Despite the stress of the past few days Lukas’ body was so fatigued that almost as soon as he closed his eyes his awareness sunk heavy into his skull, before melting through the ground and slipping into unconsciousness.
His subconscious floated in the dark void a moment, teetering on the edge; until even that faded and he slipped into dreams.
It was the familiar scent he noticed first. The smell of fresh herbs and ink that always permeated his little room above the apothecary. A soft rustling drew his attention to the small window and there sat Wilt, perched on the window sill; staring intently at him. A slight curve on his lips and veiled questions glowing in his amber eyes.
Before Lukas could say anything, Wilt was on his feet. He crossed the space between them in an instant and pinned Lukas against the wall; those dark amber eyes just staring straight into him. It was impossible to turn away even though he felt flushed and awkward at being so close.
Wilt’s eyes softened for a moment, his mouth quirked into a smile before he leaned forward and kissed him.
Every nerve ending fired in response and Lukas had to grip onto Wilt’s shoulders to steady himself. An arm slipped behind his back and pulled him closer. The press of Wilt’s body against his own caused him to gasp in pleasure and Wilt took the opportunity to deepen the kiss. Lukas’ legs buckled and gave out beneath him. He crumpled to the floor but when Lukas opened his eyes the room, and Wilt, were gone.
This place was cold, dark and smelt musty and sour. Lukas staggered up, his legs still shaky as a figure moved toward him in the darkness.
Wilt? He assumed and relaxed. But it was not Wilt’s face Lukas saw as he was pushed against the cold stone wall. Artony, Lukas gasped and tried to pull away but strong hands held him in place and wrenched his head back.
Dry, narrow lips crushed against his. Lukas clamped his mouth shut as hard as he could. Artony squeezed Lukas’ jaw in an attempt to gain access but Lukas gritted his teeth to the point they almost cracked. Changing tact, he punched Lukas hard in the stomach, but still Lukas kept his mouth closed and exhaled sharply through his nose.
Artony punched him twice more and failed; then on the fourth punch Lukas collapsed to the ground.
The room shifted again and he could feel rough wooden planks beneath him. The world was still and dark and his breath seemed to echo strangely around him. He felt disoriented and confused. His stomach was churning and queasy at the thought of Artony kissing him.
Blindly his fingers felt around, searching for any sign of where he was when a hand gripped him by the collar and yanked Lukas to his feet. He swayed for a moment before a coarse length of rope was slipped over his head and pulled tight.
Lukas tried to gasp in air as desperate fingers clawed at the rope around his neck.
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