Fatal Justice

† Chapter Fifteen †

We disappear into colorless existence of meaningless time. 

Eight Months Later

He didn't exist. 

There was no meaning to time. In fact, he had lost track of time, and he had no clue what was happening around him. He had shut down, mentally and emotionally, and now he was only a shell of a man. Sitting and waiting for the grim reaper to steal away his dead soul. 

A voice was begging for mercy, echoing off the empty walls. 

It wasn't his. It was a poor boy, caught stealing food, and the boy had been in a cell down the hall for a few nights now. He didn't even blink nor turn his head. He had been sitting in the same spot on the dirt floor for days now. Heck, it could have been weeks. He didn't give a damn. He only inhaled and exhaled. Sometimes he would watch the smoky clouds that formed before his dull eyes but then he would disappear into his empty thoughts. It was always dark, a flicker of light here and there, but he could have cared less. 

After he had run from Conquistador, he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. Blinded by his pain, on the second day, he ran onto the territory of a pack called Norman. It couldn't have been worse timing because the Alpha's mate had just been murdered by rogues. So, of course, when he showed up covered in dried blood, he received all the blame. That was probably when he completely shutdown, choosing to ignore anything around him, and now he didn't feel pain. 

He didn't feel anything. 

There was being numb and then there was this. His skeleton was the only thing keeping him from caving in on himself, collapsing from the existence of time. But even now, after eight months of being captive at Norman Pack, and starved for a crime he didn't exactly commit, his skin was tight on his bones, exposing every crevice and ridge, and he didn't move because he was too weak to do so. It wasn't that bad, he had grown to accept. 

There were worse ways to die. 

He was just biding his time, waiting for his time to come, and he would welcome it with open arms. He had given up on life. He didn't want to live anymore. There was no point and he didn't have anything left to even try to live for. In fact, since the pain had reminded him that he was alive, and he no longer felt pain, he figured he had died a long time ago. He was just waiting for his body to accept their fate, just as his wolf had gone quiet ever since the day their mate was murdered. 

A cell door slammed with force, rattling the old, concrete walls that towered around him. Usually, he would be terrified to be here. He hated the walls closing in on him but now he didn't care. He had seen hell and this was nothing. 

He couldn't even muster up enough courage to drink from the pool of water that had collected at his feet. It must have been raining outside because the water usually dribbled down the wall when it did. Maybe that's why his bones felt extra creaky and fragile today, as if they would combust into dust at any given moment. 

He scarcely breathed. His heartbeat was lethargic and the back of his skull was rested against the hard wall behind him. He couldn't even feel if it was cold, he didn't feel anything at all. The first couple of nights were the worst, as the pack members paid their respects to him, cursing him for being a rogue, and he just accepted it. They couldn't do anything worse than what had already been done. Nothing could hurt more than that. 

Now, he was forgotten. 

He faded from existence like a speck of dust that floated through the universe. Nobody came looking for him. Everybody just passed by his cell, not even sparing a second glance, and he wished they would just do him a favor and beat him to death. He could take the abuse but what he really wanted was death. Darkness to consume him forever and then he would be okay. Or so he hoped. He wasn't really sure if death would comfort him but he was willing to try it. 

A shadow moved by the wall. 

He knew who it was and he didn't bother to move his head to get a better view. A prison guard always roamed down here. Sometimes the Norman Alpha would pay him a visit and he'd lose consciousness but he'd wake back up to screaming. Usually, it was women and at first, it was strange but he quickly learned from conversations of those passing by that their Alpha had gone insane after the death of his mate. 

Supposedly, the Alpha's mate had been pregnant when she was killed and it triggered the Alpha to act on senseless instinct. He heard the horrific whispers of the Norman Alpha killing pups without remorse, because if he couldn't have his pup then he made the decision that no one else could have pups; and it was twisted as fuck. But, in a way, he understood the instinct. As he had lost his mate and he killed anything in his path. Still, he was a monster because he didn't care. He couldn't. He had lost his humanity that day and he would most likely never get it back. But it didn't matter. 

Nothing mattered. 

Metal scraping across dirt floor made his ears ring. With any energy he had left, he rose his head and narrowed his eyes at the guard who stood on the other side of the bars. He knew this guard well, as it was often his only company in the silence of the shadows, but they never spoke. He kept his lips sealed and so did the guard. But, he had plenty enough time to memorize every detail. That was the only thing he really did when he wasn't staring into the existence of nothing, he had always had a tendency to pay close attention to detail and body language. 

The guard was in his midforties, short auburn hair that was graying on his temples, and silver eyes. He had never quite seen someone with such eye color and that was something he had memorized in his fading memory. As the days passed, his mind was slowly deteriorating, and perhaps he would finally forget everything once and for all.

He made eye contact with the guard. This man was down here often but something was strange about him. He couldn't quite place his finger on it but he got distracted from his empty thoughts when the guard was around. The guard had a secret, that he guessed, but he also didn't believe that this man was just a guard. He knew the movement of an Alpha, he had seen it many times before, and this man did not belong in a basement, guarding captured rogues. 

His eyes fell to the plate of food and water that had been slide far enough into his cell for him to reach. He exhaled and dropped his head back to rest against the wall. He ignored the guard once more. Perhaps the man was a mystery but he didn't have the energy to figure it out. Not now. All he wanted was to rest as exhaustion melted his bones into mush. 

He closed his eyes. 

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Oh, my heart aches for him.

My baby just can't catch a break. However, pay close attention to detail, as storylines are converging in these next few chapters. I will entertain any theories ;) 

Also, I changed the cover and I think it's much better suited for this dark story. I really like it and I hope you guys do, too!