Black Stars - The Mors Mortis Trilogy Book 1

Chapter 10 - Captive

It's not the sea that drowns you, it's the puddles. 

- Aleksandre Solzhenitsyn

Leah was lying motionless on the bed when the creak of an opening door reached her ears. She'd spent two days prowling around the room, emotions ticking the minutes like clockwork - anger, fear, stress, exhaustion, worry. It hadn't taken long to realise there were no potential weapons in her prison. After Jared had left she'd torn the place apart, combing through the sheets, the piles of clean clothes he'd left in the corner, the small ensuite. There was nothing helpful. Everything was either nailed down or made of flimsy plastic.

So, she'd waited, stomach growing hollower until her body turned traitor, aching to hear his footsteps. He'd held out just long enough for the hunger to absorb her, so potent she almost forgot her hatred for him when the door opened.

Almost.

As the light crept across the floor she sat up, an unintentional snarl curling her mouth. Jared's hair was damp, his eyes bright. Her gaze lowered to the loaf of bread in his hand and instantly her mouth flooded.

Jared walked in and closed the door, throwing the bread in her direction. Leah dived for it and started stuffing her mouth, cheeks flaming as Jared smirked and moved to the seat cemented to the floor in the corner. She ignored his gaze and ate until her annoyance at the situation became too much to stomach. She needed to be stronger next time. He couldn't bribe her with food. The remaining loaf was discarded and Leah lent back against the wall, eyeing Jared silently.

"Why are you here?" she asked when his gaze became too much.

Jared cocked his head and regarded the left-over bread. "You hardly ate anything."

"Like you give a shit."

His grin cascaded over her like gently flowing water. Leah knew she could search for days and not find all the swords behind that smile.

"That's true."

Leah glared, but held back a snarky remark. She didn't know how to act around him now. Playing nice would be sensible, but the thought made her sick.

Jared cleared his throat. "You'll be happy to know that I've forgiven you for your cliff jumping incident. I'm now prepared to hear what I need to know."

"I've told you a hundred times, I don't know anything about your Mors Mortis Device."

"Yes, you do," Jared said, leaning towards her. "It's all in your head. You just need to remember it."

Jared was watching her with an intensity that made her feel more claustrophobic than this small room did.

"You're not normal Leah, I'm sure you've realised that by now. There's a reason for that. You have secrets locked in your mind."

Leah stared at him. "No, I don't."

"Yes, you do, and you need to unlock them," he continued. "The sooner you do, the sooner I'll let you out of here."

Leah glared. "And I suppose starving me was meant to help with that?"

Jared shrugged. "Sometimes people have to be pushed to their limits. If you're telling the truth and you can't access your memories, then desperation might trigger it."

Her limbs locked, his casual tone chilling. She had no doubt Jared meant what he said, she just didn't know how far he would go. If starving her was the first attempt, what would be the last? Surely his tests would become more extreme after each failure.

She needed to get out of here. And she needed to figure out how quickly.

"Why me?" she asked, flinching at the vulnerability in her voice. "Isn't there someone else you can ask?"

"Sadly, no. You're a pain in my ass, but your father protects the damn thing. If anyone knows, it'll be you."

Leah looked at him in surprise. "Brenton protects it?"

"No," Jared snapped with surprising hostility. "Your father, not him."

The words undid her, loosening something tight and knotted underneath her ribcage. For a moment, her fear was replaced with an unbearable hope.

"You know who he is, don't you? You mentioned him before in the alleyway."

Jared's gaze flickered away and he shifted in his seat. She knew he'd seen the hope explode inside her.

"Yeah."

"Is he alive?"

For some reason Jared smiled at this. "Yes, he's alive."

"Who is he?"

Jared scowled. "You know already. Figure it out yourself."

Leah stared at him. "No, I don't. I've never met him."

"That's a lie."

She looked away from him, unnerved by his certainty. "Is that why you're keeping me here? You think I'm having secret meetings with a man I've never met?"

"No, I don't think that, but I think you're hiding something. You can't be as oblivious as you pretend to be."

Anger hit her like an 18-wheeler, but she choked it back down. Flying into a rage around Jared had proven unsuccessful in the past. She doubted this time would be any different.

"I don't understand what you want from me. I don't have any blank patches in my memory. You're asking the wrong person."

Jared smiled. "Let me ask you something. Do the names Danny or Seth mean anything to you?"

Leah stared at him with an intensity she hoped masked her shock. How did he know the names that haunted her when she slept? Had she yelled them out while he'd been in the room?

"No."

Jared's lips kinked up and a dark flash shot through his eyes. He stood up so quickly that she jumped, flinching away as he came closer, his eyes trailing her face.

"You're much more transparent then you think, Leah. Don't lie to me again."

Leah swallowed, his proximity and threatening words clouding her mind. "I'm not lying."

Jared stared for a moment longer then drew back, wrenching the door open. "I'm going to give you some time to think. Next time I come back, I expect a different answer."

And the door slammed shut. 

...

Oh dear! Leah's in a bit of a pickle!

How do we think she's going to get out of this one?

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- Skylar xx