Whenever one of us needed to go, we exchanged a silent understanding and told the other to close their eyes.
Caiden had already witnessed my assault, yet I had been too drugged to fully grasp the humiliation of it.
The thought of him seeing me exposed, urinating in a bucket, was unbearable. I couldn't bear to witness him in such a vulnerable state either.
We agreed to preserve whatever shreds of dignity we had left.
The man came and went, sauntering down into our makeshift prison to toy with our minds, or with me alone. He provided one meager meal each day, a small plate of stale and unsavory scraps, barely enough to sustain us.
My body felt drained, and I could see Caiden’s energy waning with each passing hour. I suspected he was drugging Caiden too.
We didn’t utter any words for a while, until the door creaked open slowly, the rusty sound echoing in the stillness. The man flung the cage door wide, the hollow sound reverberating in the dim roomas he tossed the plate of food inside, scattering scraps across the filthy floor.
He was humming a tune I almost recognized. A children’s lullaby, grotesquely out of place.
“Slop is here for my pets,” he sneered, his voice dripping with mockery.
He turned his attention to Caiden, who was normally hunched in the corner but now stood defiantly, silently challenging the man with his brooding demeanor.
“Get back to the wall,” the man commanded, his gravelly voice vibrating with menace.
“No. How about you lift that wall and face me like a man? Coward,” Caiden snapped, a sudden strength overtaking his previous hollowed and grim demeanor. His eyes locked onto the man, a vein pulsing in his clenched fists.
“Get back! Don’t make me say it again.” The man’s voice darkened, a threatening growl that filled the room.
“No.” Caiden’s voice was firm, possessing an unwavering stubbornness.
What happened next was entirely unexpected. A fiery intensity ignited in the man’s eyes as he turned, his hand a blur as it lashed out, connecting painfully with my face.
A scream, high-pitched and filled with terror, erupted from my lips.
“Every moment that you defy me, she gets hurt.”
His voice was cold, devoid of emotion, a chilling instrument that betrayed no remorse.
Caiden stared at me, helpless and broken on the ground. His gaze swept over me, his chest heaving, anguish etched across his features.
“This isn’t over,” he muttered as he retreated, his shoulders loosening under the weight of forced obedience.
The man remained still, a predator savoring his control.
“Because of that little act of disobedience, I realize I’ve been too generous. Each day, you both will decide who gets food and who starves. Today, the girl gets food. Tomorrow, you decide.”
With that, he slammed the door shut, leaving us in a suffocating silence, dread creeping into our hearts once more.
The pain in my face intensified, becoming a throbbing, unbearable pressure. I winced at the sensation.
“I wish he would just kill us already,” I whispered into the dark, not expecting an answer.
Caiden groaned in response, a sound of irritation. He remained silent for a moment before what he said shocked me.
“You know, this feels like my own personal hell. I keep thinking that maybe I am in hell, and this is my punishment for my actions. Maybe I deserve to rot in here.”
Each syllable was a lament, and it tore at my heart.
“Why do you say that?” My question hung in the air, filled with uncertainty.
“Watching you get hurt and humiliated, unable to do anything to help, it’s fucking with my mind. I know you think I’m heartless, but I’m not. I can’t stand witnessing that.”
