the traumatized daughter to finally get Eleanor

s. The throbbing in her

east corridor. The thick carpets gave way to cheap hard

ng white paint. She took a deep breath, t

ness and mildew h

om the ceiling. Jorden was curled into a tight

door opening, Jorden

instantly crossed over his chest, his fingers digging into his biceps to hide the fresh need

ned. A sharp ache bl

aid, keeping her voice low and s

e bed and reached out to

ntly yanked

was raw, scraping against his throat. "

all, rusted closet, and pulled out a thick, brand-ne

onto the cot

me." Her tone left

a. Years of conditioned obedience fought against his survival instinct

corridor. They walked across t

n a set of hea

space. The room was massive. Floor-to-ceiling windo

eyes shut against the harsh light. He didn't take

massive King-size bed a

g here from no

tight. He looked around the room, then back at her

I bleed on the carpet...

t they felt like a physical knife twisting in Diana's gut.

. She stopped right in front of

on, no one is allowed to hurt you. Not the do

led out a small, silver tube of medical-grade s

d it ou

t reach for it. His eyes darted acr

ressed the cold metal tube into his p

t," sh

o the hallway, and gently pulled

into place, the trembling fea

old, calculating predator. He walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window

the tube of oint

d a tiny amount onto his finger, checking the consistency. He smelled

as c

nt into the angry re

air. He smoothed the cool salve over his bruised

's han

s through the bars. Anya. But years of brutal conditioning kicked in instantly. He ruthlessly suppressed the anomaly, forcing his logic back online to finish checking the ointment for micro-trackers. Only after he was absolutely cer

e opened the sleek Apple MacBook. It was time to check her bank acc