Chapter 19 A FAILED ESCAPE
CHAPTER NINETEEN
GENERAL POV
By the time the car got to a stop before Kane’s mansion, Samantha was already slipping.
She dragged Samantha out of the car with shaking hands, her breath coming fast, eyes darting toward the iron gates like they might give a report she was there….and they did.Samantha’s body hit the cold ground with a dull sound, limp and burning all at once. The heat under her skin was alive, crawling, spreading, punishing her from the inside out.
Kate hesitated for half a second. Then she slammed the door shut and sped off, knowing too well that if she stayed a second longer, she would be caught.
The notice bells rang almost immediately.
Guards rushed out of the building Samantha barely registered their faces as they rushed toward her. What she felt instead was relief. The closer they got, the softer the burning became. Not gone. Never gone. But weakened. The control was working exactly the way it was designed to. Pain as punishment. Distance as mercy.
Her breathing steadied slightly. Her vision cleared just enough for her to understand one cruel thing. She was back. And there was no escape left to imagine.
Strong arms lifted her off the ground. She did not resist. She could not. Her body was exhausted from surviving something it was never meant to endure. The guards moved fast, voices overlapping, boots echoing through the wide hallway.
“Oh my poor child. What did you do to yourself?”
Nanny’s voice broke through the noise like a cracked bell. She came running, her face pale with panic, her hands trembling as she reached for Samantha. Samantha did not open her eyes. She did not cry. She lay still, already bracing herself for what was coming next.
Nanny tried to lift her properly, murmuring soft prayers under her breath, when a familiar cold voice cut through the hallway.
“Where do you think you are taking her to?”
Kane stood at the foot of the stairs, freshly dressed, calm, composed. His eyes flicked to Samantha’s body like she was an object that had been returned damaged.
“What did you do?” Nanny cried. “The girl is draining. She can barely breathe.”
“I know,” Kane replied flatly. “She deserves it.”
The words landed heavier than any blow.
He paused, staring at Samantha for a long moment, then continued,
“Take her to the torture room. She will be dealt with.”
Samantha’s eyes fluttered open.Torture room??
The words echoed louder than the bells, louder than the pain. Her heart thudded weakly against her ribs. Was this not enough? Was the fire that burned her from the inside not payment enough? She had felt death sit beside her already…not another pain but she didn't beg..she couldn't beg and she shouldn't beg. When has her pleas ever mattered?
She would be a fool to say she had not expected this. Kane never stopped halfway.
“Please,” Nanny said, stepping forward desperately. “My dear, she has gone through enough. Whatever she did, she has paid for it already. Let her be.”
Kane’s eyes snapped to her.
“Hey,” he said sharply, pointing a finger at her. “You do not tell me what is enough.”
His voice dropped. “Now.”
The guards obeyed instantly.
They carried Samantha away as if she weighed nothing. Down the corridor. Past the locked doors. Past the place where hope used to live.
And as the doors to the torture wing opened, her last thought was not fear.
It was a disappointment in herself for ever believing she could outrun him.
Thirty minutes earlier.
The room smelled like sweat, blood, and fear.
Seven security men, the gate man, and the CCTV operator were tied to chairs, wrists bound tight behind them. Their faces were swollen, clothes torn, bodies trembling from pain and exhaustion. Some had already lost consciousness only to be woken again by cold water or a slap.
None of them had spoken.
Kane walked in slowly, inhaling deeply, like the air itself pleased him. His eyes moved around the room, lingering on the tools arranged neatly at different corners. Each one waited patiently. Each one promised answers.
“So,” he said calmly, “they still do not want to talk?”
One of the men sobbed softly.
“I am sorry sir,” another whispered. “Please sir. We truly do not know anything. Please sir. I cannot die here.”
Kane smiled faintly and turned his gaze toward the gate man.
Something clicked in his head.
“Bring him.”
The gate man shook violently. “No. No please. Please sir. I swear. I swear.”
They dragged him forward anyway. He was already bleeding, his body barely holding itself together.
Kane crouched in front of him, studying his face like a puzzle.
“I know you did it,” he said gently. “Or you were part of it. I just want to know how and who helped you.”
“No sir. No,” the man cried weakly.
Kane stood up and struck him across the head with the back of his gun.
The scream that followed filled the room.
Blood trickled down the man’s face as his body shook uncontrollably.
“I will ask again,” Kane said calmly. “A finger for every lie.”
“Who are your accomplices?”
“I do not know. I do not,” the man sobbed.
Kane picked up the hammer from the table without breaking eye contact. He grabbed the man’s thumb and brought the hammer down.
The scream was raw. Animal.
“Please. Please no. Please,” the man cried, his voice breaking.
“Me,” he gasped. “Me and the CCTV guy and Josh and Stephan.”
Kane smiled slightly. “Thought you were not involved.”
The man sobbed harder.
“Sad you gave it to me so easily,” Kane said, stepping back.
“And who led it?”
The man hesitated, eyes darting around the room.
Kane raised the hammer again.
“Kate,” the man whispered.
Kane froze.
“Who the hell is Kate?”
One of his men brought forward a phone, showing a picture.
Kane stared at it for a moment. His face showed no recognition.
“I do not know her,” he said coldly.
He straightened. “But let her be….we'll her when it's right. I'm enjoying this and in no rush”
The men sighed in weak relief.
“Kill these ones,” Kane added casually, gesturing to a few of them. “Compensate the rest.”
He turned to leave when another voice cracked through the room.
“It was Savy,” one of the guys to be killed shouted.
“Savy sent Kate. He did. Please. Please do not kill us.”
Kane stopped.
Something dark ignited in his eyes. He reached for his gun.
The shots were loud. Final. He emptied the magazine without hesitation, then turned and walked out, leaving silence and bodies behind.