Chapter 32
Chapter 32
Cages
Judith
The car was dark. Black seats. Black windows. Black everywhere. It felt like I was shut inside a box.
Maxwell sat next to me. His face was bloody, his shirt torn. He looked alive but broken. Soldiers moved outside, shouting into radios, boots hitting hard.
All of them… his.
I pressed my head on the glass. It was cold. My arms felt empty. My ears still rang with Caleb’s crying.
“My son,” I whispered. “Where is he?”
Maxwell’s jaw moved. He didn’t look at me. He just stared out.
“He’s safe.”
I laughed, but it sounded ugly. “Safe? Safe with who? Those men? Your men? What are they, Maxwell? Guards? Killers? What?”
His eyes turned on me. Green. Hot. Sharp. “Mine.”
That word cut me.
Mine.
Everything was his. The soldiers. The cars. Even this night.
“Judith,” he said lower now. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
But my son wasn’t with me. That was hurt enough.
⸻
Caleb
The car smelled funny. Like metal. Like rubber. Not like Mommy’s car.
He had cried so much his eyes burned. His nose was wet. His dinosaur hoodie was wet too.
The soldier held him tight. Too tight. Caleb’s legs kicked, but the man didn’t move. He didn’t say anything.
“I want Mommy!” Caleb yelled. His voice cracked. “I want her!”
No answer. Just silence.
Then the door opened.
Aunt Lila came in.
Her perfume hit first, sweet and strong. She smiled, all teeth.
“Hey, champ,” she said. “Don’t cry. Aunt Lila’s here.”
Caleb sniffed. His chest hurt. “Where’s Mommy?”
Lila’s smile twitched. Her eyes turned sharp, just for a blink. Then she laughed fake, brushing his hair back.
“Mommy’s busy. You’ll stay with me for now.”
Caleb looked down, sniffing. Aunt Lila gave candy sometimes. She played games. But Mommy was different. Mommy hugged when the monsters came in dreams.
“I want Mommy,” he whispered.
Lila’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Forget her.”
⸻
Judith
The car slowed down. My stomach dropped.
Big gates rose in front of us. Black iron. Tall. Guards with guns standing still.
The gates opened with a loud groan.
Inside, the world was too shiny. Bright lights. Big fountains. Marble walls. Soldiers everywhere.
Not a home. A cage. A big one.
The car stopped. A soldier pulled the door open.
“Out.”
I stepped down. My heels hit the ground hard. My knees shook.
Maxwell came out after me. He touched my back. I jumped away.
“Don’t,” I said.
His jaw clenched. He didn’t speak.
The gates shut behind us with a slam.
I was trapped.
⸻
Caleb
Aunt Lila’s car stopped too. But not at the same house. This one was smaller. Darker.
She pulled him out, her nails scratching his arm. She carried him inside.
The hall smelled strange. Too clean. No toys. No Daddy.
“Where’s Daddy?” Caleb asked, voice small.
“Daddy will come later,” she said.
She took him to a room with white sheets, too white, too stiff. She set him down on the bed.
Her hands grabbed his face. Her nails pressed his skin. Her smile was gone now.
“Listen,” she whispered. Her voice was sharp. “You’re mine now. Do you hear? Mine.”
Caleb blinked. His heart pounded. “But… Mommy—”
Her nails dug deeper. “Forget her.”
⸻
Judith
Maxwell walked me into the mansion. The lights burned my eyes. The floors were too shiny. Soldiers nodded like this was normal.
I wanted to scream.
“Where is my son?” I turned, shouting at him. “Where is Caleb?”
Maxwell’s eyes darkened. He opened his mouth.
Then a soldier ran in. He stood stiff, saluted.
“Sir,” he said. “The boy has been transferred.”
Transferred.
The word slammed into me.
My legs shook. My vision swam.
“Transferred where?!” My scream broke the air.
The soldier didn’t even look at me. He stared only at Maxwell.
And Maxwell’s face… went blank.
Cold.
Like he didn’t know either.
My heart dropped. My breath caught in my chest.
If he didn’t know… then who did?
The walls around me felt tighter. The air felt heavy. My hands shook so hard I had to press them against my dress.
I wanted to run. I wanted to tear through the gates. To find Caleb myself.
But I couldn’t move. I was trapped.
And somewhere out there… my son was alone.
In whose hands?
...................
Judith
The room was too big. Too bright. White walls, empty and cold. A long table sat in the center. Food waited, meat steaming, bread stacked, wine shining in a glass.
But my stomach was tight. I could not eat. I could barely breathe.
I sat in the chair. My hands shook on my lap. My head hung low. Silence pressed heavy on me.
“My boy,” I whispered. The words scraped my throat
Every second away from him made me burn. Every second made me hate Maxwell more. His men had torn Caleb from me. His enemies wanted me dead. Now I sat here, locked in a rich cage, while my son cried somewhere else.