0061

KLAUS' POV

“Argh!” I screamed in pain and my body throbbed with the impact. The guard didn't stop using me as a dummy. My hands were chained while he attacked me like an animal.

This had been my life since Kain locked me up. His way of trying to teach me a lesson, to show me what he endured when he was taken.

I understood the message, but I wouldn’t break. I wouldn't let myself turn into the mad person he was.

The man in front of me didn’t hold back. His knuckles cracked against my ribs, his breath labored from exertion. The room smelled of sweat and blood, my blood. It dripped from my busted lip, metallic and bitter as I swallowed down the taste of it.

Footsteps echoed down the hall. They were slow, deliberate, sending the man back a step, worry flashing in his eyes. He didn’t hit me again. Instead, he lowered his fist, glancing toward the entrance with a nervous twitch in his jaw.

A council member appeared, his robe sweeping the floor as he entered. His gaze swept the room, settling