Lady Midnight

Chapter 25

Emma found that she should get some kind of award when it comes to handling pain. After she felt her Parabatai connection snap, it felt like she was burning from the inside out. It felt as if part of her heart was pulled from her chest.

The fact that Gwyn tortured her in that way wasn't event the worst part. It was that when she started curling up in a ball from the pain, he stopped...and smiled. He smiled at her pain. That was the sickest way of amusement she had ever seen.

He stood there watching her for a minute, and then got bored. He snapped his fingers twice and his thugs came in and picked her up by her arms. Emma felt as if she was coming in and out of consciousness the whole time they dragged her. It felt like an eternity.

They finally threw her into her cold cell and locked it. They didn't even bother chaining her up. They must have known that she was in too much pain to even try to escape. Taylor and Livvy were still unconscious. That was unusual. They were always up by this time. Emma had been gone for quite a long time.

Emma tried to push herself to the side of her cell that was nearest to Livvy. Agony shot through her. She couldn't do it. "Livvy. Livvy," said Emma, her voice raw from screaming. Desperation started setting into her voice, "LIVVY!" She still didn't stir. Emma turned and yelled, "Taylor. TAYLOR!" Neither of them gave any sign of acknowledgment.

Emma refused to think of the worst. She wanted to believe that they were just very tired from their torture. She didn't bother to try to get up. She knew it would only make the pain worse.

Would she die there? Would Gwyn ever succeed in breaking her will? Would he succeed in making her into a wretched demonic creature? She shuddered at the thought.

If she became one, how many innocents would she kill? Who would they send to stop her? Emma hoped with all her heart that Julian wouldn't be the one. He might not be able to bring himself to kill her, and if that happened she would kill him.

She lay there pondering all of the possible outcomes she could think of. Not many of them ended with her surviving. She would sooner kill herself before being turned into some creature that could be of use to Gwyn. There was no way that she would let him win.

So deep into her thoughts, Emma almost didn't register one of Gwyn's henchmen coming in with the daily meals for them, or should she say meal. He held only one plate of food. He placed it in Emma's cell and left.

Gwyn must have ordered them to stop feeding Taylor and Livvy. He must have thought that they were too weak and he didn't want to waste taking care of them anymore. That means only one thing, they're already dying. And it won't be long until they are, unless they already are.

Emma looked at them. Both still. Both silent.

The only reason why she was getting a meal was because Gwyn still believed that she was strong enough for his little experimentation. All three of them were lab rats and only one out of the three was likely to survive, and that was her.

Emma prayed to every single angel she could think of. She hoped that if she believed enough that they were still alive and would wake up, that it would come true. They remained unconscious.

Still clinging onto her illusion of hope, Emma separated her food into 3 equal portions. She moved two thirds of the meal to one side of the plate and ate the remaining. If they wake up, they would guaranteed be starving. It was only the right thing to do.

They can't die. Taylor is her only known family member. Emma considered the Blackthorns as her family, but Taylor was her only blood family. Even though they hadn't known each other for a long time, she and Taylor already formed a familial bond.