Fire Wall (Book 1: The Fall)

6 | The Hacker Hitman

"With a mouth that big," He mutters, "Your brain must be pretty small."

Hearing him chuckle, something inside me burns. Twisting around, I punch him hard in the face. His head snaps back slightly but he takes hold of my arm. Proving himself to have ridiculous strength, he throws me over his head like I'm a twig and rips the gun from my hands. He's got to have artificial limbs-there's no way he's doing that without mechanical arms.

I slam into the wall of the skyscraper and Adam throws a fist into my gut. Electric currents flow from his arms and into my body, burning my insides. He does have upgrades 

I've been trained to endure torture, this is nothing compared to what I've been through in Phantom. I've been strapped into a chair and beaten for hours upon end by my co-leaders and subordinates, all under Colton's direction, and I've done the same to them, though not to the extent Colton is capable of. Though my teammates mirror his tactics, I find myself unable to meet his cruelty on them. 

It's different having a superior beat you, one who you are aiming to please by only following their orders. I feel more deserving of the pain as a leader, especially since my teammates get tortured after a mission failed under my direction. A mission failure means they either get punished by Colton or I get punished by them and Colton, and I'm always willing to take the fall. It's what Phantom calls a Swap Sacrifice, the leader's burden and honor. The leader takes the heavier blow for the team because Phantom holds them to a higher standard.

Colton tortures in unspeakable ways, verbally and physically, always after a mission failed or even well done. I've been dragged out of bed by him multiple times and slammed into a chair in a basement, hearing nothing but his twisted laughter as he told me it was 'play time'. 

His torture sessions were emotionally shocking and brutal. A long, long nightmare. I can't put my team through that if I can help it, and I never will.

When I first got initiated, I hated Phantom's leadership tactics but stuck with them, holding onto the hope of avenging my parents' abduction and deaths in Project Beta. But despite the coldness in it all, the tactics turned out to harden my drive to stop Haven, along with other captains who Phantom who performed the Swap Sacrifice. 

My team was strongly tied to me and we all shared a common purpose. I realized how much stronger I was because of itthe cruel tactics. I was physically unstoppable and emotionally calloused. I eventually stopped hating Colton and even admired his determination to see Haven fall, though I shudder at the sight of the smile in the dark.

"Smile and bleed," Was his motto, "Don't fear Haven, fear what will happen if you fail."

He was right. Failure was to be feared more than pain and cruelty, along with the thought of never being loved. It was meant for the good of us and the people of Haven. We're prepared to die before giving away our plans, even if it means never being loved by the people we're trying to save.

The electrical currents hurt but it's small in comparison to the scars I bear for my parents and  Haven's victims. I straighten picking myself up, pushing through the pain of the electric shock. Venom leaks into each word I growl at Adam.

"What do you take me for? A frockin' pinata? Hit me harder, you crockin mother frock!"

I jump off the wall and throw my body, flipping for momentum to kick his head. I'm sure he has no time to respond but he catches my foot at the last second.

"So fast!" He exclaims, whipping me against the concrete floor.

Every nerve in my body sparks, but I throw my leg out and kick him in the stomach, jumping back onto my feet.