BRAVADO - Larry ✔️

18. This toxic thing between us

I fall to the ground in a heap when Max un-cuffs my hands from the drain. My back sizzling in sweat and blood trickling from my abused skin. I tremble on the ground, my hands and knees on the floor holding me up as they vibrate from pain and fear of getting more lashings.

"You're too weak to fight back." Max states in disgust. Sending another lash of the whip down onto my bloodied back. I flinch forward but don't cry out in pain. The feeling numbing and only the slashing of new skin and blood splatters to the ground beside me. Sweat drips down from my hair and onto the hard cement ground before me. I don't speak.

"You're not a leader." Max states. "You killed your own team member." He taunted me throughout his torture and my eyes close briefly in exhaustion and guilt. The words spoken throughout the punishment setting in. I gasp as an unexpected lash lands hard on my back, startling me.

"You're pathetic." Max spits on me, pushing me onto my side and I groan, moving feebly on the ground as he rolls up his whip and exits the door. The amusement taken out of it when I stopped fighting back and let myself endure the pain.

I flinched at the buzzing of the door and only when he left I let the tears fall as my face crumbled in pain. I sobbed brokenly as I laid on the hard and dirty floor. My shirt ripped and stained from where Max wanted me to keep my shirt on. The fabrics was starting to stick to the dried in blood, causing it to sting for longer.

I sobbed into the night, the moonlight shining down on me as light rain dribbled from the drain where it had continued to rain the whole day. Lightly falling on my cheek and mixing with the blood from the small cuts on my face that the whip had made by mistake when Max was only getting started, not knowing his full strength with the whip.

My tears blended in with the rain droplets and after a while I continued to cry silently. Thinking over everything, thinking about how cruel and heartless Louis was being. He couldn't feel pain but that didn't deprive him of his humanity, his instincts that what he's doing is completely wrong.

I couldn't help but think about Louis' way of dealing with things, how not feeling pain has really affected him growing up with his understanding and actions towards other human beings.

A man with a power like his was built for destruction.

It was too bad that gift was put in the wrong hands.

My heart sank. I knew throughout everything he has done, how he has striped me of my rebellious manner and made me into a broken shell of a man I once was. I let out a shaky sigh.

I can't help but want to help him. I can see that he's struggling and I know deep down he's a good person, no matter what he did.

"I'm so sorry Leah." I whisper brokenly into the night, the rain drowning out my voice as the feeling of her death creeps back in, knowing this time it was all my fault. I caused her death. I brought her here. This was on me.

I curled up into a ball and cried that night. My eyes raw with bloodshot and I shed tears that were still to come for the rest of the next day.

The buzzing didn't faze me when it alerted someone was coming into my cell. I didn't move from where I was on the floor. Cold and weak with pure exhaustion.

There was suddenly a large blanket being wrapped around me, Lucy's petite hands coming round as she offered me comfort. I winced and flinched away from her grip. The blanket falling on my back and tears brim my eyes painfully once again. This time stinging my vision.

"No please..." I whisper trying to move from her grip. "Don't." I sob out. All I could feel was pain.

Lucy looked down at me with concern and her eyes seemed glassy as she did but she reluctantly took her hands away, keeping the blanket on me. She quickly reaches for the tablets she brought in with her, outstretching them to me with a glass of water frowning.