A Gift from the Goddess

Book TWO – Ch.# 31 *CRACK*

…Another finger joint. The third now in under five minutes, him still refusing to answer mne.

Truthfully, I was a little surprised he was holding out for as long as he was. He was still determined to resist my questioning and refused to cooperate. Was this really the hill he wanted to die on? After everything he’d been working so hard on for at least a decade? “You know… I’ve been doing a lot of research lately,” I said. “Thanks to you, my health has become a point of focus for me and I’ve actually learnt a lot about our kind’s anatomy.”

And I grabbed another finger, pressing it tightly in a way that conveyed the threat. Just hard enough for a pathetic whimper to leave him.

“Like for example… did you know that our joints heal faster than all other injuries?” I asked. “Faster than cuts, gashes… faster than even bones breaking? It’s something to do with how our joints relate to our ability to shift. They naturally have to heal quicker in order to compensate for that.”

*CRACK*

Another finger. “…But evidently that doesn’t mean it hurts any less,” I added.

“Please… stop…,” he cried.

Though it did him little good. He already knew what I wanted to know and could end this whenever he so desired.

“I did the math…,” I said, ignoring him. “I could hypothetically dislocate all of your fingers about five times within the next hour without any issues. That means I can repeat this process approximately every twelve minutes. The only question is… how long will it take before you finally answer me? Another round? Another four? …Ten?”

“Goddess… enough… I’m begging you.”

*CRACK

And I leaned in, right next to his ear.

“Then tell me where the docuinents are, Sterling,” I whispered. “Tell nie what they contain.”

Only his cries replied, screaming out from the pain. Something that merely annoyed me enough to then grab his next hand, ready to start again with a fresh set of digits.

But, finally, it seemed that was enough for him to speak. “Why do you care?!” he shouted back. “You’re angry at me but I wasn’t the one who dosed you. I was just the supplier, commission to make them. The man you’re trying to protect right now is the one you should be torturing,” I knew that. Of course, I did. To a certain degree, I should be pissed at my father.. and I was. But this went beyond simply protecting him now. This was my only chance to locate the documents and… and, well, after that I could choose what to do with them. An internal debate for myself another time. All that mattered right now was getting the information… and making Sterling pay. “I’m the one asking the questions,” I reminded, “You’re not in any position to be arguing right now.” …And I grabbed another of his joints firmly… readying to snap it at any second… giving him one last chance…. “Okay, okay!” he yelled. “Okay… I’ll tell you. Just… please. Please stop. I-I can’t take it anymore.” “Where are they?” I wasn’t keen on wasting any more time. Despite being several floors up from the dining hall, there was every possibility someone could hear should they wander this way. Not that they should have a reason to. It was meant to be a private level for the Alpha heir and all the attendants would be on duty serving the dinner guests.

“Where are they, Sterling?” I repeated again, himn taking too long to answer.

located near the border between Lockdale and Ashwood.” Right… I already knew about that warehouse. My father had been the one to originally tell

asked. “In a safe? A

simply mentioning the warehouse would be enough to Satisfy my question, liis eyes becoming more stressed as I

it’s in the warehouse,” he said. “Please… let me go now. I told you all

wasn’t amateur hour, I’d had plenty of experience in situations like this. I’d been taught to be an expert in getting answers, no matter how I went about

so I snapped another finger… making sure to get my point across. “Tell me where exactly in the warehouse they are,” I repeated.

me enough that I had to press my knee harder into his back. A reminder

becoming more frantic. “…Two…,” I continued, bending it backwards slowly. He was almost screaming now, shouting that

“… Three-”

could finish, he then cut me off. “A FLOORBOARD!” he yelled. “A floorboard in his office, under a rug! He always kept all of his important things in

I sighed in exhaustion.

your memory seems to work better when subjected to pain. So, I wonder then… if that’s the case, have

that sentence?” I warned. “Because if you

documents contained. Please don’t insult my intelligence by telling me you don’t know. I

watch. And yet he wanted to be an Alpha? I was only just beginning to learn what that was

that made me almost thankful for the upbringing I had, for the skills and strength I possessed. Because I knew that is some poor, inexperienced girl had been in this situation, facing the insanity of this sick perverted man, then this situation might have played out very, very differently. An outcome that made me shudder to think about. “Sterling,”

H-…Rae?”

voice then spoke from

at him. “What are you… what are you doing? Is that… Sterling?” he asked, confused by what he was seeing in front of him. How I had his uncle pinned to the ground, crying uncontrollably. “It was Sterling all along,” I quickly said. He was the one selling the suppressors. He tried to atta-.” But, somehow in the time I’d been distracted, Sterling had gotten his hands on one of my spare shoes that I’d left by the bedside table. And before I could finish explaining to Kieran what was happening, he then swiftly embedded the heel of the stiletto into my thigh. “Rae!” Kieran yelled, watching as Sterling then pushed me to

pin Sterling back down. He’d already gotten back onto his feet, moving towards me as if he were going to serve a kick

Sterling away. “That bitch bas it coming,” he spat. “Do you have any idea what she did to

I said, cutting in before Sterling could say anything else. “He followed me upstairs and told me he was going to mark me. Force me into becoming a Luna for some

1

“Lies!” Sterling yelled.

asked. “You never told me about that, Kieran. Think about it.” But Kieran’s eyes had already darkened in a threatening way, my explanation alone already being enough for him to turn on his uncle. “…You tried to do

me the truth. Right now.” Kieran

anything else I’d experienced. He wasn’t simply asking the question, more so there was an almost … tangible force behind his words, one that even I could feel. A weight that compelled without room for argument.

he started, squirming under the

struggling against the order, refusing to answer Kieran. “I… J… renounce my loyalty to the Ashwood pack, its Alpha, Victor Lycroft, and the heir, Kieran Lycroft,” he

just like that, it seemed he freed himself