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Chapter 5- Invite

Celestine

I felt needles prick my back. It wasn't just needles. It was fire now. I cried until my voice grew hoarse. Gods, if I'd known what they could do, I wouldn't have been too sure about the fact that they couldn't break me.

No! Don't you even think that way! I thought to myself. It was way easier to be broken than to be strong but I don't take the easy way in life.

"Who the hell is he?" Aiden's voice broke through my thoughts.

"I-I do-n't know!" I managed. "T-they didn't tell me," I lied.

Aiden tightened the straps of the machine. I swear if I ever got out of this place alive, I'd burn the damn thing to the ground. I hated this chair. It was wooden but there were spikes and needles on every inch of it. The tighter Aiden pulled the straps, the deeper they would bury into my skin. And they were everywhere. They dug into my back, pierced into my hands, scraped my torso, embedded in my legs and tortured my hands. My blue nightgown was now drenched in my blood. It was so wet that the hem was dripping. But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was Aiden.

After I'd confronted him about being the girl at Erini all those years back, he hadn't come the next day. Or the day after. It was a week until he showed up and when he did, he was drunk. Even now as he tortured me, he was drunk beyond measure. I was scared of what he might do since he wasn't in his consciousness. I knew he had a weak spot somewhere in that thick skull of his for me but if he was drunk, he might kill me accidentally. Hence, I made it a point to tell him if it hurt too much. He would call the healers after that and heal me, only to destroy me again.

It had been a week of mindless torture now. I hadn't given them anything to work with but that just meant that they would use worse methods to try to break me. Sometimes, it was a slow and painful poison. The healers held the antidote in their palms till my last breath. Sometimes, Aiden would hold my head underwater for a long that it often exceeded my lung capacity because I fell unconscious most of the time during that method. Side note: don't let a drunk person hold you underwater; he might not remember you're there.

Sometimes he would simply cut through my flesh with a series of blades. I decided that none of them hurt more than the torture machines.  The chair I sat in now was one of the worst. There was another machine that Aiden proudly called 'The Roller'. The victim's hands were tied to one end and their feet to another and the two ends of the machine move in opposite directions. I hadn't been on that one yet but I didn't wish to. It may cause more internal bleeding than I could fathom.

Aiden pulled my straps even more and I let out a struggled gasp.

"Aiden it h-hurts," I whispered and passed out.

I woke up to find myself back in my cell. My body was so stiff that I could barely move. My dress had been reduced to rags of filth and blood. A hysteric laugh bubbled in my throat, threatening to come out when I noticed someone standing at my door. I blinked. It was the girl who helped the Prince kidnap me. She was staring at me with what  I recognized to be sympathy. I almost scoffed with pride. I didn't need anyone's sympathy. I was suddenly aware of how I looked. I pulled my knees closer to my chest, uncomfortable. She noticed and sighed.

She unlocked the door and walked in and offered a hand. It hurt too much to move even though the healers had done an exceptional job I wasn't going to let her see me as someone weak. I grasped her hand and brought myself to my feet. She offered me a cloak and I took it cautiously. I slowly slid myself into it and wrapped the sides of it around my body, trying to hide my shame with it.

"The King wishes to see you," she said and grasped my arm. She led me through the same series of hallways Aiden had led me through on my first visit to the King. This girl seemed well-rehearsed with the palace so I figured that she must be of royal or noble blood. We reached the throne room.

"Ah, Kendal. Thank you," the King nodded at the girl beside me. Kendal, as the King had called her, headed towards the sidelines.

"My dear Celestine, what a pleasure!" the King greeted me. I swallowed my bitter retorts and plastered a fake smile. I couldn't let them know how much their methods had affected me.

"Likewise, your highness," I mumbled, averting my gaze.

"Good. I see the dungeons have taught you a manner or two," the King laughed. I almost scowled. The King looked at Aiden, who was seated on his throne. "Aiden, has there been any progress?"

The Prince pursed his lips as he glared at me.

"Unfortunately, no," his words slurred a little which immediately caught my attention. He'd been drinking again. His father glared at him and then cleared his throat. He looked at me and his gaze turned calculating. He was thinking. The entire court was silent, waiting for the verdict. I started counting seconds to myself. It was ten minutes later when he spoke again.

"My dear, do you know what's coming next week?" he asked me. A slow cruel smile spread across his face. My heart jumped slightly but I composed myself.

"No, sir. What is it?" I asked as politely as I could manage.

"It's the thirteen-hundredth Erini," he said. My heart stopped. I'd forgotten about that. But what did the King want with me and the Erini? I decided to remain unaffected.

"S-so?" Well, that failed. The King smirked.

"Your family is going to be there, Celestine," the King continued. "See, since you haven't been cooperating, I will put forward an ultimatum. If you tell us who Hudson is, we will hand you over to your family at Erini. If you do not, we'll chop your head off and serve it to your father at the ball. Understood?"

"I will gladly sever my head for my country," I said in a voice of steel. That and they wouldn't kill me. They couldn't. I was the only chance they had at figuring out who Hudson was. The King looked taken aback by my answer. He thought for a moment and his smile returned.

"You know what? I'll send you my finest tailors. They will stitch you a dress fit for the Erini. You will join my family and me at the festivities. You will meet your family. However, you will be guarded with heavy security. Hence, one small move from your side and it'll be the end for your cousin. What's his name? Karthur?" the King smiled evilly. I clenched my fists tighter.

"Take her away. Torture her this week and keep the scars. Let her country see them," I heard the King's voice as the guards led me away. So that was his plan. Make me or my family crack under pressure. I knew I wouldn't but I couldn't say the same about my family.

Even though confusion and desperation surrounded my thoughts that night as I closed my eyes, my last thought was that I was going to see my family again. For the first time in two weeks, a genuine smile touched my lips.

Author's note:

Hey all! Yep, the fifth chapter is out...finally! Honestly, I'm juggling between writing, studying and too many other things rn. It's hard but yeah, I'm trying to write punctually.

As always, VOTE, SHARE and COMMENT!

Thank you