Nine's heat was becoming unbearable.
His body was twitching, squirming in the boss's grip, his eyes wide, the desperation etched across his features so painfully clear. I could feel the suffocating tension in the bond—Nyx was frenzied, heart racing, pacing inside my mind.
His breath was shallow, his body slick with sweat, his pupils blown wide as he struggled to control himself. But it was getting harder. His need was obvious, frantic. Every breath he took seemed to break him a little more, to drive him further into his own brokenness.
He whimpered softly, a small sound of distress, and his body jerked. His hands clenched into fists, but it didn't stop the shaking. It wasn't just pain. This was something else—something deeper, rawer, as though he was being pulled into the very core of his own desires, and it was too much for him to bear. Too much to control.
The boss chuckled softly, his cruel amusement evident. "Look at you. So needy, so desperate." His hand trailed along Nine's trembling body, a mocking caress as he slowly tilted Nine's head back, forcing him to meet his eyes.
Nine's face was flushed, his tears streaming down his cheeks as he whimpered again, almost pleading, though the word didn't form. His voice had been broken in so many ways, and now it was just the sound of desperate cries escaping his lips. His body shuddered in an attempt to escape the pull of the heat, but it was useless. The chemicals, the program, it was all designed to overwhelm him. To break him.
Please, Alpha, Nine whispered in the bond, barely audible through the haze of heat that clouded his mind.
I wanted to reach him. I wanted to pull him out of this hell and take him somewhere safe. But there was no escape. Not yet. I stayed frozen, fighting the urge to act out of impulse, knowing it would only make things worse.
The boss watched with twisted delight, savoring the power he held over Nine. "You're pathetic now," he said, his voice low and cruel, mocking. "All that pride, all that beauty… reduced to this." He leaned closer, his grip on Nine's chin tightening, forcing Nine's head back more. "Beg for me, Nine. Tell me what you need."
Nine shuddered violently, tears dripping down his face as his body jerked again. Alpha, please…
I could feel the overwhelming need pouring through the bond. He was no longer able to think clearly, his desires taking over, reduced to just a mass of broken pleas and desperate whimpers. His skin was burning under the heat, and his chest rose and fell rapidly, each breath ragged and shallow.
The boss's laughter filled the room, a dark, mocking sound. "You've become so pathetic. It's almost... sweet." His fingers trailed down Nine's chest, brushing over his body with purpose. The touch was almost tender, yet there was an undeniable malice in it
Nine's body arched in response, unable to do anything but react to the heat coursing through him. His movements were jerky, his cries incoherent.
It was like watching a part of him die. His spirit, his strength—it was being crushed, molded into something else entirely.
The bond between us flickered again, and through the haze of everything, I could feel his need, his pain, his brokenness.
I felt the helplessness surge within me, the overwhelming urge to reach him, to make it stop. But I couldn't. Not yet.
I'm here, I whispered through the bond, my voice shaking, desperate. I won't leave you, Nine. I'll get you out of this...
He seemed to hear me. His body stilled for just a second, his breath catching as though he was grounding himself in the only thing he had left: me. The faintest flicker of hope passed through the bond, a thread of connection between us, and in that brief moment, I knew he still trusted me.
But it was fleeting.
The boss's voice broke through again. "Stop fighting it, Nine. You're just flesh now. You're just a toy, a plaything. Nothing more."
And Nine's body trembled, a low, broken moan escaping him, as if those words were the final blow, the last of whatever held him together. He sank against the boss's chest, the tears spilling freely now as he whispered again, quieter than before -"Alpha…"
It was barely a sound. But I heard it, and I felt it deep in my soul.
The boss pulled him closer, pressing him roughly against his body. "You don't need an Alpha. Not when I'm here to give you what you want."
I could feel my own fury bubbling up inside, but there was nothing I could do. Nothing I could say.
Except through the bond.
Don't listen to him, I sent, my heart breaking for him. You're still you, Nine. No matter what he says. I'm still here. I won't leave you.
Nine trembled harder, and the heat that was suffocating him seemed to intensify in that moment. His body jerked, his hands grasping for something, anything. He tried to hold onto the bond between us, tried to find the strength to pull himself back from the edge, but the heat was too much.
And just as I thought he might break completely, he whispered again, the bond humming with his need Alpha…