Gyrus

Chapter Twenty-Four: Love Lost

Wong's roar sounded animalistic as he lunged at Alyssa. He was different, blinded by his rage and her audacity to threaten the Father Roberto in front of all of us. The fully loaded gun she had put to Roberto's head was flung out of her hand from the impact and spun away. Wong grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and squeezed. Roberto fell forward and tried to crawl away from them, beads of sweat puckering on his brow from the effort of keeping from betraying pain. He pulled himself across the floor with nothing but his forearms, heading for me and Zoe. Alyssa saw him from the corner of her eye but was forced to ignore him and focus instead on the larger threat in front of her. The surprise on her face was genuine, she knew Wong had the potential to be truly dangerous but she had never imagined him turning on her so viciously. If I was to be completely honest, I was just as surprised as she was. I wanted to drag Wong off her but I hesitated, half because of Zoe's fingers woven into mine and half because a part of me wanted Wong to hurt her. He bore down on her, causing her pain and she started a scream. He cut her mid-howl by shaking her vigorously. She returned with a badly aimed slap to his face and called past the row of guards.

"Mother!"

The woman who used to be her mother watched all of us with keen interest, thoroughly amused by Wong humiliating Alyssa and our refusal to interfere. She made no show of coming to Alyssa's rescue even though it was well within her power, preferring instead to let the situation deteriorate as she took it all, betraying no concern. Alyssa's eyes widened into saucers, panicking as Wong's grip tightened. Neem deliberately refused to look in her direction, instead turning towards the sudden movement on her right. Roberto was slowly crawling away from her, his jute cloak scratching against the rough concrete floor. Her lips broke into a bilious smile and she stepped into his path. He tried to go around her but she put a foot out to reiterate that she wasn't going to let him pass. He slumped in defeat and slowly raised his head to gaze at her, and was rewarded with a swift kick to his chin with her heeled boot. I started towards them but Zoe held my hand tightly and drew me back.

{You don't want to engage her. You can't win and I won't be able to help you.}

"Mother!" Alyssa screamed, this time more urgently.

Neem's attention shifted back from Roberto, who had fallen onto his back from the force of her kick, to her daughter. Wong's second hand had joined the first around Alyssa's neck and he constricted them into a choker. Neem sighed to herself, disappointment wrinkling her brows.

"La Guadana, you took my strong child away and raised her to be a weakling who can't even defend herself from a measly knight."

She turned away from Alyssa in disgust and returned to her father, worrying his abdomen with a few well placed kicks, not strong enough to damage his organs, but strong enough to cause him unbearable pain.

"I have plans for you." She mused. "I'll take my time and nurse you back to health. I'll keep you alive and healthy enough to survive the years of torture I will unleash on you. You will suffer for every day you kept Dominique away from me and left me alone to rot under that little fool Jeremiah."

"Neem!" Alyssa tried to scream, but it came out as a strangled rasp. "If I die, you die. Do something!"

Neem groaned, visibly angry at being made to abandon Roberto. She glanced in our direction, a grim smile on her face and the temperature in the frigid bunker seemed to drop a few more degrees. She closed her eyes and comically raised her hand to her head in a mock salute, straightening her spine. I felt heaviness in my eardrums like I'd accidentally stumbled into a pressure regulated chamber. Neem's eyelids rose like petals to reveal pupils turned white and Zoe gasped and gripped my hand tight enough to turn them white. Neem snapped her finger theatrically and said a phrase.