Thorns And Roses

Chapter Ten

Demi huddled under his blanket, nursing the wounds after his failed attempt at escape. He was covered in bruises and at some point, while he was still passed out, his scrapes and cuts were taken care of. His ribs hurt but that could have been from being kicked. Or him being thrown around a couple of times. Either way, he was in pain.

He knew trying to get out of his room was pointless because he heard the lock click when River brought him breakfast. Demi removed the blankets from his head and stared out the floor-to-ceiling windows. He watched the wind blow through the trees, rustling the leaves all about. He imagined that same breeze on his face as he ran through the woods.

How long would he be locked up for? Would Theodore ever forgive him? The better question was, could Demi ever forgive Theodore? The man had no right to string him along as he did. Giving him whatever he wanted to his heart's content, just to turn around and tell Quinn that it was all a lie to get Demi in his bed. And the bad thing, it was working.

Demi was falling for all his tricks and lies and was ready to give himself up. Ready to make his bed with Theodore and sleep in it too. But now he knew the truth. He refused to be pulled around like a puppy on a string any longer.

The sadness he felt at being subjected to Theodore's sadistic tendencies went away as rage replaced it with a vengeance. Demi sat up in his bed and shifted into his snow leopard where he sat. He prowled around the enclosed space, trying to figure out what to destroy first.

Demi shredded the curtains that hung by his windows. He tore up the carpet, ripping it from the nails that pinned it down. He chewed on and scratched up the wooden bed frame. He pulled off all of the sheets and blankets on the mattress, then dug a big hole in the middle of it. He did all of this before lunch.

He shifted, right as River was coming in to give him his lunch. Demi sat on the pile of blankets that lay on the floor, naked as the day he was born. He grinned as he watched River drop the tray of food and cover his mouth in horror. Without a word, the bear turned and shut the door behind him. Demi could hear him screaming for Theodore, which made him laugh. What else could the man do to him that he already hasn't?

It took less than five minutes for Theodore to step through his bedroom door, and Demi growled at him as he did. He hated him with a passion as those gold eyes went around the room before they landed on Demi. All Theodore did was sigh, then shut and lock the door behind him as he left the room. It wasn't the reaction Demi was hoping for.

So his punishment was to be ignored and isolated? Not the worst he's ever had, but it's not the best either. The feeling of being alone was one that Demi was alien towards. At his father's place, he was surrounded by either his family or a multitude of tutors. Not like he wanted to be, but he did spend time with Elizabeth every chance he got.

Demi sighed as he stared down at the blankets tangled around his legs. He laid down in them and curled into a ball in his little nest. He closed his eyes, the thought of sleep not far from his mind.

~~~~

When he blinked open his eyes, a yellow glow from the moon shined through his windows, and stars dotted the sky. He didn't know what time it was or how long he slept. There wasn't a clock in his room. He sat up, rubbed at his eyes, and looked over at the door. A tray of food lay there. He didn't feel hungry, so he didn't eat it.

Demi stretched, lifting his arms over his head as he did. It felt good, but not as good as running. It just wasn't the same. He sighed after his big stretch and brought his knees towards his chest. He didn't feel like going through the chaos in his head, so he laid back down and tried to go back to sleep. It didn't work.

As he lay there, staring up at his ceiling, he tried not to let the stillness of the room get to him. He didn't do very well when he was left alone for long periods of time. He just stayed where he was until the sun started to rise in the distance. Demi knew that River would be in soon to bring him breakfast but he still wasn't hungry. His appetite was long gone.

It wasn't long before River was unlocking his door and switching out his dinner tray with his breakfast tray. The smell of food went through his room but Demi didn't pay attention to it. He didn't care if he ate or not. He finally moved when he heard voices coming through his door from out in the hallway. Demi left his nest and crawled his way to it. He pressed his ear against the hardwood.

"He's not eating Theodore. What should we do?" River questioned. Demi looked down at the tray of food and glared at it.

"There's nothing we can do, River. It's his own damn fault for not eating. What do you want me to do, go in there and force it down his throat?" He flinched back at the threat.

"That's not what I'm saying. It's already been four days, don't you think that's long enough?" It's only been four days? Why did it feel longer than that?

"Not for what he did it isn't. He'll stay in there until I say so. All you have to do is keep bringing him food." Demi heard River let out a defeated sigh.

"Okay." That's all River said, then Demi heard them go their separate ways. He moved away from the door, as he heard Theodore approach it. He fully expected Theodore to march his way into that room and shove food down his mouth. Demi let out a sigh of relief when the man didn't do it. He went back to his nest of blankets and laid back down.

He really needed to get up and take a shower but Demi knew the water would hurt all of his injuries. He did it anyways, not noticing how hot it had become or the cold sweat that covered him. Clear signs of him going into heat.

Demi made it to the attached bathroom and paused to stare at himself in the mirror. That's when he felt it, the signal his body was sending him. He instantly became hard as a wave of pure desire went through him. He needed to take care of this, like now.

With no regard to the scent of freshly fallen snow and crisp freezing air being filtered through the room, Demi got into the shower and turned it all the way to cold. He was too hot to even think about turning the other knob. He sat down on the bottom of the shower floor and took himself in his hand. He gasped and almost came on the upward stroke. Demi could feel how wet he was becoming from the slick forming between his legs.

Demi has dealt with every one of his heats alone since he was eighteen. Well, he was given suppressants to curb the worst of the symptoms but he didn't have that option as of right now. As he got more into the rhythm, he soon realized there was a problem. Without the suppressants, coming from just his hand wasn't going to be enough to satisfy him.

He let himself go, turned the water off, and crawled out of the shower. Demi didn't even bother grabbing a towel, as he stood on wobbly legs. He stumbled out of the bathroom, soaking the floor as he went, and fell to his knees at the bedroom door.

Demi could feel the fire burning inside of him and it was soon starting to become painful. He hit the door once, twice then a third time. Praying that someone would hear his desperate plea for help. He started to cry when he caught Theodore's scent. A scent of rough leather and vanilla. He looked down at the bottom of the door, to see a shadow of a figure standing in front of it.

"Theodore, please. I can smell you through the door. Please help me." He begged. He would gladly take any type of punishment if it meant that Theodore would take care of him.

Tears trickled down his pale cheeks as he watched the shadow move from foot to foot. As if debating if he should help or not. He prayed that Theodore chose to help. Demi's heats usually lasted for two or three days and he didn't think he would last that long without either suppressants or Theodore.

"I'm sorry Demitri. You lied to me and you are still being punished. But I will go get you some suppressants." Well look at that, the fucking bastard did have a heart.

"Thank you, Theodore." How long would it take for the man to give him the suppressants? The heat and pain were starting to become unbearable. He whimpered and saw that the shadow of Theodore's figure had disappeared. Now all he could do was wait.