Caged Animals (3)

The teen rolled his eyes again. "I don't see why they didn't just kill you like they did the last person who was in here a second ago running their mouth. Once you're here your right to everything is forfeit. You shit when they tell you to shit. You piss when they tell you to piss. And you ask for permission to even breathe."

A nurse rolled in a silver table with a metal tray on top. He plucked up the first needle and stabbed it into her arm, pushing the liquid inside of her.

"And we wait fifteen more minutes before we steal a lot of your blood." He gave her a charming smile that didn't suit his twisted words and ways.

Whatever he injected into her veins was liquid ice. She could feel it as it passed through her body with every beat of her heart that leapt into her throat.

They didn't seem the type to wave around idle threats. The idea of being drained like a human blood bank made her empty stomach turn.

Asking questions was getting her nowhere so Ari pressed her lips together to wait in silence. Already she missed the outside world even if most of her life had been a struggle; nothing was as bad as being held prisoner while they beat her, bound her, and stole bodily fluids.

"How do you feel?" He asked, un-strapping one of her arms before smacking the crook of it with two fingers.

Although one's veins popped up blue, hers popped up the same color as what he'd injected her with: black. "Don't try anything stupid. You'll have more than a limp, love."

"I'm okay." She stretched out her arm enjoying the feeling of such a short amount of freedom. Being tied up for hours in a cage left her feeling stir crazy but not daring.

Her eyes followed the strange new color in her veins that made them stand out against her caramel toned skin. "It feels strange." Not like she could do much with just an arm and everyone seemed a lot stronger.

"In an hour at most, you'll have necrosis of the heart, then all the cells in your body will slowly decay and die." He folded his arms across his chest, studying her features with twisted amusement.

Blue eyes a soft lilac blue, bright like his golden blonde hair; the deep color of wheat.

Her eyes went wide and Ari shook her head unsure whether to believe him or not. "But...they said I was rare. What would be the point of killing me?" There was a shrill note of disbelief in her voice that she didn't bother to hide, pulling against the restraints.

How could anyone joke like that with a smile on their face after the things that happened. Afterall she was only human. No one wanted to die. It went against every instinct to calmly embrace death when they spent their whole lives running from it.

"I-I don't want to die yet." Her heart stuttered and her mind was bombarded with thoughts. There was no one to take care of Rooster. Benji would be devastated.

The Sandlers would never get paid back for all of the kindness; and the biggest most recurring one was, "Alaric never came." Expecting to endure being saved was one thing but being brought to death's doorstep within hours was another.

The blonde sighed and shook his head as he plopped down in his chair like a child that couldn't stay still, shifting this way and that with excitement of what he'd see next.

"Why are you asking questions when I just said, you don't get to even breathe unless one of us tells you, you can breathe?" He blinked and rolled his eyes again.

"What do you mean what's the point of killing you? It's not about killing you, love. It's about seeing if you survive. Seeing just how rare your precious blood is. If you take damage but don't die, you are the highest rarity there is. But if you do die," His lips pursed and he shrugged, both hands facing palm upward. "It isn't a loss. Because then you weren't special at all."

The question had slipped out but she hadn't really asked it expecting an answer. One day she was a free woman who could go where she pleased and do what she wanted, now they expected her to be an obedient prisoner.

Her free hand rubbed at her chest where a steady ache had been building that slowly began to spread. The cold sensation was replaced by a rising burn; first her skin began to itch and no matter how much she scratched there was no relief.

Her brows furrowed together as she broke out into a sweat. Her insides were burning.

Every vein shuttled fire to every nerve ending, its singeing touch creeping down her spine. Ari pulled against the restraints, her muscles spasming as pain overloaded all else.

Eventually spider web-like marks beneath the skin of her cheeks rose, black as night and spreading like vines in the flesh instead of dirt. Her body started jolting, then eventually it started retreating back to normal; a magic effect appearance. Her eyes came back forward.

"Would you look at that." He said, slowly getting up, amused more than before. "You survived."

Ari was breathing hard. Even though the pain receded, the memory of it had tears dripping down her face. As if the effect of what happened only really hit her after it was over. Everything ached. She tangled her fingers in her hair unsure of what this meant for her.

Being alive was good, but at what cost? She didn't want to ask any questions knowing that even if they were answered, they weren't welcome. All she could do was stare at the man child in shock. What happened next now that she passed their 'test'? "I've always been a survivor.." She'd outlived loved ones and family alike.

The teen was headed across the room to unstrap her when someone blinked in front of him. He was on his feet, then flying across the room in two double backflips before skidding to a stop.

It was the other blonde standing there with his arm extended out, hand flattened, clearly indicating he had bitch slapped the other one. "She's rare. We don't touch my claims."

He smirked, the teen wiped his mouth, and the older blonde removed her restraints and lifted her into his arms. "You'll be my little precious. The thing everyone wants but cannot have. I mark my claim."

Ari shook her head though she knew better than to argue. Her split lip was nothing compared to what she'd just dealt with but still she didn't want to test his wrath. She liked her eyeballs in their sockets where they belonged. In her heart she could never accept such a thing.

It was all she could do to press her lips together and tighten her jaw to keep the traitorous words from spilling. Though she did cast a sideways glance at the younger boy, the corner of her mouth lifting into the faintest smirk. At least there was satisfaction in the fact that this made her untouchable.

"Don't think you have much choice." He muttered nonchalantly, carrying her through the corridors. Allowing his hand to momentarily hover over her eyes, he whispered the words, "Unconscious but awake." Then her sight was gone. All she could hear was the soft tapping of his shoes against the floor and a door opening. He set her down onto a mattress, soon allowing her visual to come back to her. She was on the bed with her wrist tied. "Are you hungry?" Was asked simply as well.

"Yes," Then she added as an afterthought, "Please." She didn't have much of an appetite but food seemed like a bad opportunity to miss. Ari held out her hands as much as the tie would allow. The last time she ate was when she had breakfast with Alaric and there was no way to tell how long that had been.

He nodded his head, opening the mini refrigerator in the room, grabbing a water bottle before tossing it to her. Those jade eyes stayed on her, curiousness lurking in their depths. "So he pulled you off the streets?" The man asked, sitting on the edge of the bed, a few inches away from where she was.

She caught the bottle and somehow managed to unscrew the cap before greedily gulping it down. The coolness helped ease the feeling from before and her stomach settled. "No. I went to him. It was a stupid complaint but my business was failing and I was in debt." Her shoulders rose and fell. "I needed whatever I could get. He offered me a deal."

"I'll give you double than what he offered, although I really don't have to. I could easily just keep you against your own will." He shrugged again, then glimpsed elsewhere boredly in the room. "What do you like to eat?"