Maybe I had been too quick to judge the female lead of the novel.
One strike of the whip landed across my back, and my legs gave out immediately, my body hitting the ground as a broken sound tore out of my throat before I could stop it.
"Stand her properly," Elias said coldly. "I want her to feel every strike."
Rough hands grabbed my arms and hauled me back onto my feet, my legs barely able to hold me upright as pain throbbed through my back in slow, burning waves.
I did not want to cry. I did not want to give Elias, Luciana, or Max the satisfaction of seeing me break, but the pain was nothing like anything I had ever known before, sinking deep and lingering instead of fading.
To think they were only getting started.
Another strike landed across my back, and this time I screamed, the sound ripping out of me before I could swallow it down.
