amount of abuse he was enduring was a miracle itself.
