Flora stood frozen, her body a puppet to Reginald's whims. The agony that radiated through her was like nothing she had ever felt, as if her skull were being crushed from the inside, and every nerve in her body was set on fire. She could barely breathe, the air too thick and heavy to draw in. Her limbs trembled under the weight of the machine's command, but it was her mind that screamed the loudest. She was no longer in control of her own body.
"Now, tell me everything you know about the gem," Reginald’s voice cut through the haze of her pain, demanding and sharp.
Flora opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Her throat was so dry that her voice cracked before the words could form. The pain was overwhelming her, but somehow, through the fog, she saw Fiore—her daughter. Alexander
