Lila's eyelids fluttered open, her gaze blurry and unfocused. The steady beep-beep of hospital machines enveloped her, a cacophony of sound that pierced her eardrums.
As her vision cleared, she took in the sterile hospital room. The white walls seemed to close in around her, and the fluorescent lights above cast an unforgiving glare.
Her mind foggy, Lila struggled to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over her, forcing her back onto the pillow. Her eyes scanned the room, searching for a familiar face, but she was alone.
Just then, a warm smile entered the room, accompanied by the soft rustle of scrubs. A nurse approached, her eyes kind and concerned.
"Welcome back, dear. How are you feeling?"
Lila's voice was a croak, her throat parched. "Water..." she whispered.
The nurse nodded as she poured some water in the glass, holding it to Lila's lips. As she sipped, the cool liquid soothed her parched throat.
A knock on the door heralded the doctor's arrival. His face was warm. He smiled kindly at her.
"Mrs. Cormac, you've been through quite an ordeal," he began. "Dehydration and a lip infection from...the incident."
Lila's mind flashed back to the last days events.
The doctor continued, his words a gentle stream. "You'll need rest and antibiotics."
As he turned to leave, his parting words dropped like a bombshell,
"Oh, and congratulations, Mrs. Cormac. You're pregnant."
Lila's frown deepened, her brain reeling. Pregnant? How?
Oh
Oh-
Her stomach churned, thoughts swirling around Ryker's deceit and the child's unwitting role in it. Fear crept in, tendrils of anxiety snaking around her heart.
Where was Ryker? Why wasn't he here?
Her gaze swept the room once more, searching for a familiar face, but she was alone.
The machines beeped on, a steady heartbeat in the silence.
Lila's thoughts spiralled downward, lost in a vortex of uncertainty and dread.
Meanwhile,
Ryker's castle basement echoed with the sound of dripping water, a morbid cadence that underscored the darkness unfolding within. The air reeked of sweat, fear, and blood.
Roger, suspended from the ceiling by rusty chains, writhed in agony. His screams were a symphony of suffering, punctuated by the sickening crunch of breaking bones.
Ryker stood tall, his eyes blazing with a fierce intensity, his jaw clenched in a merciless line. Kieran and Asher flanked him, their faces impassive, their movements choreographed.
"Talk," Ryker growled, his voice low and deadly.
Roger's pleas were a pitiful whimper, a desperate attempt to appease the monster before him. Ryker's gaze never wavered.
With a calculated cruelty, Kieran applied pressure to Roger's shattered elbow, the joint separating with a gruesome pop. Asher mirrored the movement, twisting Roger's ankle until it snapped.
Roger's shrieks escalated, a cacophony of torment.
Ryker's eyes narrowed. "Names. Dates. Details."
Each question was met with a fresh wave of agony. Fingers broken, skin flayed, and tendons severed.
YOU ARE READING
shadows of deceit by author berryy
Mystery / Thrillershe thinks she is alone but she doesn't know that the lionessá alone is enough...
