Shadows In Durango

Chapter 110

*****Sofia's POV*****

I stare over at the clothes Ashton had left for me on the bathroom counter, bile rising up in my throat as I try to swallow down the wave of disgust.

The red underwear looks cheap, flimsy and see through nothing like anything I'd ever choose for myself. It feels like another layer of control, another way for him to make me feel trapped down here under his rules. He'd actually gone to a store and picked these out for me, like he had every right to decide what I should wear all the way down to my underwear... completely vile!

I force myself to look away, taking a deep breath as I peel off the filthy clothes I had been wearing, what I could only guess how many hours for.

Every movement feels like an effort, my body aching with exhaustion and fear. My hands shake as I reach for the shower handle, twisting it until the water begins to rush out in a harsh, steady stream.

I was thankful for the water to be somewhat warm at least, since I had expected the bare minimum of ice cold pelts to beat down against my raw skin.

I better just get this shower over with as quickly as I can before he comes back... I'm not giving him the satisfaction of seeing me naked!

There wasn't a lock on the bathroom door either, another tactical move on his part to stop me from hiding away from him.

He was sick.

He was most definitely deemed a psychopath in my eyes at this rate, having thought of each and every small detail to help trap me down here for as long as his sick mind wanted to.

I seethe through my teeth as the water stings against my skin as I step under it, but I don't care. I need to wash it all away - Ashton's touch, the fear, the dirt of this place clinging to me like it's soaking into my very bones.

But as soon as the water cascades over my scalp, I feel a sharp throb of pain, the ache radiating through my head like a dull, pounding drum as I yelp at the pain.

I reach up to my hair and freeze, my fingers coming away sticky and dark. My heart lurches in my chest as I tilt my head downward, watching in horror as the water begins to swirl red at my feet, blood mixing with the water as it spirals down the drain.

I gasp, my legs suddenly weak beneath me. How much blood have I lost? How bad are my wounds?

I should probably see a doctor for this!

It's the first real sign of what Ashton has done to me, the physical proof of the violence he had inflicted so far and the reality of it knocks the air from my lungs.

Forcing myself to push through the nausea, I gingerly scrub at my scalp, trying to cleanse the dried blood and grime without triggering more pain. I wince with every stroke, feeling the raw patches where my head must have been hit time and time again.

how many times I scrub. I could stand here

have long, when the water finally runs clear, I shut it off and step out of the shower, my body shivering from the exhaustion

stained towel

mirror, the glass fogged from the steam, and for a second, I don't recognise the person staring back at me. My face is pale, my eyes hollow,

down again. I've already wasted too much of my time

laid out on the sink, and I grab it with shaky hands, spreading a glob of toothpaste on the bristles before shoving it into my

contrast to the staleness that's been lingering in

desperate to erase the past few hours from my memory. My gums sting, but I keep going, brushing until the metallic taste of blood fills

watching the pink-tinged foam swirl down the drain like the blood from my scalp earlier. The sight makes my stomach churn, but I don't

taste of blood overwhelms the mint do I stop, letting the toothbrush

waited for me on the counter. The underwear sits there in mockery, nasty and cheap, and I have to force myself

feel more exposed than if I'd stayed naked. Every inch of me recoils as I slip

wear on my own. It clings to me as I pull it over my head, the cold fabric sliding down my

elegant, I suppose, but all it does is make me feel like I've been dressed for someone else's pleasure - which

pale beneath the dark silk, and I instantly feel sick. This isn't me. This isn't who I am. I'm

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have no choice but to

chest, and close my eyes, trying to block

to come back

try and take

will I

can do. That Ashton will come back down here, push me onto that bed, and take whatever he wants from me. The thought alone makes my stomach knot and my heart race faster

that

have to

light in the overwhelming darkness. It starts small, but the more I focus

Fight.

was taken from me since my mother died. From him, from my father, from my brothers. They've ruined me

off the floor, my legs weak, my body sore, but I force myself to stand. The nightdress clings to

need

that I could use to defend myself. If he comes back down here