Frozen Blooded

Part 6

I woke up on a cold, damp floor, with no light source other than a dim candle in the other corner of the room.

Still disoriented, I slowly pushed my aching body from off the ground hoping to sit myself up straight. I felt a moist residue all over my arms and realized I had been lying in a pile of dirt, for my hair also had soil fragments.
I wiped my palms on the side of my gown, which was now probably torn and unrecognizable, but I couldn't see it well. After finally managing to prop myself up against a stone wall, I started to regain consciousness of what had happened; I was tranquilized just as the ambushers were. I squinted hard, only to realize that I was behind metal bars
"Great" I muttered to myself. This was the thanks I get for helping Almas. I wasn't even from here and I still put my life on the line for them. Granted, I did it for selfish reasons, but the intention shouldn't matter when I fought dozens of attackers.

I was too annoyed to be scared. Any one of the knights there could vouch for me, if I ever needed to prove my innocence. Almas is known for its sophisticated legal system, however no one ever mentioned the horrid condition of the cells

My mind traveled to my family. Were they looking for me? Did they go back to Rhode Island?

"He disowned us" Was what mother said to justify herself kicking out Achilles. If she didn't hesitate to throw him out for simply living a double life, I doubt she'd bat an eye leaving me behind in Almas. At this moment she's probably telling Drusus and Magnus how I made my decision to leave the family.
Magnus. I couldn't even think my brother's name without tightening a knot in my stomach.
I wonder if he ever made the connection between the nine gowns and the courting process. Although I couldn't stand to think about it, it served as a good reminder that I'm better off in an Almas prison rather than in the prison of my mind.

I hope they burn the rest of the dresses. I hope I burn my memory of them. The sickening torture; I would have never gone through with their plans for Magnus and I anyway. I would have ran away eventually, at least that's what I keep telling myself. It's better that it happened now than later.

I was sitting in a puddle of mud, fear, and fury, with only anticipation of what would happen next driving me forward. The events of the attack was replaying in my head over and over until I couldn't tell what was real or what I embellished in my mind.

My self therapy session was abruptly cut off when I heard the sound of metal clanking on the other side of the cell. I couldn't see past my nose, so I scrambled as far away as possible.
"Hello?" I called out sheepishly. No response.
"You better not be a rat... or something"

I reached out my hand trying to find a small rock until I located it and tossed it loosely but far. "OW!" A voice yelled back.

"Oh my god" I pressed myself further onto the back wall, as if I'd be able to go through it.

"You hit my fucking head, asshole" the voice complained. Okay, definitely not a rat. I could have sworn I was alone in the cell, but I slumped back down when I realized it was just another prisoner.

"I thought you were a rat" I said bluntly. I wasn't the best at talking to people outside my family, since I don't do it often, but why should I care about my verbal tone to some criminal.
That is, unless he was in here for the same reason I was.

"You've been asleep for 3 days all corpse-like, and you decide that I'm a rat" The voice complained. It was definitely a man's voice, but the only thing besides that fact that I could tell, was that he had an Irish accent.

"3 days" I scoffed. There's no way it could have been three days, I've never slept for more than 9 hours, I was conditioned to wake up early from birth. "You can't even tell time in here" I said pointing to the darkness, even though I know he couldn't see my hands.