Cadence usually dreaded waking up when something bad had happened; she hated that space between wake and dream when she knew she was on the precipice of pain but couldn’t quite remember why. This time, things were different, however. When she awoke, she had no recollection whatsoever of what had happened or where she should be, not until she tried to roll over. Then she realized her hands were restrained, and it all came crashing back around her. She opened her eyes to find herself in a poorly lit room laying on what appeared to be some sort of antique gurney, her hands strapped down beside her. She was thankful the bag was gone from over her head, but the scene around her was not a welcome sight.
Across the room, she could see what looked like a steel jail cell. In it, chained to the wall with two hand manacles, was a monstrosity she could only assume were the remains of Gibbon. His face was contorted so that he was barely recognizable, the animal like growl sketched on his face, his fangs protruding from his mouth so that it appeared he couldn’t even keep it closed. He was only wearing black shorts, and his muscles had stretched and strained against his skin in such a way it appeared as if his body were pulsating with each flex of his physique. Pulling against the chains like a dog chained to a post, he paced back and forth the few steps that he could manage, clearly agitated in every way possible.
On the floor just out of Gibbon’s reach, Cadence could see the body of a man. It looked like he had been wearing a suit at one point, but in its tattered and filthy condition, it was hard to tell. This must be Dixon, she thought. It was impossible to tell if he was still alive or not from this angle. Cadence thought no matter what Giovani had in store for her, surely it couldn’t be as bad as this man’s plight.
She heard chatter, both on her IAC and from the other side of the room. She was able to ascertain from the conversation that Aaron and Christian were desperately searching for the elusive tunnel opening by the light of Cale’s helicopters, that Aurora was closing in on Howard on Jeweler’s Row, and that Jamie had given Cassidy the Transformation Serum, and she was resting.
Cadence only had time to let them know she was okay before she was forced to give her attention to Giovani who had crossed the room and was standing next to her now. “Shut up, Zabrina,” he said over his shoulder. “This is my operation. You let me make the decisions.”
“They will find us,” Zabrina warned. “It’s just a matter of time.”
“And when they do, Gibbon will be ready.” He turned his attention to Cadence now. Standing over her, shadows playing off of his fangs and his steel gray eyes, it was hard for her to focus. She pulled up against the restraints, but whatever they were, they were strong, and she couldn’t budge.
“Well, if it isn’t our lovely Miss Cadence. You are a little early, my sweet. Gibbon over there isn’t quite ready to be unleashed to the world just yet. No matter. He is still ready to dispatch you.”
Giovani flipped her gurney up so that she was almost vertical and walked over toward Gibbon’s cage. “Steven,” he called. “Look who is here! It’s your step-mother, Barbara. Do you see her over there?” Giovani asked, gesturing at Cadence. “Do you remember the bad, bad things she used to do to you?” Gibbon pulled against the chains and growled. “Do you remember how she used to touch you? How she used to tell you not to tell your father or else she would do the same to your little brother? Do you remember the times she came into your room late at night while you were sleeping?”
With each word, Gibbon grew more and more angry, straining against the chains and roaring like a wild animal. “Now is the time, Steven,” Giovani said, grabbing the bars of the cage and sticking his face through. “Now is the day you will get vengeance at last!”
Those words evoked a battle cry from the beast, and pieces of brick crumbled to the ground from around the shackles.
Giovani laughed maniacally and stepped back away from the cage. “Nina!” he yelled in the direction of a narrow hallway Cadence could barely see to her right. There was also a door on the other side of the room, behind Giovani, which Cadence could only assume was the tunnel.
“Nina isn’t here,” Zabrina reminded him. She was standing with her arms crossed, over toward the hallway, far back from Gibbon and Giovani. “Everyone left as soon as they saw that creature, everyone except for Dalton, and he is upstairs keeping watch.”
Giovani’s face fell. “They left? Why would they do that? Don’t they want to be a part of the coup? Don’t they want to claim their place in history?”
“What they want is to survive—and not be ripped to shreds by that… thing,” Zabrina spat.
“You will not talk about him like that!” Giovani yelled. “Get me Dalton,” he hissed between clenched teeth.
Zabrina’s eyes were daggers as she spun, and drawing a key ring from her pocket, fished through six or seven large silver and bronze keys until she found the right one. She opened the creaky door, slamming it behind her. Cadence could hear the sound of her boots clicking on the steps before she screamed for Dalton and clambered back down the stairs.
Giovani was standing perfectly still, arms crossed, waiting.
“Why are you doing this?” Cadence asked, softly. “None of this is necessary.”
“Shut up,” Giovani demanded, turning his head to look at her and then swiveling it back to the door.
“Gibbon, I’m not your step-mother,” she said quietly. “That was her. She just went up the stairs.”
The monster looked confused for a moment before Giovani returned his stare to Cadence and yelled, “SHUT UP!”
Zabrina was back, a questioning expression on her face, but she simply stepped away from the door, and once Dalton entered the room, she locked it behind him. He watched her turn the key, nervousness written all over his face, before he turned to face Giovani.
He couldn’t have been much more than seventeen or eighteen. And he was freshly turned as well. Cadence could tell by his darker complexion. He hadn’t completely paled yet. She almost felt sorry for him—almost.
“There she is,” Cadence whispered just loud enough for Gibbon to hear. His eyes darted from Zabrina to Cadence, his brow wrinkling.
“Don’t listen to your whore of a step-mother, Steven,” Giovani barked. “Now, Dalton, you will remove the detective from the cage.”
Zabrina quickly crossed over to the cage and unlocked the door, holding the key inside the lock until Dalton, who was clearly walking on shaking legs, approached. It wasn’t until he was ready to enter that she flung the door open, and as soon as he squeezed through, she slammed it again, ready to lock.
Dalton stayed as far away from Gibbon as possible as he grabbed Detective Dixon by the legs and pulled him toward the gate. Zabrina opened it for him, and he brought the body out into the middle of the floor and dropped him. Cadence couldn’t tell if he was still alive, but it didn’t look like it.
“Very good,” Giovani nodded. “Now, you will go back into the cage and unleash our friend Steven.”
Dalton’s eyes widened. “Sir?” he asked.
“Well, go on,” Giovani insisted.
“But he’ll… kill me,” Dalton choked out.
Giovani took one step toward Dalton, who retreated a few steps, and said, “He may. He may not. Do as I say, or I will most certainly kill you.”
Dalton inhaled sharply, and with a big gulp, he stepped back over to the cage where Zabrina handed him a small silver key. As he entered, he walked very slowly, with his arms out in front of him in a protective stance.
“It’s all right, Steven,” Giovani assured him. “Dalton is our friend.”
The monster seemed a bit tranquilized by Giovani’s soothing voice. With trembling hands, Dalton unhooked the first manacle. Gibbon did not move. Dalton reached across him to his other hand, and inserted the key. Turning the lock, he prepared to run, but just as the empty shackle clanked against the wall, Gibbon’s powerful hand shot up and grabbed him by the throat. He began to squeeze. Dalton’s eyes bulged out of his head. The boy attempted to scratch his way free, but Gibbon was far too strong for him. In a few seconds, Dalton’s head popped free and his remains turned quickly to ash. Gibbon began to laugh, and Giovani joined him. “Nicely done!” Giovani applauded his monster. “Now, it’s time for the true testament of your strength. It’s time to kill your step-mother!”
Giovani crossed over to Cadence and began unstrapping her from the hospital bed. “Ahhh, I can hardly wait,” he said. He unhooked one hand, reattached the steel rope from earlier, tied her hands together, and then unhooked her other hand from the bed.
“How am I supposed to defend myself if my hands are tied together?” she asked, once she realized what he was doing.
“I. Don’t. Care,” he replied. Zabrina had a gun drawn on her from where she stood in the corner, and she knew trying to fight Giovani would result in her demise, but she was tempted to try it anyway considering it would probably be a much less painful death than what she was about to endure at the hands of Gibbon. Still, thoughts of her family gave her courage, and as Zabrina unlocked the cage and shoved her inside, she was focused on the monster across the room. He still hadn’t moved.
She had about a foot of rope between her hands, but she knew she would have to find a way to get rid of the binding before she could fully protect herself. She immediately began to look around the cell to see what she could use to try to break free. There was only the cot against the wall and the two chains hanging near Gibbon, nothing else.
And now, he was looking at her.
“Hey, Steven,” she said quietly. “My name is Cadence. If… if you, uh, want to get out of this cage and go back to your apartment, maybe we can help each other.”
Gibbon looked away, his eyes falling on the picture of Barbara that Giovani was holding just outside the cell. After a moment, Gibbon turned his attention back to Cadence and began to growl.
