Chapter 3: Caged.

In The Land Of Treachery

By: LiveWild

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Once the beast of a bike quickly silenced it's roaring and the two took a never ending trip up the wide stairs, Caroline bafflingly found herself surrounded by four, white colored walls with dark wooden floors.

The active apartment building was overpopulated with Bane's loyal soldiers, every corner Caroline turned she saw either a man or woman in possession of a dangerous loaded gun. The leery new faces that she came across would stare joylessly at her, the men and women of Bane were oddly fascinated by her. Some of their wicked eyes even mysteriously widened at the very sight of her. Caroline's beaming presence was odd to them, to see should a pure woman in the hands of Bane was abnormal.

As soon as she stepped foot into the chosen, empty apartment, Bane released the burning grip he had on her fragile wrist, he felt like if he held onto her hand harder, her bones would eventually snapped.

How delicate.

His meaty hands fell to his side. As soon as she was set free, Caroline impolitely stepped away from him, hoping to get a better look at the place she was forced to call home.

Everything around her felt untouched, as if she was the first one to come across this room. It appeared descent, a large living room area with a coffee table, a love seat and a pull out couch that was coated with fine black leather. If it wasn't for the crucial fact that Bane was irritably standing beside her, Caroline would have actually admitted that she felt mildly comfortable in the plain apartment.

Turning her inelastic head slightly, she began calmly scanning the room, in the processes, Caroline spotted a marble theme kitchen that was to the far left with a matching table. To think, Gotham's worst nightmare was staying in such a nice place while nearly no one in the city had a place to call their own.

Bane began moving behind her predatorily, his breathing helped her map out where his exact location was.

She noticed an elevator in the middle of the room as well.

She felt like a tortured animal, an animal that was being locked into a suffocating cage.

Caroline rested her tongue on the roof of her mouth before she chose to speak up, "You got me into the apartment, now what?"

She looked bizarrely at Bane, wanting nothing more than a truthful answer.

The vast man that she watched with vigilant eyes began walking to the opposite side of the room, the way he walked made it seem that ever step he made was carefully planned. His visible, upper face wrinkled, the way it did when he smiled.

His mask hissed from his breathing, "Why must you rush into things? I much rather stand here a bit longer and watch the helplessness in your eyes."

Caroline's spooked, pale face was unreadably blank, "What man enjoys seeing pain?" She stated, trying to avoid showing any sights of sadness that leaked through her eyes.

"The same man who has the power to destroy your beloved city."

Caroline's willful eyes twitched with unmanageable hatred. She brushed a loose strains of hair behind her numb ear as she simply placed her flat hand out in front of her vision. Her hand was shaking; she watched mindfully at the way her own hand moved. Was she really this worried?

Pulling her hand to the warmth of her chest, Caroline announced, "This isn't my city anymore, this isn't even Gotham."

She was too stubborn for his liking, it always made him want to chuckle, "You merely hate this city because I control it."

She faintly shook her head.

The way his muscles clenched from his movements made Caroline wonder if he would brutally hurt her. If he didn't sincerely intend to rape her, maybe he wanted to beat her to death, beat her till her skin was nothing but black and blue. He was trying to manipulate her, she bit hard down on her teeth stubbornly.

Without warning, Bane began heading toward the door, before leaving the mindless girl alone, he spoke humorlessly, "This will be the equivalent of a home for you, you will be sheltered here until the time comes."

Her head felt like it was spinning. Caroline glared at him from afar, suddenly feeling out of breath, "The time for what?"

"For us to die of course. You thought I came to Gotham to bring it joy?"

Her mouth molded to an 'O' shape, Caroline couldn't find the words to speak. This man was mad! She shivered, "I'm not going to die."

His full coat that covered the sides of face made reading his rare emotions difficult, upon biting her lip, Caroline stepped backwards in retreat. Bane talked with his deep, intimating voice, "You're blinded by denial, my girl. Your anger is just the fuel to the upcoming fire."

Upcoming fire?

His impulsive voice was like a musical bass, it pounding powerfully through her very core.

Allowing his wildly spoken words to sink deep into her, Caroline crossed her arms; her coat was still damp from the previous rain they had ridden through.

Having been lost in thought, Caroline was unaware that Bane had made his way towards her. Her icy veins were frozen with madness, upon each footstep he took, the more she wanted to convince herself to run. She wanted to run, run away into the lost, patronized streets of Gotham in search of another way to free her enslaved father and the other men in uniform.

Her father. That's what go her into this inescapable mess, but she still had no regrets of attempting to save him.

The reeking of his hot breath on her face caused her to skid to a stop, whirling her head to face him.

Caroline wanted to say nothing, she wanted to silence to be endless, she didn't want to give Bane the power to play with her feelings, all she wanted was to go home even though home didn't exist anymore. She felt like an underestimated child. Her aching throat felt like it was set on fire, stumbling through her thoughts she bit her lip harshly, "I'm not in denial," she narrowed her determined eyes, "I have faith."

He looked down at her; her chin was held up obnoxiously high. The way his unsettling eyes examined her made her feel like she was melting from his gray eyes. Her behavior came as a surprise to him, he had expected her to act upon his words differently. Bane was use to having other submit to him quickly and willingly yet, the troubling woman in front of him was a fighter.

Luckily, Bane enjoy challenges.

She smelled like rain; muddy and minty.

He sealed a thunderous flash in his gray eyes, "You do, for now but I will break you. I'll will show you: when one has the ability to take away faith, just proves that faith doesn't exist."

"This city may be at your misery but I'm not. Just because you got me here in this damn apartment doesn't mean anything!" Her fists clenched and unclenched.

Foolish woman, how naive.

"Is that what you think, my dear? You can do nothing, without me, you won't survive."

Was he joking? She had survived the streets of Gotham with much less than him, she could live without him no problem.

"I have been stripped of my home and money, I've been raped and taken from my father. I've lived of the streets along with criminals you set free! I will survive with or without you, just watch me." Having enough of him, Caroline turned with a swift of her heels and proceeded to the first room she saw. Her aching heart began to beat abnormally as it was known to be able to do. Fresh, hot tears swam down her damp cheeks till they reached her chin.

I cannot show weakness.

I will not die. I will not.

Once Bane made his way down the stairs, Barsad had spotted him before anyone else. His stumping feet attacked the weaken wood on the stairs. With a gun in hand and a hefty black purse in another, Barsad's ears seemed to point up as Bane spoke his name crispy.

"Yes, sir?"

"I was told you have the girl's belongings. Give them to me." Bane calmly ordered after looking at his loyal soldier's dirty hands.

Acting upon Bane's demand, Barsad lifted the feminine purse upward; he caused a tolerable strain to his wrist due to the weight, "We have found a bottle of Vasotec."

As soon as Bane zipped open the bag, he saw the small yellow medicine bottle laying lifelessly on top of her chaotic belongings that were tangled beneath. The woman had makeup everywhere yet, Bane couldn't detect her using any of her face. He pinched the plastic, half empty bottle with his fingers, the prescribed medication had her full name on it; Caroline M. Dollas. The color of the triangular pills camouflaged with the bottle, as he turned the label around, he learned that she was ordered to take thirty grams by mouth once a day.

"Vasotec. Drugs for the heart," Bane informed a curious Basard who was unfamiliar with the medicine. Vasotec was a powerful drugs, it was to be used for strengthening a weak and unhealthy heart. What exactly was wrong with Caroline? Without hesitation, Bane dropped her opened bag onto the marble ground where it exploded with her personal items, "so the girl has a flaw."

Bane couldn't help but smiled as he rotated the bottle around, listening to the small pills as the slammed onto the walls that held them.

He was anxious, anxious to see when the young woman would come crawling to him for help. If she indeed to live, she was going to be at his misery whether she liked it or not.