All Chapters of When Innocence Burns: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Twenty-One: The Savior’s LieZacian POVThe observation room hummed with the low buzz of monitors, but my focus locked on the one-way glass. Cecilia slumped in that godforsaken chair, her body a map of fresh torment. Phase two had just ended, but the echoes of it still vibrated in the air. I watched the replay in my mind, matching the memory to the visual of her battered form. I remembered the way Marco had snapped those black clamps onto her ribs, the cruel precision of it.She had tried to laugh it off, calling it a static shock, but the reality had been written all over her face when the current hit. Then the second jolt, the one where she screamed until her voice broke, had twisted something deep in my gut.She was trembling in the chair now, the aftermath of the violence leaving her muscles twitching. Her damp shirt clung to every curve like a second skin, outlining the heave of her breasts

Twenty-Three: Off-ScriptRyker POVThe door to the observation room had barely clicked shut behind Marco, Hendrix, and Chris when the boss turned back to the glass. His shoulders tensed under that crisp black shirt. On the monitor, Cecilia’s sobs echoed faintly, her body slumped in the chair. Those zip ties cut into her wrists, mocking her fragility.I’d seen a lot of breaks in this line of work. Grown men folded like cheap suits under less pressure. But hers hit different. It was raw, unfiltered, the kind that clawed at something buried deep. But it was the boss’s reaction that had my gut twisting. His jaw clenched, eyes locked on her like she was the only thing in the room worth a damn.“She’s done,” I said, keeping my voice even. I leaned against the console, arms crossed. The screens flickered with replays of her screams from phase two, the way her shirt clung t

Twenty Five: Leverage or Lust?Zacian POVThe elevator hummed upward, a smooth ascent through the steel heart of my tower, but the air inside felt thick, charged like the moments before a storm breaks. Cecilia nestled against me, her slight frame cradled in my arms, every breath she took syncing with the pounding in my chest. The soaked pajama top clung to her like a second skin, the thin, wispy fabric translucent under the soft glow of the overhead light, revealing the perfect outline of her breasts. No bra to hide the dusky peaks of her nipples, hardened from the chill or the lingering shock of her ordeal.My gaze dropped involuntarily, tracing the way the pink material molded to her ribs, the faint shadow of her navel dipping lower where the fabric hiked slightly before it met the waistband of her pajama bottoms. Those soft pants hugged her like a lover’s grip, the fabric stretched taut over her hips an

 Chapter Twenty-Seven: Testing Limitations Cecilia POV The door clicked shut behind him, the heavy thud echoing like a gavel striking a sounding block. I stood there for a full minute, staring at the wood grain, waiting for him to burst back in and tell me it was all some twisted joke.   He didn't.   The silence of the penthouse settled around me, heavy and expensive. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and looked around the room that was apparently my prison cell for the foreseeable future.   Master Suite.   It was ridiculous. The bed was big enough to host a small orgy, the sheets were silk that probably cost more than my car, and the bathroom looked like a spa

Twenty-Nine: Scars and SilenceZacian POVI woke up to the sound of silence. It wasn't the silence of an empty house, which I was used to. It was the silence of a held breath. The penthouse felt different. Smaller. Clogged with the scent of vanilla and something soft, like wildflowers, that was definitely her. I sat up, swinging my legs over the edge of the couch. My back cracked, a reminder that I wasn't twenty anymore. Sleeping on a sofa, even a leather one worth five grand, wasn't ideal. I scrubbed a hand over my face, the stubble rough against my palm. Across the room, the bed was a mountain of silk and duvet. Cecilia was buried in the center, a lump under the covers, only a spill of strawberry blond hair visible against the dark pillows. I stared at her for a minute, just watchi