Page 53 of The Hollowed
The neckline of her shirt shifted, exposing the faint bloom of bruises along her throat, remnants of the night they weren’t supposed to share.
Alex’s gut clenched as the guard’s eyes narrowed and a cruel smirk tugged at his mouth. “Is that a bruise?” His gaze shifted to Alex. “Or have you been playing with our precious cargo?”
The words hit like a punch straight to Alex’s gut. His fists tightened at his sides as he stopped himself from taking aim at the man’s jaw and wiping the smirk off right off his face. But he didn’t move, he couldn’t. Not with rifles pointed at them.
Still, the look he responded with promised one thing. If they survived this place, Alex wouldn’t forget.
The lead guard’s smirk widened. “Make a note of that,” he said, nodding toward Luci’s neck. Another soldier scribbled something on his pad in silence.
“Continue,” the guard ordered.
Alex’s pulse quickened as Luci bent down and unlaced her boots carefully before slipping them off. Then she unbuttoned her pants and tugged them down. Alex clenched his jaw as fury coursed through him. The guards were watching her like wolves circling prey, and he wanted nothing more than to pound into their smug faces. But he forced himself to remain still even as his fists balled so tight that his nails bit into his palms.
Luci stood there in her shirt, barefoot on the cold floor, hesitating. Alex caught the way she froze, and he instantly knew why.
He knew what they’d see if her shirt came off.
The guard noticed the pause too. “I said continue,” he repeated, the corner of his mouth twitching in amusement.
“Enough,” Alex snapped as he stepped forward. “She’s not infected. If she were, she wouldn’t be standing here. You don’t need to do this.”
The rifles in the room tilted toward him in warning. The lead guard didn’t flinch. “Back off,” he said flatly.
Alex swallowed a lump in his throat, feeling the weight of every weapon pointed at him. He turned to Luci and found her eyes on him, urging him without words to hold back. His teeth ground together, then, before he could stop it, she pulled in a breath and lifted her shirt.
The room erupted.
The bite stood out against her skin, unmistakable and undeniable.
“Shit!” one of the guards shouted as he jerked his rifle up, aiming towards Luci.
“Take that one to isolation, now!” the lead guard yelled.
“No!” Alex’s voice tore out of him as he pushed forward. “You don’t understand, she’s not infected! It’s the vaccine. We have the vaccine!”
Luna’s growl broke into frantic barks, and she lunged forward before another guard yanked her back.
“Stand down,” the guard snarled. “We either take her to isolation, or we kill her here. It’s your choice.”
Alex froze, he wanted to tear them all apart, but the gun aimed at her head stopped him cold. He looked at Luci’s pale face. Her hands were bound by the guard’s grip, and the helpless expression on her face threatened to break him.
“Alex!” she screamed as the guards dragged her toward the door.
His throat burned. “Just do what they say!” he shouted back in desperation. “I’ll find you as soon as I can.”
They shoved him back and pressed their rifles to his chest until the door slammed shut.
The silence that followed was deafening.
“If you so much as lay a finger on her,” Alex growled at the lead guard, “you’ll wish you never met me.”
The man let out a laugh and tilted his rifle casually against his shoulder. “Big words,” he mocked. “And what if we do? You’ve clearly had a little fun with her. Why shouldn’t we?”
The words hit Alex like a spark against dry wood. He lunged with teeth bared, prepared to tear the bastard apart before he could finish whatever sick thought he had about Luci.
“Get him!” the guard ordered as he stepped back just in time.
Two rifles slammed into Alex’s chest, shoving him back against the wall. Gloved hands grabbed at his arms and locked them in place. He fought anyway, swinging with abandon, wanting to make them bleed. But the numbers were against him. The cold press of steel bit into his ribs and forced him to stop.