Mia’s POV
The darkness felt alive, pressing in on me from all sides. I didn’t realize at first that the room Sean had locked me in was soundproof. My screams, my pounding on the thick door-they weren’t reaching anyone.
“Please, let me out! I’ll do whatever you want, just take me out of here!” I begged, my voice hoarse as I yelled again and again.
Nothing.
I banged my fists against the door, the sound echoing only in my own ears. My palms stung, and the sharp pain spread through my hands until they burned red. Tears streaked down my face, hot and endless.
“I hate you,” I whispered into the void, my voice shaking. I hated Sean, hated my brothers, hated the entire situation. But most of all, I hated how helpless I felt.
It hit me then-he had taken me to this room on purpose. He wanted me to feel this helpless. My heart pounded as I turned and slid down the wall, curling into myself as I whispered broken pleas into the void.
“Just once. Have mercy on me. Please…”
No one came.
The hours dragged by, the silence and the crushing darkness gnawing at my sanity. My chest grew tight as the air felt heavier with every passing minute. My breaths came shallow and uneven, and I realized I couldn’t keep doing this. I sobbed until I had no tears left, my voice fading into silence.
Eventually, I stopped yelling. I lay on the cold ground, my arms wrapped around my trembling body. I thought about the moments leading up to this-how I let myself hope that maybe things were changing, that maybe I had a chance to be free. Now, I was here, trapped in this nightmare of a room, waiting for something-anything-to happen.
Maybe this was it. Maybe they’d finally broken me.
My throat was raw, my body trembling from fear and exhaustion. I pressed my back against the wall, trying to focus on my breathing, but even that felt like a losing battle.
“I’m going to die here,” I murmured to myself. The thought wasn’t dramatic; it felt real. The darkness, the silence, the cold-it all felt like it was swallowing me whole.
A noise broke through my thoughts. A sound so faint at first that I thought I’d imagined it. But then it came again-the unmistakable creak of the door opening.
I bolted upright, my muscles screaming in protest as I scrambled toward the door. The faint sliver of light spilling in was like a lifeline. Without even checking who had let me out, I rushed past them, my legs unsteady and my breathing ragged.
“Thank you,” I choked out. “Thank you for letting me out.”
I stumbled into the hallway, tears blurring my vision as I clung to the wall for support. The panic and fear that had been suffocating me finally began to lift, but my relief was short-lived.
As I tried to take a breath.
Rough hands grabbed me from behind, yanking me backward.
“No!” I screamed, twisting and kicking as I was dragged into another room. My heart raced as I was thrown to the floor, and before I could even get my bearings, a blindfold was tied tightly over my eyes.
“Please, stop! I didn’t do anything!” I begged, my voice cracking as I felt the cold bite of metal against my wrists. Chains. My hands were bound, and I felt the sharp sting of something brushing against my legs, like teeth or claws.
The pain was unbearable, like it was piercing my skin.
“Let me go!” I cried. “I won’t say anything to anyone! I won’t speak another word, just let me go!”
The only response was the tightening of the chains around my wrists.
I flinched as something sharp grazed my skin. Pain bloomed across my legs, and I screamed, thrashing against my restraints. “Please stop! I can’t take this anymore!”
My voice echoed uselessly in the empty room.
“Why are you guys punishing me like this? What sins have I done to tolerate this pain?” I cried out.
But the spalshing of water didn’t stop. It kept going like it was an enjoyment show for them.
“If you want me to kill, then kill me but I can’t bear this torture anymore. I beg you, I will not speak a word in entire of my life, please spare me,” I said out all my emotions once, at the hope that they will spare me.
I felt water then, cold and unrelenting, pouring over my face. It drenched me, filling my mouth and nose when I tried to scream. I choked, gasping for air, but the water kept coming.
I struggled, shaking my head wildly, but there was no escape. I couldn’t breathe. My lungs burned, my body writhing as I fought against the chains.
“Stop!” I managed to choke out between gulps of air. “Please, just stop!”
The water poured harder, and my strength began to fade. I couldn’t fight anymore. My body sagged in the chains, my chest heaving as I tried to cling to the faintest slivers of air.
I tried to breathe as I ran out of air.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, the words barely audible. “I’m sorry…”
The chains rattled as I thrashed against them, my body screaming for air. My mind raced, the panic consuming every thought.
This was it. I was going to drown. I will die today, this will be end of mine finally.
The world blurred around me as my strength gave out. My struggles slowed, my body sagging against the restraints. The water didn’t stop, and I stopped fighting it, letting it overwhelm me.
I thought I heard footsteps, distant and muffled, but I couldn’t focus. My ears were filled with the rushing of water, my mind hazy.
“Mia!”
The voice was faint, but it cut through the chaos. I barely registered it before everything went black.