Chapter 74: Bared To You: Part Two

Ethan used the cage as another form of torture and one he could often use to make sure she didn't step out of line. Whatever 'stepping out of line' really meant. Looking back, she knew the smallest of actions that were never intentional would end up with Ethan losing his temper and striking her, or throwing her in that cage, left alone in the dark. But the cage tormented her the most; she would be dragged down to that basement, and no matter how much she begged, it never seemed enough, and she would always end up in that cage, curled up into a ball. 
It was the worst of her punishments. She'd never felt so alone in the world. Even in her 'loner' wolf days at the Hellhound's base, she was free to roam around if not for the leash of orders around her neck, and she still had Marcus there. Even with their antagonistic and strange relationship, he was the one that kept the emptiness of her gruesome crimes at bay. 
Esme did what she had to survive under Ethan's rule, which he still called love. For the first time in her life, she was scared, and it was from someone who was meant to cherish her. Death really did seem like an easy way out, but there was something inside of her still holding onto life. Esme didn't know how; maybe it was a small part of her holding onto hope that her misery would soon come to pass. Ethan had her all sorts of fucked up, and she was emotionally drained from fear and then feeling the small comforts he would show her when she was in his arms. She was reminded of the first few months of their relationship in those moments. 
But Esme knew deep down it wasn't those tiny moments with her mate that made her hopeful. No, it was a she-wolf named Anastasia, who Ethan ordered to become her personal maid. Anastasia first arrived when Esme caught an infection in her arm from being left in the cage the first time she was thrown in there. The wolfsbane stopped her natural healing ability, and the blisters from the burns were left untreated in a dirty cage. 
Esme was lifted up in her mate's arms, like a ragdoll she couldn't move from lack of food and the burning and sickly sensation of her arm. He brought her to their room and apologised in his usual manipulative and cruel way. "I hate seeing you like this, Es. This is how angry you made me, I left you in there, and now you have an infection in your arm," Ethan sighed as he stripped the dirty clothes from her skinny body and placed her in the bathtub. "It has become a habit now that you can't always keep me happy, and I don't have the time to look after you each time. So, I have brought Anastasia here to tend to you when needed." 
He kissed her head, unaware of the slight flinch on Esme's face before he left the dazed and emotionless Esme in the tub. She stared outside of the pristine white bathroom, through the floor to ceiling windows and watched the calming waves on the shore. It had been months since she'd last been to the beach; though it was winter now, she would still enjoy the fresh air on her face. Now she was only allowed out of the mansion under Ethan's orders. 
"Do you want help in bathing?"
Esme blinked out of her trance-like daze and turned to look at the pretty brunette, her blue eyes looking down a the ground as she stood there holding her hands in front of her.  It was an odd feeling, this girl, what was her name again.. Ethan called her Anastasia; she was respecting her as a real Luna.

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"I can bathe," Esme whispered; her throat was dry, her lips still cracked from the sparse water she'd been provided. Her eyes stung, and she felt tired even though she'd done nothing for a week. 
Esme heard the she-wolf leave, and she looked down at her arm, biting her tongue as she started to put it into the water, tears burning in her eyes, but she refrained from crying. There were no more tears left for her to give. 
Esme stopped and blinked in surprise at the glass of water placed on the wooden bath tray in front of her. Painkillers were also placed next to it. She looked up at Anastasia and couldn't form any words as the girl had brought into the bathroom a bag full of medical supplies. "Thank you," Esme murmured and drank the water thirstily and took the tablets. 
It was awkward at first. Anastasia would silently do as she was told, attending to Esme's numerous wounds that repeatedly showed up on a weekly basis and sometimes daily. The pair never said much to each other, and Esme didn't want to befriend someone who was just following orders from their Alpha. She knew as well that this she-wolf would tell Ethan of her daily activities; she was nothing more than a spy for her paranoid mate. Esme couldn't understand why Ethan was so paranoid, the only times she was outside of the mansion was with him, and even then, she would prove herself in front of everyone how much she loved him and cared for him. 
But after some time, Esme and Anastasia started talking, and she became more comfortable with her. She knew even though the she-wolf was following orders, Anastasia was still kind, and the warmth and friendliness she felt from her were not fake. The she-wolf would show this in the smallest of gestures, bringing Esme stuff she never asked for but would comfort her. Anastasia even started to comfort her by holding the petite Luna in bed when her despair became too much. 
"I'm sorry, Luna. I really am," Anastasia sobbed into her hair as Esme clutched onto her after a nasty beating, two of her ribs were broken, and she was struggling to breathe. 
Anastasia was as much a prisoner as Esme; she had to follow Ethan's orders, there was no way out of it.. Esme saw how it pained Anastasia, who could not do anything, but with this she-wolf helping her, Esme found some small comfort.

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