Rogue

Chapter 37

I brush Roger off and consider the man who seemed to be the centre which all these lives circulated around.

When he wasn't spitting words of hate at me and nailing me down with piercing, red eyes filled with the promise of death, he was looking at his son as if he was his most valuable treasure in the world. Even when he didn't show it, it radiated off of him in undeniable waves that filled the room to the point it was almost suffocating. It comforted a part of me to know that he cared for Levi somewhat to the extent I did, though in different forms.

Albeit, the feeling of admiration and solace through Levi was definitely not mutual.

If it was possible to kill me without hurting levi in any way, neither emotionally nor physically. I'd already be dead.

But I couldn't blame him, not with the endless knotches which lined my belt of life.

I'm jolted out of my thoughts when the man himself glances over his shoulder as if somehow sensing my analysis of him. His blood-red eyes lock with my own and he snarls lowly, his canines making a brief appearance before he turns back around with a grunt.

That was something I neither liked nor saw myself getting accustom to.

I redirect my attention to my mate, tugging him a little closer as I squeezed his smaller palm slightly. He seemed to be jolted out of his own thoughts as he peers up to me with dull eyes. He tries to offer me a small smile but his lips just shake as he draws in closer, his eyes drift forward to his parents and I see the exact moment he breaks even more.

I found it cruel that Julian was baring the brute of his mate's anger, he was placed in a very tight position with limited options. No part of me believed Aiden would make any different decisions if the tables were turned. But I, Jayson Cortez, was in no position to voice those thoughts and knew better of it, so I kept my mouth shut.

"I don't know how you all do it... the walking and exercising." Katerina says still panting in aspiration as she leans against the wall of a small rectangular building. Her comment goes without a response as we approach the crumbling, brick structure that looked to carry one room.

Two guards stood outside the entrance, one with a large spear and the other with a gun. It looked almost comical, any other time or situation and I would of been cackling. Instead, I tried not to show any other emotion besides confidence as they eyed me wearily. They thankfully didn't raise the question resting on their tongues and instead opened the doors without a word.

Behind the doors laid a seemingly, never-ending staircase which descended into a pit of complete darkness. Few dim lights rested on the walls between every twenty steps, allowing enough light to see your next step without fault. The smell of dried blood was poignant and the only sound to be heard were the faint screams and sobs which laid at the bottom of the staircase.

It was what I imagined the entrance to hell to be.

Everyone seemed to look down the pit with caution while Aiden skipped down the steps as if he was a child going to recess. Julian followed after, Katerina disappeared and then Levi and I finally followed, hands still tightly clasped together.

At the bottom, a large steel door with rusting bolts waited with another two guards. Aiden took the liberty of opening it and waltzed in as if he was walking into his home. Following after him, I froze when my eyes landed on the body which was chained to the wall.

A pile of bones covered by weak, abused skin hung tiredly, arms and legs stretched out and locked into place by shackles that appeared to have spikes in them, explaining the blood which trickled down lazily. Driven into all parts of him were different tools I perceived to be for torture, making him seem more like a holder of some kind rather than a person. I could barely see the face which was hidden by the long hair, head hung low as he hung swaying slightly with small sobs.