I awoke with a jolt, a coppery taste of blood sharp on my tongue, and for a disorienting moment, I couldn’t tell if I was alive or dead.Pain radiated from my head, throbbing in time with my heartbeat. Shadows blurred around me, my eyes struggling to adjust in the dim, murky light. The chill of metal pressed against my skin, a constant reminder that I was bound, helpless.“Wake up…” A low, mocking voice echoed through the silence. Then came the shock of freezing water thrown onto my face. I gasped, choking as I was forced back to reality.I blinked, taking in the room. It was a bare, grim hall, lined with unforgiving tools—things meant to hurt, to break, to kill. I shivered, fighting to push down the panic rising in my throat. “What… why am I here?” I tugged at the ropes, feeling them bite into my wrists. “Where’s my father?” I asked, the words barely escaping my lips.“Your father?” The voice came again, colder, twisted with dark satisfaction. “Getting his own punishment.”I strained
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