Caged

Chapter 38.

Several days had passed before I was finally feeling a little better. My cheek and jaw had completely heeled and the bruising around my neck had mostly faded minus a few minor spots. It had been quite jarring when I saw it for the first time in the mirror. It had literally taken my breath away. All that was giving me any type of pain was my ribcage where the bones were still heeling. Typically, werewolves' bones took a week or two to heel, depending on how bad the injury was. The healer felt certain that I'd be fully heeled by the end of a week, which was encouraging. 

"Are you ready?" Rhett's low timber pulled me out of my thoughts as I took in my appearance. 

I turned to face him and nodded. "As ready as I can be for something like this." I answered in a breath. 

He gave me a small smile and reached for my hand, lacing his fingers in mine as we made our way out of the hospital room for the first time together. "Who has Huntleigh?" I asked quietly as I let my feet lead me along beside his.

"She's with Anniston. Ivy felt she needed to be here for you, and thought you'd be comfortable with her watching her instead. Is that ok?"

I nodded and let out a breath as Rhett lead me down a walkway winding through the Shadow Pack's town square. We slowly made our way to the edge of the town, walking toward a building that had two guards placed out front. They nodded to the two of us and made space for us to enter. Rhett walked ahead of me down the long dark hall before guiding me down the stairwell to a large, heavily bolted door. He nodded to the guard standing outside who instantly stepped over to open the door for us before shutting it loudly behind us with a metallic clank of the bolts as they were pushed back through their slots. I jumped in reaction and Rhett squeezed my hand reassuringly and pulled me to his side, sliding his arm tightly around my waist. 

He leaned down and kissed my head before whispering in my ear quietly for only me to hear. "He's in chains and he won't hurt you. I won't leave your side. If you want to go, just say so and we will go."

I shook my head and straightened, staring straight ahead at the row of cells, ignoring the smell of mold and damp air mixed with sweat and iron rich blood both old and new. My nose wrinkled in distaste as I took a step ahead of Rhett. "No. I need to see it. I need to know he will pay for everything he's done to me and Avery. Most of all for what he's done to my daughter."

Rhett grunted in agreement and squeezed my hand, letting me step forward and down the hall before coming to the large interrogation cell at the end of the hall. Inside stood Dominic and two of his Deltas, towering in front of Cage as he snarled at them. Cage stood chained against the stone wall with his arms raised above his head as he snapped his jaws, trying to shift. I paused inside of the door, eyeing him cautiously as Dominic turned to see us enter. 

"Don't worry. He can't shift in these. You're safe." Dominic's deep voice was gruff and even, stating facts plainly as he turned his attention back to Cage. 

I stepped closer, feeling Rhett's hand drop mine and reach around me waist to pull me closer to him as he stopped slightly in front of me. He squeezed my once and looked down at me with a nod as I returned the gesture, leaning against him securely.

"Now that we're all present, what do you have to say for yourself Cage? Choose your words carefully, for they will determine your punishment." Dominic's voice was low and menacing as he spoke, stepping closer to stand closer to Cage, glaring down at him as his lip curled back over his teeth. 

Cage pulled his face up to look at Dominic with a matching glare before turning his cold gaze on me. My heart hammered inside of my chest and I fought to pull it back, knowing he could hear it. He smirked viciously at me as he spoke, his words dripping with hatred. "That whore wanted every bit of what I gave her. She begged for it. She loved it. I never gave her anything she didn't ask for."

I was prepared for these statements and gave him an equally hard glare, gritting out three simple words. "That's not true." My voice was quiet but firm, pushing every word out with harshness.

He scoffed and let out a dark chuckle as his electric blue eyes cut into me. "So when you'd purr like a bitch in heat and take me to your bed, you didn't want everything you got from me? You knew exactly what you were asking for and you know it. You liked it. Don't lie just because you're in front of this fucking pup Alpha. If he doesn't know what you are yet, he will."

I felt Rhett take a step forward, his entire body tense and rigid, but he stopped as feral low growl erupted from my lips. He looked down at me in surprise before I pulled away from him, taking slow steps toward Cage and stopping just in front of him. Dominic stepped to the side, watching the interaction cautiously. 

"I never asked for you to beat me, or rape me, or kidnap me, or steal my child and tell me she'd died. I almost died. Because of you. You're a fucking coward and you take our your rage against people who are smaller than you, ones who can't defend themselves against you. You're nothing. You hurt people because that's all you're capable of." My words were snarling as they dripped my lips, my fangs slowly descending with every word. 

Cage laughed and stepped forward at an attempt to close the distance, but his chains pulled him to a stop inches from me. I knew he was trying to intimidate me, but I straightened and stood my ground as I glared up at him. "I never raped you you bitch. You begged me for every bit of it. You can't hide what you are for long. You can't pretend to be an angel when you're actually a little slut. He'll see soon enough. I know every single noise you make when you're at your highest while you beg for me to pound you harder. Don't pretend you didn't like it."

A loud growl erupted from behind me as Rhett stalked forward, but Dominic's hand rose to stop him. Fury was filling me as it began to bubble out of me. "You can lie all you want Cage, but no one believes you anymore. You can try and hide what little of a man you actually are but it won't work darling. You could only get a woman to climax by forcing your mark on her and raping her. And now everyone knows. You're going to die for what you did to me you bastard. And Huntleigh will never call you father."

His face distorted in an attempt to shift as he snarled, pulling harshly against his chains as his jaws snapped loudly in front of my face, spit hitting my face as he lashed against his restraints. I stood firm and glared at him before rearing back and punching him hard in the face. He growled loudly and wrenched his body against the chains before I stepped away, my face tightening into a hard scowl as I tried to control the anger seething out of me. 

Dominic stepped forward and Cage hesitated for a moment, tilting his head as he looked from me to Dominic, his nostrils flaring. Dominic let out a dark chuckle as he leaned closer, his voice dropping to a deathly whisper. "That's right. You're putting things together now aren't you you sick fuck? Your guess is right. She is my daughter. You've signed your death warrant and your actions here show no reason to show you mercy."

My heart stalled at Dominic's words. So he did place some kind of importance on who I was. He didn't hate me or seem angry that I was his after all. Relief suddenly washed over me, but it only lasted for a moment as Cage snarled, pulling my full attention back to him. 

Dominic turned to look at me and Rhett as he stepped toward us. "How would you like to do this?"

I gasped quietly as my eyes widened, looking up at Dominic as he towered over me. "Me?"

He nodded tightly as his lip pulled back over in teeth in a quiet snarl. "Normally, I'd kill him myself, but after hearing some of your history with him, I thought you'd want to be included in his final judgement, as well as you Everrett."

Rhett growled in satisfaction as he pulled me closer. I had thought of only how to get away from him for so many years. The thought of how I would end his life never crossed my mind. It had always been clouded by the simple fear of staying away and staying alive.

"Well?" Dominic asked tightly as Cage pulled against his chains once again. 

"Yes, I want to be included." I finally said quietly, smirking over at him as he stood frozen behind Dominic. "I want to be the last thing he sees before he dies."