Audrey Wright

The tongue-less man had come to see me more and more. He brought my food—real food as in spaghetti meatballs, and garlic bread and water the first around—and I ate as if I was starving, which wasn't far from the truth. Afterward, probably because my stomach had been empty for so long, I had to go to the bathroom. The man stayed, watching me, which was beyond creepy. He tossed me a roll of toilet paper at least, and once I finished, he opened the cell door to take the bucket. I was so shocked that I didn't try to sneak out.

The next meal came a few hours later, a sandwich and more water. I was fed regularly, and whenever I used the bucket, it was taken, cleaned, and brought back a lost immediately. Maybe he was a dragon slave and could smell when I had used it, which gave me an idea.

I did my best to not go in his presence. When I finally did have to go, I was planning on throwing throw the contents toward the window. Yes, it would be disgusting and smelly and nasty, and I would have to hope that the tongue-less man wouldn't clean it.

No, wait. I couldn't. Not yet. Not until I learned more about Jeremy and their goals, their weakness. Then, I could found. Then, I could use my urine to try to lure my dragons to me.

And I thought cookies were the secret to a guy's heart.

This time, after I went, it wasn't the tongue-less man who approached but Jeremy. He hadn't come back around since the first time we spoke. I wasn't sure how long ago that had been. I was never certain how long I slept for. My body was recovering from the ordeal of being starved and being attacked when kidnapped, but I wasn't sure how long I had been captured for.

Jeremy was grinning broadly as he strolled over to me, even whistling. Immediately, I was suspicious.

"Why are you so happy?" I asked, not expecting him to tell me.

"It's working."

"What is?"

"My plan."

"To wipe out the Three-Tailed Clan." At his nod, I added, "Why? Why are you hunting dragons? Why have you already destroyed clans? What is your goal?"

Jeremy laughed. "Do you think I'll honestly tell you my plans?"

I shrugged. "Don't villains like to wax poetry and have long soliloquies about their master plans?"

"This isn't a movie."

"That's right. It isn't. You're toying with people's lives. Not just dragons'. Why kill the humans? Is it because you've grown too lax and have been witnessed? Or is there another reason?"

"Ask all the questions you want, but you will not learn the truth."

"Why did you swing by then?"

He pointed to my bucket.

"You want my piss? Open your mouth. I'll give you some."

"How crude. Is that why they like you?"

"My mouth? Maybe." I smirked.

Jeremy chuckled. He unlocked my cell and opened the door all the way, unlike the crack the tongue-less man would do.

The dragon shifter was testing me. I was certain of it. What if I failed?

What if I passed?

He collected the bucket and walked over to me, far too close.

"You're invading my personal space."

"So step away."

I did, shifting to the left. He followed. Again and again, we shifted, and then I stepped back and back, toward the open door and the hallway.

"I know what you're planning," he said.

"I'm not planning anything," I protested, coming to a halt.

The length of his body was flush against mine. It took everything in me not to shudder in revulsion. There was something about him that disgusted me even beyond knowing he had killed so many for no good reason. Just the glint of madness in his eyes was enough to put me off.

Yes, I might not be able to pick between Francesco, Damon, and Miguel, but that wasn't because I just was horny and wanted all men. Only those three.

I glanced over my shoulder at the hallway.

"Not that," Jeremy growled. He snatched my wrist with his free hand. "You were going to try to use your scent to lure them here, weren't you?"

"My scent?" I blinked, doing my best to seem genuinely confused because, holy cap, how did he know what I had been planning?

He dumped the contents of the bucket onto my head. I sputtered, furious, ready to lunge at him, but I tripped on the urine, and he sidestepped me besides.

Abruptly, he tossed the bucket aside and yanked on my shirt, ripping it. He stripped off my clothes and bundled them up before tossing them into the hallway.

"Come on in," he called, and men and women came in. They all carried buckets, and I didn't know what the liquid was inside, but it burned. Oh, did it burn. My skin was on fire.

But I did not scream. I might've allowed tears to stream down my face, and I flinched when a new bucket was emptied onto me, but I did not do more than gasp. I maintained eye contact with Jeremy throughout. The men and women filed in and out, and I didn't know if they refilled their buckets or if only an endless parade of new people came in. Either way, I lost count after twenty-five splashes.

Acid. Bile. Something like that. It had to be. I was shaking, a puddle on the floor of my cell.

Then, the liquid changed. Water. Regular water but that too burned severely. My skin, was it charred? It felt aflamed, but I would not, could not bear to look at myself. Besides, there was a measure of satisfaction I was getting from maintaining eye contact with Jeremy and seeing a level of respect in his soulless eyes.

When the last of the men and woman filed out, only Jeremy remained here with me. I placed my palms on the ground so that I could push myself to stand, but touching the acid or bile, even diluted by the water, sting me so badly that I nearly cried out. I managed to bite my tongue so hard I bleed to prevent myself from showing how much pain I was in.

"Your scent has been permanently altered," Jeremy said. "Your plan won't work now."

"What… plan?" I gaped out.

He smirked and glanced at the window above my head.

I lowered my gaze to the ground. Somehow, he truly had learned of my plan.

"What are you?" I mumbled.

"I told you already. Whether or not you believe me is up to you. Now, I'll admit it. I'm impressed. For a human, you have fortitude and strength. If you wish, I will give you my blood to—"

"I would rather die!"

Take his blood to heal? If it meant a connection like the one I had with Damon, never.

"You do realize you may very well die from your wounds if you don't," he warned. When I staidly ignored him, he shrugged. "A pity. I am beginning to see what they see."

He strolled out, slammed the cell door shut, locked it with a resounding click, and snatched up my bundle of ruined clothes. It was only after the noise of his footsteps faded that I realized he had taken my bucket with him. I had no place to relieve myself now. He did that on purpose.

Slowly, inch by inch, I dragged myself away from the terrible puddle. Each time I moved, my body was jarred, and the pain was so intense that I retched and had to move even farther. Eventually, I passed out, for the first time unable to escape in my mind to a place of happiness while thinking of my three dragons. It almost felt as if the connection between myself and them had been shattered.

Just before I succumbed to the darkness, I knew I was forgetting something important…