Search for the Soul Gem

Chapter Sixty

     Every single part of my body was in pain. It felt as if he'd managed to damage every single nerve in me. I lay flat on my back, trying not to move at all; even keeping my breathing to a minimum to keep my ribs from moving. The room was completely black as I started up at the ceiling. I was counting in my head slowly, tears falling down the sides of my face. So far I was already up to almost 5,000 seconds. This felt jarringly similar to where I was just a few months ago. I tried to calm myself down but I couldn't. I was afraid to fall asleep, or wake up. So I stared up, even if I couldn't see anything. I was better than the alternative. 

     "I leave you alone for an hour and a half and already you've reverted back to your delusions," his voice broke the silence. No doors had opened and I hadn't heard him come in. I didn't know where he'd come from. I didn't say anything, afraid I'd already lost my mind. "It didn't take you long," he said, his footsteps coming closer to where I lay. "Tell me, Lucinda, when did Kalahan last come by?" he asked, getting closer to my face. I could feel his breath on my cheek. My blood ran cold, and I jerked away from him; sending jolts of pain through my body. 

     "How-how did you-you know about th-th-" I asked, voice hoarse and creaked. There was a laugh that echoed off the walls and in my ears. 

     "Lucy, I'm hurt. Don't you recognize me?" he said. There was a pause, "Who else do you think could talk directly into your head?" he asked. My mind was reeling. How could this be true? Could he possibly have been at the Raft at the same time as me? But I don't ever remember seeing him around. 

     There was another laugh that sent a severe shiver down my spine. Suddenly a door slammed open to my left, violently orienting me in the room I was laying in. In the light of the doorway, all I could see was his silhouette but I knew it was him. He took a step toward me and the silhouette changed slightly. The closer he got to me, the more I realized who it was. when he came to a stop, the light from the door lit up his face. Instead of Loki standing in front of me, it was Kalahan. The jarring shift sent a harsh spike of fear that raced through me. I jerked away from where he stood, sending pain through me as I tried to get away. He laughed, the sound chilling my bones. 

     "H-how a-a-" I stuttered, fear choking my words off. Every healed wound ached as if they were still fresh as I looked up at him. He didn't say anything; just curled his mouth into a smile, a sick laugh escaping.

     "You really are a stupid girl, aren't you," he said, his voice harsh. He reached down and gripped my ankle. When he leaned down closer to me, a flicker of long, black hair hung down around his face; changing the blocky jaw to a narrower, more angled face. Loki. He pulled my ankle up sharply and stood. Suddenly he was Kalahan again. He jerked me around harshly, sending pain up my leg and out my spine. I gasped, pain flashing behind my eyes. He drug me toward the door, uncaring how hard his grip on my ankle was. As we passed the doorway, I reached my hands out and tried to grab hold of it. I got my fingers around the frame and pulled myself back toward it. Kalahan jerked back slightly as I held onto the frame so hard that my fingers shook. He groaned in annoyance and gave my ankle a swift yank. There was a slight grinding and pop and exploded in pain from his hand. I gasped at the sudden rush of pain and my grip loosened enough for him to pull me away. This hallway was not lit very well, only circles of light fell directly under the hung lamps; leaving large sections of the hallway dark. Every time we passed under a circle of light, the person holding my ankle changed. It changed from Kalahan to Loki to Tony. My chest tightened as the anxiety level inside me raised. I didn't know where we were going but something inside me knew that what waited for me at the end was not going to be a great thing. We continued down this hallway, around corners and taking no care to make sure I got around and slamming me into corners. The further we went down this hallway, noises suddenly started breaking all around us. It sounded like animals grunting and growling that were just out of sight around the corners and behind doors. The further we traveled down the hallway, the colder the hallway seemed to get and set my teeth on edge. Finally, he hesitated in front of a door at the end of the hallway and pushed the door open. He launched me into the room, sending me tumbling into the center of the room. I groaned as I turned to try and push myself up from the ground. My arms shook and didn't want to hold up my body weight. It was almost like I'd been holding up something incredibly heavy for hours. But I hadn't, so it didn't make any sense. The sounds of crisp heels on the ground approached me as I was still trying to push myself up. Suddenly my head was yanked back by my hair, exposing my entire neck to Kalahan's hand. His cold fingers wrapped around my throat and hoisted me up from the ground. My toes just barely touched the ground and I let out a choked gasp. Kalahan's face was inches from mine, shooting absolute concentrated terror through my entire body. His mouth curled back over his teeth and he let out an almost animalistic growl creep out of his throat. 

     "My brother has managed to bring you to a place to get your injuries healed radically fast. I don't think that's fair," he said. Out of nowhere, a sharp pain radiated from my stomach, a dull ache in my chest where my healed rips were. My wrists and ankles were suddenly rubbed raw and a thick ring circled my neck. He dropped from down to the ground with no concern. Everything in me shot on fire with pain. I gasped in shock as all the air was knocked out of my body. Stars shot up in my vision and I tried to focus but I couldn't. I glared back at where Kalahan was standing but instead of Kalahan, Tony stood staring down at me. He stood over me and glared down at me, the same amount of disdain that I'd seen in his eyes before. I shuffled back away from him, trying to put distance between myself away from him. I backed into a solid metal object behind me, sending the cold jolt through my already stinging body. I looked back at it and found a metal chair that was bolted to the floor with shackles on its arms and legs. While I was distracted, Tony grabbed me by the waist and shoved me into the chair. I tried to struggle against him but he put his knee into my densely bruised stomach and pushed my hands and ankles into the shackles. I tried to pull my hands free but it was useless. I looked up and Tony was holding a long, silver staff in one hand and a box in the other. He set them down on the table that was next to the chair and picked up a thin knife. He turned to look at me, a chilling smile on his face. He held the knife up in front of my face. 

     "Let the fun begin," he said.