'A Foreboding Nightmare'

WARNING: The following italicized content contains implications of sexual assault. If you're uncomfortable, please skip the italicized section and resume reading at "Florian's eyes shot open."

"Let's see..."

The man's grin widened, his tongue flicking out to wet his lips as he loomed over Florian. His breath, thick with the stench of alcohol and decay, curled in the stale air between them. Behind him, shadows stirred—other men moving in, their heavy footsteps slow and deliberate, an unspoken promise of suffering.

'Please… someone… help me…'

Florian lay bound and gagged, his wrists raw from struggling against the rope that bit into his flesh like a living thing, tightening each time he moved. His clothes, torn and ragged, barely clung to him, leaving his skin exposed to the chill of the room—and to their eyes.