BXBX NOVEL Chapter 78: A Blur Of Pain And Darkness
His old Southside apartment. He had came here subconsciously. It still in a way, felt like home. He groaned in pain. The strength that usually surged within him was gone, leaving him feeling hollow and weak. Each breath he had to take was a struggle, his body aching with an intensity he had never felt before.
He had no vitality left, and the lack of it made him acutely aware of his vulnerability.
I\'m not dead! He mustered a smile as his hands ghosted over his body, searching for his phone. He had to call Gen and Olivia. After searching fruitlessly, he gave up.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed, gritting his teeth as he forced himself to stand. The room spun around him, and he clutched the edge of a rickety dresser for support. His vision swam, but he couldn\'t afford to collapse. He had to get out of here.
He shuffled forward, every step a monumental effort. The apartment was just as he remembered it. Small and cluttered. He moved slowly, each step sending jolts of pain through his body.
He opened the door and walked down the hallway to his final opponent. The stairs. He gripped the railing tightly, his knuckles turning white as he descended one agonizing step at a time. His legs trembled, threatening to give out beneath him, but he forced himself to continue. Sweat dripped down his face, and his breaths came in ragged gasps.
He reached the bottom of the staircase, pausing to catch his breath. The effort of moving had drained what little energy he had left, but he couldn\'t stop now. He stumbled towards the front door, his hand shaking as he turned the knob and pulled it open.
The outside world greeted him with a harsh, glaring light that made him squint. He stepped out onto the cracked pavement, his body screaming in protest. The sun was setting, casting long shadows across the street. The familiar sights and sounds of Southside filled his senses, grounding him in the present.
Just as he took a moment to steady himself, a figure emerged from the shadows. Tall and imposing, with an air of arrogance that seemed to radiate from him, Hadron Kane stood before him. The Three Axe gang member in charge of Ezra\'s debt. His eyes gleamed with a dangerous light, and a smirk played on his lips.
"Well, well, look who decided to come back to Southside." Hadron said, his voice dripping with mockery. "I thought you\'d be dead by now, Ezra. I don\'t know what you did last time, but it wouldn\'t work today."
Fuck. Ezra\'s heart sank. Of all the people to run into, Hadron was the last one he wanted to see. He had no strength left to fight or run. All he could do was stand there, his body trembling from the effort of just staying upright.
Hadron stepped closer, his smirk widening. "You owe me, remember? And I think it\'s time you started paying up."
Ezra clenched his fists, trying to summon some semblance of his usual defiance. But without his vitality, he was at Hadron\'s mercy. The realization of his powerlessness hit him hard, and he fought to keep his fear from showing.
"Boys!" Hadron called out and his smirk widened as his posse emerged from the shadows, surrounding Ezra with a predatory eagerness. They moved with practiced efficiency, grabbing his arms and binding his wrists with rough ropes. Ezra struggled weakly, but his strength was gone, leaving him powerless against their grip.
"Easy there, Ezra," Hadron taunted, his voice a sneer. "Wouldn\'t want you to hurt yourself before we have our fun."
Ezra\'s mind raced, the throbbing pain in his body a constant reminder of his vulnerability. He felt an insistent, primal urge rising within him. The urge to bite, to drink their blood and regain his strength. But he forced it down, remembering the Law of Secrecy. To reveal his true nature, to feed openly, would bring a swift death. Not just to him but to Olivia and Gen.
Shit. He cursed. I can\'t do it.
The gang members dragged him down the street, their laughter echoing off the buildings. Ezra tried to walk, to keep some semblance of dignity, but his legs were weak and unsteady. Each step was a struggle, and he stumbled frequently, earning jeers and rough shoves from his captors.
They led him to an old, abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of Southside, a place that reeked of decay and disuse. The large metal door creaked open, and they shoved him inside, the darkness swallowing him whole. He was pushed into the center of the room, and he collapsed to his knees, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Welcome to your new home, Ezra," Hadron said, his voice echoing in the empty space. "Hope you like it here. You\'ll be staying for a while."
Ezra looked around, trying to gather his bearings. The warehouse was dimly lit by a few flickering bulbs hanging from the ceiling. The air was thick with dust and the smell of rusting metal. His captors formed a loose circle around him, their expressions gleeful and expectant.
Hadron stepped forward, his face twisted in a cruel grin. "It\'s been a long time coming, hasn\'t it? Time to pay up for all those debts. We\'re going to have some fun."
Ezra\'s body screamed in protest as Hadron\'s fist connected with his stomach. He doubled over, gasping for air, but another blow caught him on the side of the head, sending him sprawling to the ground. The posse joined in, kicking and punching with unrestrained brutality.
Pain exploded in his ribs, his vision swimming with each impact. He tried to curl into a ball, to protect himself, but the assault was relentless. Every instinct screamed at him to fight back, to bite and tear and drink, but he kept his teeth clenched. He remembered Gen and Olivia. I can\'t do that to them.
The beating seemed to go on forever, the minutes stretching into an eternity of agony. Hadron\'s laughter rang in his ears, a cruel soundtrack to his suffering. Ezra\'s thoughts grew hazy, the world around him fading into a blur of pain and darkness.
"That\'s enough for now," Hadron finally said, his voice distant and echoing. "Don\'t want to kill him just yet. We\'ve got plenty of time for that."
Ezra felt himself being dragged again, his body limp and unresponsive. They threw him into a corner, his head striking the concrete floor with a sickening thud. He tried to focus, to keep his eyes open, but the effort was too much.
The last thing he saw before the darkness claimed him was Hadron\'s satisfied grin, the promise of more torment in his eyes.