The Healer Pt. 10

...

Coral feeds Vadim a spoonful of porridge, "How many days has it been?" Her voice is devoid of emotion, her fear, her panic, her overwhelming anxiety shrouded safely in the calmness of her drug.

He is slow to answer, as he doesn't want to admit it, "Nine days, Coral. He will come soon." He tries to reassure her but there is nothing convincing in his tone.

She glances towards her remaining stash—only one half of a mushroom left. She had hoped, in the beginning, that Quell would find them. She knows he has not stopped but she also knows that as soon as the mushrooms are gone the rest of the elixir will be as well and so will any of her remaining resolve. Vadim offers her the pitcher of water. She takes it, forcing herself to drink. Clutching the half mushroom in her hand, she curls herself into a ball and rests her head in Vadim's lap, "Please wake me up before they unlock the cell."

With her eyes closed, she forces herself to focus, to slow her breathing. Vadim's firm hand gently strokes her hair, lulling her body to relax. Within the clarity behind her eyelids, she formulates a plan. She is done waiting, this ends today. She reminds herself of what Rainer said—if any human female could handle themselves in a potentially dangerous situation, it would be her. And he was right—they chained Vadim because he is a threat. They left her unbound because no one suspects a woman to be dangerous.

She might have half slept but her eyes jerk open when Vadim's body tenses, his hand gently shaking her shoulder. Without hesitation, she stuffs the mushroom into her mouth and mashes it up with her teeth, tucking the remainder between her gums and cheek, sucking hard to hasten its calming effects.

When the guard opens the cell door, Callen enters. He stares down upon her with a depraved, irritated smile as if he expected her to break sooner; he commands, "Come here Coral." Much to everyone's surprise—but her own—Coral rises. With her head down she walks over to Callen. His hand caresses her cheek, "Are you going to fight me today?"

"No."

He tips her chin up, forcing her to look at him, "Prove it to me."

She keeps her thoughts strictly focused on her objective; her hands don't shake when she sheds what little remains of her dress. The scraps drift down to the floor. Hesitantly, she reaches out and takes his hand, bringing it up to her lips; she kisses the back of it tenderly.

Her efforts earn her a dark smile, "Good girl." He holds her hand, interlacing his fingers into hers and leads her out of the cell; she follows without hesitation. After the guard locks the gate, Callen says, "Leave us."

The guard looks disappointed, having been able to watch almost every other time, yet he does as he is told and walks from the dungeon. Coral's eyes flicker over to Vadim—he has a completely dejected look on his face, his heart shattered that she finally gave in to Callen. She ignores his sorrowful eyes and turns her attention back to the centaur. When he reaches for the cuffs, she swallows what's left of the mushroom and presses her body into his chest, placing soft kisses on his neck. Callen's hands fall on her ass, roughly grabbing the soft flesh, kneading it as his lips find hers.

Coral suppresses the urge to vomit and forces herself to kiss him tenderly. She clenches her eyes shut tight, trying to block him out, trying to focus on her goal but his voice cuts into her thoughts as he always does, "Look at me, Coral."

She draws in a deep breath of his musky scent and opens her eyes, gazing into his. His hands wander over her bruised flesh, roughly grabbing her breasts before stroking her nipples. When he reaches for the stand again, she knows that she hasn't done enough to avoid being tied down. Her small hands wander from his chest, to his withers; she slowly steps away from him, her fingers raking through his shaggy fur. He stands stiffly, watching her, waiting for her to bolt—but instead, she drops down to her knees just under him. Despite her induced calm, her hands shake when she reaches out and wraps them around his cock.

Callen purrs to her, stamping his back leg. She gently runs her hands up and down the length of his shaft, before leaning into him and sliding her lips around the wide, flat tip of his cock. She takes in as much as she can, being careful not to graze him with her teeth. He moans at her efforts, bracing his hand on the stand to keep himself from shifting away from her. Coral squeezes her eyes shut tight when his hips start to rock back and forth, pulling the small amount of his cock in and out of her mouth. She clenches her hands down, working his length to get his arousal amped up.

When he can take it no more, he pulls his cock free of her. His voice is dark and growly, his yearning and need as apparent as his pleasure at breaking her, "Come here, Coral."

She rises out from under him so that he can step back; before he has a chance to force her into the stand, she crawls up on it, sitting instead of bending over it. When he looks at her questioningly, she says with a small, pitiful voice, "Please Callen? I want to feel your body against mine, I want to run my hands through your fur, I want to look into your eyes."

A smile comes to his lips, nodding, "Very well." He pulls the vial from his pocket, emptying the remaining elixir into his fingers; he steps forward.

Coral pulls her heels up, perching them on the stand against her ass, forcing herself to open her legs for him. His eyes violate her body, enjoying the fruits of his labor. He reaches out to her, pressing his fingers into her cunt, stroking her both outside and in, his movements are firm but much more gentle than the first time he touched her. His thumb presses against her clit, rubbing it in slow circles while his other four fingers easily slide into her ready hole. When he gazes at her, his eyes are hazy, half closed, overcome by the primal nature of the elixir.

She keeps her attention on him, biting her lip when the savage urge of the elixir hits her. Her hand grasps his shirt and she pulls his torso down, mashing her lips to his in a desperate kiss; her breathing is ragged, her heart beats fast and adrenaline courses through her veins. She stills her urge to grab his knife right then, as she has to wait until he is fully distracted.

He pulls away from her. Coral drops her legs down so that he can walk forward over her body. The coarse hair on his belly slides over her stomach, over her breasts, teasing her flushed skin. She spreads her quivering knees for him and feels the tip of his cock prod at her before he gently eases it in. Slowly, he presses forward until he has reached the entrance of her womb, her body accommodating the invasion, a mewl escaping her lips; instead of pounding her viciously, he rocks back and forth almost tenderly, savoring her willingness. He gazes down upon her; she forces herself to look into his eyes, running a hand up his shirt to touch his warm, smooth flesh. Her other hand is tucked behind his foreleg, her fingers running through his shaggy fur.

In the distance, her arousal increases, her body responding naturally; soft moans pant out, her back arches, her cunt presses against him, her nipples perk up from the feeling of his fur scraping against them. She waits, taking his thrusts, letting him ravage her, allowing him to push her over the precipice of bliss and her body quakes underneath him but the entire time she is focused on one thing. When his cock thickens, a shudder ripples through his hide and he throws his head back with one last thrust, spilling his seed into her. Coral grabs the knife from his belt and doesn't hesitate to quickly ram it into the side of his torso, angling the blade up to strike his heart just as he showed her how to do when he killed his accomplice.

His moan melts into agony, his accusing gaze dropping from above to her down below. He reaches for the knife but she slides her arms from between his legs and lets her body fall off of the mounting stand, crashing into the cold stone floor. She scrambles to get away from him as he tries to stagger towards her; his legs crumple beneath him. His body lists to the side. His icy blue gaze locks onto hers when he draws his last breath and falls back lifelessly.

Coral's heart races; she can feel the calming shroud of her drug start to dissipate. Vadim stands inside the cell, wide eyed, staring at her through the bars. She rushes to the gate, tugging hard but it is locked. She cries out in frustration, pulling again and again.

"Coral, it is no use," he whispers to her, pleading, "the guard has the keys. Please—leave—now! Before he gets back!" He begs, tossing her the remains of her dress.

Hastily she pulls it on; she closes her eyes and leans her head against the cold bars, drawing in deep breaths to stave off the impending anxiety, "No. I will not leave you. We are in this together. Either we both get out, or I stay."

"Coral," Vadim's voice comes out stern, almost angry as he tries to force her to leave, "Go!"

She ignores his pleas, looking around for something to get her through the bars. She runs over to the wall near the mounting stand, hoping for a second set of keys but sees nothing other than spare weapons and torture devices. When her eyes land on a crossbow, she hears the gut wrenching sound of hooves on stone. The echoing clop makes her wince but she pushes her rising panic aside.

Quickly, she grabs an arrow and places it in the cradle; she braces the bottom with her foot and pulls back on the tension string. With shaking arms she raises it towards the door, the sound getting louder and louder as the guard nears. He enters the cavern and rounds the corner. The very second she sees his body, she squeezes the trigger and lets loose the arrow.

Her aim is true and it slams into the guard's chest, surprise crossing his face before it crumples into pain. His eyes fall on Callen's dead body. The centaur staggers forward, drawing his knife. Pointing it at her, he continues to stumble in her direction, swinging wildly when he gets close.

Coral ducks behind the mounting stand, putting as much between them as possible, her entire body shaking so hard she drops the crossbow before she can reload it. The guard's legs start to falter when he tries to step over Callen's body. The knife falls from his hand when he raises it up to clutch the arrow sticking out of his chest. His breath is raspy, his eyes glaring at her when his knees buckle beneath him. He is slow to blink, until his eyes shut and no longer open and his body slumps to the side.

Coral's heart is pounding again and she can feel the familiar tightness starting in her chest, her panicked attempts at breathing come out as a choked wheeze. Her shaking legs carry her towards the guard, unsteady hands have trouble pulling the keys free of his belt. She has to grip the iron bars to keep herself upright as she makes her way to the gate. Coral drops the keys several times, trying to get the lock open; tears fall down her face when she starts to sob, the calmness of the mushroom vanished from her system.

She manages to find the right key and unlock the door, pushing it open she crashes down to her knees and crawls over to Vadim. Choking in air when the icy grip of shock hits her at the base of her skull, she watches Vadim unlocking his cuffs while the color drains from her vision. She is barely able to feel the warm comfort of his embrace before she loses consciousness.