Chapter 8 Esmeralda's Pov

• The biting chill that seeps through my bones feels familiar. I had once lived under such conditions for years before being sold off as a breeder.
• Every muscle in me protests as I try to move. My skin prickles painfully as I turn, wondering where I was. The room they had thrown me in is pitch-black, with the kind of darkness that makes you doubt if your eyes are open at all.
• Panic stirs as my mind tries to make sense of what is happening. The last thing I remember is Sheldon’s intense, unreadable gaze before he commanded the guards. My heart had stuttered at the coldness in his voice and the brutal indifference in his eyes as he looked at me.