Mermaid Tear (The Fated #2)

18 | Bending

The room Iliana found herself in was similar, but different to when she visited Lykos.

Built out of dark stone, it laid bare of any recognizable bits of furniture or features, but held plenty of questionable pieces she couldn't have named. Light streamed in from the open balcony, illuminating a hook hung from the ceiling, alongside chains and collars that had her breath coming in short, nearing-panicked breaths.

Aria tugged her to a stop in the center.

"It's meant to scare, Milady," the demon warned her in a quick, hushed tone. "Remember what, who you are. They can't harm you, not truly. Not in any physical manner. His Imperial Majesty wouldn't enjoy showing you off near as much as he does if you had any...flaws. He wants complete control, he wants you to come to him of your own accord, but won't sacrifice your perceived value to get that. Bend to what he wants, or stubbornly stay as you are, just don't break."

The warning was clear enough--whatever the master of the tower did, it would be nothing more than she could endure. At least, nothing physically.

Her mind was another story.

With those "encouraging" words, Aria beckoned Iliana over so she could cuff her wrists together before affixing them to one of the dangling chains, then left.

Time passed immeasurably slow.

With her hands overhead, Iliana couldn't reach for the ankle, nor the fox charm. It left her with no distraction for her rapidly climbing nerves. All she could truly do was focus on the weight of the ring against her neck as seconds crept into minutes, then perhaps hours only notable by the slow descent of the sun into darkness. Eventually, the tower door crept open to reveal a gray haired demon with an unrecognizable human woman at his side. He said nothing, merely eyeing Iliana with interest as he approached, before nudging her knees with a foot and laughing as the small touch caused her aching limbs to give out beneath her.

She bit her tongue hard enough to taste blood, but didn't say a word. Swearing would only get her so far at this point.

The man laughed musingly, again, before gesturing for the woman to fetch something from the wall. His attention didn't shift from Iliana.

"Sorry about that, it took me some time to find a good volunteer. It's been awhile since I was handed one of the menagerie and it seems the tower's inhabitants had forgotten the benefits of playing nice. Jez, here, though, seems to see the value of a pardon. Regardless, His Majesty said he wanted to ensure you knew how your position functions. So...shall we?"

There are many ways to break a mind, Iliana learned.

You didn't have to touch a person to make them feel pain. At least, not anyone sane. Another's screams worked just as well when you couldn't turn your head away from flayed flesh and pouring blood.

"Have you heard of a whipping boy before? It's a common method amongst upper nobility to handle misbehaving kids and trophies with empathy."

Closing her eyes changed little. As did the eventual disappearance of the falling sun. Each sound created a sickening visual that stuck in her mind like a thorn, until she felt pierced and bleeding without ever having been touched. She forgot about the ache in her wrists that faded to numbness, and the weakness of her knees as seconds trickled into hours, with minor breaks filled with sickening silence.

The woman didn't say anything. She didn't beg. She didn't curse. She merely knelt in the center of the room as the tower's master dismantled her.

And when he was eventually done, he smiled. Guards were beckoned to release her chains. The master bent down to collect discarded straps of soft-looking leather as Iliana sank to her knees.