a/n: I don't usually do this because I don't want to spoil anything, but this chapter has highly sensitive content revolving around abuse, so be warned. I care about my readers and I don't want to trigger anyone so make sure to scroll to the end of the chapter if you want to skip it. :)

Elena

When I enter the gym to find my brother, I notice one of the superiors holding Alex by his collar, seemingly threatening him. Anger instantly courses through me and I pull out my knife, pacing toward them, ready to fight. I grab the superior's shoulder, making him release my brother and turn around, pressing the knife blade against his throat, making him widen his eyes in horror.

"Well, look who it is. Hello Eric," I say with a fake smile, taking in his frightened expression. "Touch my brother one more time and I'll slit your throat."

All attention seems to be on us as a group of people piles around the three of us, watching the scene with interest. Eric, the very familiar superior I used to have many fights with pulls his lips in a smirk and lifts his hands in surrender. "Ahh Elena, it's been so long. I see you're more bold now." He glances at the knife in my hand. "You know, Seth won't be here to protect you all the time, remember that."

"He doesn't protect me, I do," I reply. "Pull shit like this one more time and it's game over for you, remember that." I lower my weapon, motioning for Alex to follow me as I leave the gym.

"Whoa, that was amazing, but you know you might get in trouble later Lenny, maybe you should've let him punish me, I don't mind-" Alex starts.

I stop walking and point my finger at him. "I will never let them touch a single hair on your head, is that clear? Don't ever repeat that again, I don't care what happens to me. Besides, they're all afraid to touch me because of Seth and as much as I hate to admit it, it goes to my advantage."

Ever since we came back to Vortex things have been the same as they were before, with me having to spend time with Seth and Alex being a regular soldier. However, Seth is more protective of me than ever, always having someone to watch my every move when he's gone in case I try to run away again. I'm forced to help him with planning the attacks since apparently no one has a better strategy than I do, but I make sure to lie and make poor plans with loopholes so Vortex doesn't stand a chance. I'm working in Hazard's favour even when I'm not there.

When Alex and I left Hazard, we decided we won't leave, but we had only two options if we were to stay. One was becoming deserters which immediately put our lives in more danger and the second option was joining our uncle. We chose the latter, but we never made it to Wildfire, getting attacked by Vortex soldiers waiting for us at the border.

"I don't know why you let them treat you that way. Punch them, kick them, rip their dicks off if you're able to actually find them," I tell him.

He laughs. "That's not me Elena, that's you. I hate violence, you know that. And I know what you're gonna say, how can I let them be violent to me. I guess I'm just used to it."

I place my hand on his shoulder. "Always fight, Alex. Never let them see you weak, never let them treat you how they want. Fight for yourself."

Alex's brown eyes look at mine as his lips form a sad smile. "I love you, Lenny." He wraps his arms around me tightly.

I don't hesitate to return the gesture, a small smile making its way to my lips. "I love you too, Alex."

. . . .

A stern frown settles on my face as I start making my way to the mess hall, making sure everyone sees I'm in no mood to talk so they don't try to approach me. I can feel someone following me, but I don't put much thought into it since I know it's one of Seth's loyal watch dogs, only rolling my eyes.

A hand suddenly clamps over my mouth and pulls me back harshly while more hands grab my arms, preventing me from fighting. I struggle, trying to tear my arms from their grip, using my legs to kick them, but to no avail. There seems to be four attackers, each of them a man. I open my mouth and harshly bite the hand pressed over my mouth, making the attacker groan and pull it away.

"Calm down poppet, we just want to talk," one of them says, making me shoot him a glare, noticing a pleased smirk on his face as he winks at me, his grip on my arm painful.

"Where are you taking me?" I demand as they start pulling me harshly, my attempts to fight them off proving to be futile. In reality, I can't fight off all four of them, but I can always try.

They take away my guns and knives tucked into my belt, leaving me without any weapons. I struggle as much as I can as they drag me all the way to the cell building, making me realise where this is going, shivers running down my spine. I haven't been in a solitary confinement for so long, the memories of being locked in there flashing before my eyes, making anxiety crawl its way into my mind.

I'm being dragged through a familiar dimly lit, cold hallway, my eyes glancing at the cells on each side, seeing people locked in in some of them. When we reach the grey metal door at the hallway's end, one of the soldiers holding me unlocks it while the rest of them pull me in yet another hallway, filled with more metal doors. I'm being pushed into one of the solitary cells, watching as the four of them lock the door.

When I look ahead, I notice Eric, the superior I had a fight with earlier, his menacing eyes and smirk showing me how amusing this is for him. I glance around me as five men surround me like predators around their prey, my muscles tensing as I prepare to defend myself, itching to grab the only weapon I have with me aka my pocket knife in my boot.

"I think you and I both know where this is going, so I suggest you don't put up too much fight, you'll only make it worse," Eric says, glancing at the other four. "Undress her."

My eyes widen at his words and I bend down, pulling out my knife in the blink of an eye, cutting the hand of one of them, turning around as they begin approaching me. They all attack me at the same time, two of them grabbing my hands, the other one standing behind my back and holding my hips while hooking his leg over mine to prevent me from kicking the one standing in front of me, who starts to unzip my jacket.

"No!" I shout as one of them rips my knife from me, throwing it away. They manage to take my jacket off, releasing me for a second, giving me a chance to elbow one of them in the face and kick the other one in his crotch before they seize me again. The one I elbowed slaps me, my head whipping to the side from the impact, my cheek stinging.

"Such a feisty one, it was always fun punishing you," Eric tells me. "How lucky I am Seth is gone again, leaving the base to me. If you think he will do something about this later, think again. He needs every soldier he can have at the moment."

"It's funny how you think Seth is the one you should be afraid of," I say harshly. "It's me, not him."

The soldiers push me down onto my knees harshly, two of them holding my shoulders and pinning my legs to the ground with their feet while the other two hold my arms, each spread widely to the side. Eric approaches me and winks, my eyes noticing a whip in his hand, my heart slamming painfully. He stands behind me and I feel his hands brush my neck, making me wince. He suddenly rips my shirt in half, tearing it completely and letting it drop on the ground, leaving me in nothing but my bra.

"Ah, look at that canvas," he says, his fingers trailing the lines on my back and I arch it, wanting to get away from his disgusting touch, making the soldiers tighten their grips. "Time to paint some more. Ten strikes for threatening me and five more for putting a fight."

My chest is heaving as I hear him take a few steps back, my eyes closing as I silently brace myself for what's to come. A sheen of sweat has already formed on my skin and I once again try to free myself before a harsh sting on my back makes me release a scream. I clench my jaw and grit my teeth, making a silent promise to myself I won't give him the satisfaction to hear me scream again.

My body jerks forward as he strikes me again, creating yet another tear on the damaged skin of my back, my eyes filling with tears from the throbbing pain. I can't help but release soft, quiet yelps whenever the whip strikes me, mentally counting each strike, every new one somehow being less painful than the last one.

When the last few strikes come, I stop fighting and fall limp in the soldier's hands, my body drained and weak, my mind slightly hazy. They finally release me as Eric strikes me for the last time and I slump on the floor, looking up at him as he crouches down. Anger courses through me as I refuse to let him see me like this, using the little strength I have left to push myself up. My back feels like it's on fire, my blood staining the ground beneath me, each of my moves being almost excruciatingly painful.

Eric grips my jaw harshly, his cold steel eyes looking straight into mine. "Let this be a lesson to you. But then again, you never learn so I'm pretty sure we'll see each other real soon."

I raise my palm to strike him, but he catches it, making me spit in his face. "I hope you choke."

"Dirty talk, hm?" He taunts as he wipes his face with his sleeve, suddenly pushing me onto my back and making me suck in a sharp breath at the contact of the hard floor with my bleeding sensitive skin.

"Let's have some fun since you seem to be in the mood, shall we?" He makes a signal to the other four soldiers and they grab my arms, trying to keep me in place as Eric suddenly comes above me, making me widen my eyes in absolute horror at the realisation what he is about to do. When I hear him unzip his pants, I feel a bile rising in my throat.

"Get off me!" I shout, desperately trying to free myself as the other two soldiers grab my legs, spreading them wide, allowing him to settle himself between them. "Don't touch me- no!"

"There you go, I knew I could make you scream," his malicious voice says as I feel him meddle with my pants and make a tear at their front, beginning to pull them down my legs. I trash and yell desperately, scraping my wounds with my every move as tears start collecting in my eyes.

He forces his mouth onto mine and I bite his lip as hard as I can, feeling the metallic taste of his blood in my mouth, making me spit it right at his face. He groans loudly and slaps me in anger, but I barely feel any pain, it being minuscule to the one expanding on my back.

"I always wondered why is Seth so fucking obsessed with you. I can see why." He grips my hips and I fight as hard as I can. "Maybe this will teach you to be a good girl."

When his hand pulls down my underwear, a loud scream rips through my throat, my head feeling like the world around me is spinning, a gag leaving my mouth. In the midst of it all, I make eye contact with one of the soldiers, barely seeing him from the tears blurring my vision, hoping he will feel at least an ounce of compassion for me and stop this.

"Uh, Eric we don't have time for this," the soldier suddenly says.

"I'll be quick," he snaps at him, his hands groping my body wherever he can, leaving marks and bruises over my skin as I faintly register him pushing down his pants and underwear.

"No. . ." I mumble, my chest rising and falling heavily, my strength almost evaporating. I turn my head and stop struggling, making the soldiers holding me loosen their grips, giving me a chance to fight again and kick one of them with my leg before they grab me again, their fingernails digging into my skin, surely drawing blood.

"Seriously, Seth will be back any second now," the same soldier says.

Eric groans in frustration as he glares at the soldier who releases me and takes a step back, making all the others do the same, my arms and legs falling limply on the ground, a dull ache settled in my muscles, especially on my sensitive back. Eric suddenly stands up and pulls up his pants, his eyes glaring down at me.

"You're one lucky bitch," he spits. "This is not over, I can assure you we'll see each other real soon."

I turn my head and watch the five of them turn their backs on me and leave the room, locking the door behind them. I lie half naked on the ground, being completely drained and motionless for a few minutes before forcing myself to sit up, my every move feeling like I'm burning alive, my muscles protesting painfully.

I adjust my underwear and ripped pants, having nothing but my jacket to cover myself since my shirt is torn. My chest feels empty and my tears stop flowing down my cheeks, making me realise I'm in a state of shock. Being too weak to stand up, I crawl toward the corner of the room, grabbing my jacket and very slowly put it on, hissing at the smallest of movements. I also take my knife, pushing it back into my boot.

I look down at my shaking hands, letting my mind process what I've been through in the past half an hour, feeling a lump forming in my throat as my breathing picks up. My stomach suddenly twists and contracts, making me empty its contents on the ground beside me. I start coughing dryly, raising my shaky hand to wipe my chin, my throat burning.

I lie down on the side since I'm too weak to sit. If I stay locked here for too long, there's a chance I won't get out alive, so I pray mentally for my body to endure it. Nothing but silence surrounds me and I lose the concept of time, focusing on my breathing to distract myself. My hand is gripping the ring- his ring hanging around my neck, its shape imprinting into my skin.

"Hey," a male voice suddenly says, making me flinch.

"No no, please no. . ." I manage to whisper, my voice being too quiet for anyone but me to hear. I try to move, but my body refuses to listen, my limbs feeling heavy. I remember my knife, reaching down to grab it, no matter how painful it is.

"I heard you're locked up again, so I had to come here," he continues. "It's been a while and you might not remember me but we used to talk a lot while you were here."

"Help m- I need. . ." I whisper, letting out a painful cough. "Help me," I repeat weakly.

"Wait, are you okay?" He asks, his voice slightly panicked. "Elena?" A small window on the door suddenly slides open, but I can't see the man behind it, my droopy eyelids closing. "Oh my God."

The world becomes a bunch of blurry images and faint echoes as my consciousness starts drifting away. I manage to register someone picking me up in their arms and carrying me away before everything around me fades.

. . . .

My heavy eyelids suddenly open, the brightness of the room making me squint and release a quiet groan. When I move, I feel pain slash through me, the source being on my back. I feel disoriented at first, my eyebrows drawing in confusion as my eyes glance around me. I'm in the infirmary, lying on my hip on one of the beds, feeling like the skin on my back is burning.

"Lenny? Oh my God, Lenny!" I hear Alex's voice followed by him appearing beside me, his worried brown eyes looking down at me. "D- does it hurt a lot? I need to call the doctor you're- you're in pain."

"Shh," I mumble, my hand grabbing his. "I'm fine. . . what-" Before I can ask why am I here, disturbing images from earlier flash before my eyes, making my heart rate quicken and slight panic to take over me. "They- he tried-"

"I know, I'm so sorry," Alex says, his voice cracking as he squeezes my hand, his warm palm stroking the top of my head. "They won't get away with it, Lenny, I promise."

"Don't you dare," I tell him. "Don't you dare do anything Alex, if something happens to you, I won't be able to live with it-"

"Calm down, I won't," he says reassuringly and I notice his eyes are slightly glossy. "I think there's some pain killer in this thing-" he points to the infusion flowing into my body "-but if the pain is too strong, I'll ask the doctor to give you something stronger." He turns his head and looks away.

"Alex, are you okay?"

"You're the one with severe wounds all over your body and you're asking me if I'm okay? For once in your life Elena, think about yourself, stop putting me first," Alex tells me softly and sniffles. "It's going to get you killed one day and I can't have that."

I open my mouth to protest, but he points a finger at me, making me shut it instantly, a small smile appearing on my lips. "It's my fault. . ." Alex whispers. "You got punished because of me again. You had to go through that again! I- I pissed him off earlier, refusing to help him with training the younger soldiers so he took it out on you. I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, how could this be your fault when he's the one that chooses to do this to people? I'll make him pay, I can assure you in that," I say. "Wait, did you say again? So you know about. . ."

"I know you took that punishment for me years ago Elena, I'm not stupid. I never said anything because I knew you didn't want me to know about it in the first place. I'll never forgive myself for it." He sighs heavily, raising his palm to stop me from talking. "Don't."

I squeeze his hand, a sudden thought rushing through my head. "Wait, Alex. . . there was someone- a guy. He saved me I think, who was it?"

"I don't know, when I came, there was no one here," Alex replies. "I can ask around, I think I want to thank the hero-"

"Elena?" Seth's panicked voice is heard before his body appears beside me in second, his frantic blue green eyes searching my face. "Are you- no no, what-"

"Your fucking superiors did this!" Alex snaps at him, releasing my hand and moving toward him. "They whipped her and torn her skin, and as if that wasn't enough, you know what they did next?"

"Alex-" I start, not wanting a reminder as more images flash before my eyes. His menacing smirk, their laughter, their hands over my body, his hands undressing me and touching me. I grimace, my insides turning at the thought.

"They tried to- to. . . ugh, I can't even say it!" He yells, pushing at his chest, making him stumble a few steps backwards. "So don't you come in here and pretend you're worried when it's your fault this happened!"

There's pure shock written on Seth's face before his features contort in anger. "I'll find all of them. And when I do, they'll regret it, Elena-" he looks at me "-I promise. I'm so sorry, you know I would never let that happen to you."

"If anyone should make them regret it, it should be me," I tell him harshly. "So if you really want to help, you'll let them live until I recover."

He hesitates for a few moments before nodding once. "Alright, I'll do it." He makes a few steps toward me, but Alex puts a hand on his shoulder, making Seth glare at him. He brushes his hand off and walks toward me, a deep frown forming on my face as I look away. "I'll- you'll make them pay, Elena. I'm so sorry. I. . . I love you, you know I do."

"Bitch, are you for real?" Alex asks angrily, letting out a sarcastic laugh.

"I want to be alone," I say flatly, glancing at Seth. He nods and reluctantly takes a step back before leaving the room.

I know that Seth is in love with me, I've always known. I've known him since we were little kids and we even became really close friends at one point of our childhood.  That friendship had vanished when Seth began looking at me differently and what we had turned into a strictly physical relationship later. He hated the way our uncle treated me despite me being his family, allowing his soldiers to punish me in any way they want.  In a way, I know Seth didn't take over Vortex just for power, he did it for me. But his obsession with me and wrong desires clouded his judgment and he became what he is today.

Alex glares at Seth as he leaves before shifting his gaze at me, the anger on his features disappearing. "Oh man, did you see me? I didn't even stutter or anything, hell yeah!" He says cheerfully, a grin forming on his face.

"My hero," I say with a soft smile, suddenly feeling tired, probably the result of the medicine I got.

"I'll leave you to rest," Alex says as he walks toward me, leaning down to kiss my forehead. "I'll try to find out who is your mystery knight in shining armour. Do you have any idea who might he be?"

"No. . ." I know he is the same person who would keep me company whenever I was locked and he came to visit me once again today. I can't believe he even remembers me, a small smile twisting my lips at the thought. "But he and I go way back."

. . . .

a/n: thank you for +100k reads, ily all xx