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“Is that why you jumped in front of those bullets for me, to apologise?”
“Kayla—” my tone is pained. “Let’s not discuss this now.”
“Maybe you should come out and share with the rest of the class what the fuck she’s talking about,” a hard, angry voice says.
Sighing, I turn around and meet Nightshade’s furious gaze. He’s flanked on both sides by all of the others, their expressions a mix of anger and confusion.
Great. Now they’re all going to know, and I’ll be lucky to make it out of here alive.
My heart is pounding as I stare at Nightshade, trying to find the words to explain myself. But before I can say anything, Kayla steps forward.
“It’s not his fault,” she says firmly. “Seytan manipulated him into doing it. He didn’t have a choice.”
Nightshade snorts. “Bullshit. You have zero need to defend him. I saw what he was doing to you in the water just now. Has he done that before? Or was it something worse?”
Kayla frowns, but doesn’t back down. “I’m defending him because he’s not the bad guy here. Seytan is. And if we have any hope of getting out of here, we need to work together.”
There’s a moment of silence as Nightshade glares at Kayla, then finally nods. “Fine. But if he pulls any shit like that again, I’ll make sure he regrets it.”
I’m relieved that Nightshade isn’t going to press the issue any further. But I know that I still have a lot of making up to do.
As we stand by the edge of the pool, I watch Kayla take a deep breath and stare into the water. It’s clear that she’s still terrified, but she’s determined to face her fear and get us out of here.
The water is cold and murky, but I keep my focus on Kayla as she continues to stare beneath the surface. It’s clear that there’s more to her fear than just the water, than just being drowned, but it’s not my place to expose the truth. Especially when she’s just saved me from an ass-kicking from Nightshade and the others.
Footsteps approach and when I turn around, I see Seytan, flanked by two of her goons. They’re the guys who normally bring in new recruits, the heavy muscle, and generally, once we’re within the four walls of the asylum we don’t see them again.
They’re sadistic sons of bitches, and I don’t like their presence.
“Well, well, well. Looks like someone’s finally decided to face their fear,” Seytan sneers. “But don’t think for a second that it’s going to save you. You’re all still mine.”
Kayla steps forward, her voice steady and determined. “We’re not yours, Seytan. We’re not anyone’s. And we’re going to get out of here, no matter what it takes.”
Seytan laughs, a cold sound that sends shivers down my spine. “Oh, my dear. You really think you can escape from here? We own you. All of you.”
Kayla’s face hardens. “You don’t own me. You don’t own any of us. And we’re not going to let you keep us locked up here forever.”
Seytan moves closer to us, her goons following her lead. “You’re all such foolish little children. You think you can stand up to me? You think you can defeat me? Defeat the power of the asylum?”
I step forward, putting myself between Seytan and Kayla. “We don’t have to defeat you, Seytan. We just have to get out of here. And we will.”
Seytan smirks. “Oh, I don’t think so. You see, I have eyes and ears everywhere. And I know everything that goes on in this place. You’ll never escape.”
But I can see the doubt in Seytan’s eyes, the fear that we might actually succeed in escaping. And that just gives me hope. We’ll find a way out of here, no matter what it takes. And Kayla is going to be the key to our escape.
“Take her,” Seytan instructs.
My blood runs cold and I step closer to Kayla, taking up a defensive stance. I don’t know what Seytan has planned, but if she has her goons with her, it isn’t going to be anything good for Kayla.
I’m not the only one who steps forward to protect her, just the first. The others quickly follow, forming a tight circle around her, and pride floods me. I’m so proud of Kayla for giving us the courage to stand up to Seytan, for giving us the chance to be a real team. Until now, I’ve been in it for myself, but now I see that together we can win.
Seytan shakes her head. “I don’t want to hurt the rest of you. But I will.”
Seytan lifts her hand and I watch as one of her goons lifts a thick, heavy chain from behind his back and wraps it around his fist. He comes at us with the chain, raising his arm and aiming for Kayla.
I do the only thing I can think to do. I tackle Kayla to the ground and take the hit for her.
I see the chain coming at us, but I don’t feel it when it connects with me. It’s as if I’m watching everything from outside of my body. I feel arms grab me and pull me to my feet. And then I feel myself being shoved into the wall. But I don’t feel pain. I don’t feel anything.
