COST OF ESCAPE

The fall knocked the breath out of Solyn’s lungs in a brutal rush. "Ahhh!!" Solyn cried.

Pain detonated through her shoulder the instant she hit the ground. It was sharp and blinding, ripping a scream from her throat before she could stop it. Her body rolled awkwardly across gravel, skin scraping raw, vision spinning until the world slammed back into focus. Her arm dangled at a wrong angle, useless and burning, the pain so intense it made her stomach revolt.

"Uhhh... He will kill me for this!" She lay there for a second, gasping air as much as she could. Then fear kicked in as she realized what she had done.

Solyn pushed herself up with a broken cry, clutching her injured arm to her chest. Every movement sent lightning through her nerves, but she staggered forward anyway, barefoot, half-blind, desperate. The night air burned her lungs. The mansion loomed behind her, silent and unmoved, like it had known she would fail.

She made it three steps. Strong hands grabbed her from behind and yanked her back hard.

Solyn was slammed against a tree, bark biting into her spine. Stars burst behind her eyes as Calian stepped into view, his grip iron-tight around her good arm. His face was stripped of all pretense now. He didn't show any calmness or civility at her. Just control held by a thread.

“What,” he said quietly, “were you thinking?”

Solyn laughed, hysterical and broken, tears streaming down her face. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe I didn’t want to be locked in like a dog.”

Calian had his jaw clenched. His gaze flicked to her shoulder, the angle unmistakably wrong.

“You could have died,” he hissed at Solyn for such an attempt to kill herself.

She met his eyes, defiant even as pain wrecked her body. “You didn’t seem concerned about my comfort before. Why start now?”

That was the wrong thing to say. Calian shoved her down.

She screamed as her shoulder hit the ground again, pain exploding so violently it robbed her of sound. Her body curled instinctively, sobs tearing from her chest as she clawed at the grass.

“Don’t touch me,” she begged. “Please. Just don’t.”

“If I don’t,” he snapped, kneeling beside her, “you’ll lose function. Permanently.”

She laughed weakly through tears. “So now you’re worried about my future. That’s new.”

“Stop talking,” he said sharply.

“Oh, I forgot,” she shot back, voice trembling but sharp. “Talking isn’t allowed here. Breathing is optional too, right?

His hands stilled for half a second. Then he repositioned her arm.

“No,” she cried. “Don’t you dare.”

He didn’t warn her. The movement was fast, precise, and cruel. The pain was indescribable.

A scream tore out of Solyn that didn’t sound human, raw and unrestrained, echoing across the ground as the joint snapped back into place. Her vision shattered into white and black as her body convulsed, nausea rolling violently through her.

She collapsed, sobbing, gasping, shaking uncontrollably.

Calian stood abruptly, turning away as if the sight of her undid something he refused to acknowledge.

“Get the car,” he barked into his phone. “Now.”

The drive to the hospital passed in fragments. Solyn stared out the window, tears slipping silently down her cheeks, her body aching with every breath. Calian said nothing. His knuckles were white around the steering wheel.

Soon they reached the hospital. Calian parked his car outside and rushed to pick up Solyn in his arms. A nurse came to attend Solyn and took her to the doctor's cabin in a wheelchair. Solyn felt awkward when Calian picked her like a doll.

The doctor worked quickly, efficiently and detached.

“She’s lucky that she survived such fall,” the doctor said. “No lasting damage but she nneds to take a lot of rest and good supervision." His eyes were on Calian.

Solyn snorted weakly. “Figures.”

Calian’s head snapped toward her. The doctor handed a prescription and Calian passed it to a nurse. Then they moved to a waiting area.

Once they were alone, his restraint snapped.

“Are you proud of yourself?” he demanded. “Jumping from a window like a spoiled child.”

She turned her head slowly, eyes blazing. “And you are locking me in like a psychopath who was supposed to earn my gratitude.”

“You were endangering yourself.” Calian was pissed but hissed at her in a whispering tone.

“You were already doing that for me,” she shot back. “If you’d answered one question instead of treating me like a criminal, I wouldn’t have jumped.” Solyn was sassy and mad at him.

His eyes darkened. “You don’t get explanations.”

“Oh, I see,” she said bitterly. “You only offer threats. Much more efficient.”

He stepped closer, looming. “You think sarcasm makes you brave.”

“I think it’s keeping me sane,” she snapped.

His hand shot out, gripping her chin roughly, forcing her to meet his gaze.

“This,” he whispered, voice low and dangerous, “is me being patient. If you try that again, I won’t be.”

She slapped his hand away.

He stared at her for a long moment, then turned sharply and walked into the doctor’s cabin, slamming the door.

Solyn’s chest heaved. She needed air and a good distance from her father's friends. She slipped off the chair carefully and made her way toward the washroom, her shoulder screaming with every step.

The restroom was empty.

She locked the door behind her, gripping the sink as she breathed through the pain. She barely had time to lift her head before the door slammed open.

A hand clamped around her throat.

She was yanked backward into a stall, the door rattling violently as it closed. Her scream died instantly as pressure crushed her windpipe. Her feet scraped helplessly against the tile as she clawed at the arm, choking her.

Her vision blurred. Then she saw his reflection in the mirror.

The eyes, the same calm, hollow eyes from the metro. Recognition hit her like ice.

His grip tightened.

“Told you,” he murmured near her ear, breath steady, confident, “you wouldn’t escape.”

Her lungs burned as darkness crept in. And then everything went black.