I froze, unable to comprehend what was happening for a second. Then my eyes darted to Mia, to the wires, and to the remote, and it slowly clicked.
Electricity.
"If you fail," Li Ming continued, his tone conversational, "Mia experiences a corrective shock. Not enough to cause permanent damage at first, of course. Just enough to be exquisitely persuasive."
"You're a monster!" I spat, anger pushing aside my fear for a moment.
"I am what you made me." His smile was chilling. "Now, shall we begin? Your willpower against your body's traitorous instincts. A fitting punishment, don't you think?"
He pressed a button on a second remote, and a hidden door in the wall slid open.
The man who entered was beautiful in an unsettling and unnatural way. He was tall, with hair the color of moonlit silver and eyes that held a faint, unnatural amber glow.
A castaway.
"Meet Jin," Li Ming said lightly. "He'll be your incentive."
He moved with a fluid, silent grace that was utterly inhuman, his gaze locking onto me with predatory interest.
"No…" I whispered, shrinking back against the pillows, but it was futile.
He approached the bed, looking me over. He did not say anything. He simply gave me a slow, cunning smile that made my stomach turn.
Then he settled beside me, the mattress dipping beneath his weight.
His hand came up, and I flinched. He stopped, his smile spreading wider, then deliberately trailed a fingernail down the center of my chest. My skin burned where he touched me. It was a light, teasing caress, but it felt like a brand. I sucked in a sharp breath, and my muscles coiled tightly.
"Stay still," he said smoothly.
But my body was not listening. His touch was cool, his fingers tracing the lines of my ribs, the dip of my navel, and skating along the waistband of my pants. Every nerve screamed to life.
I was painfully sensitive. I always had been, a fact Li Ming knew all too well. This was engineered torture.
His hand went over my thigh, then back up. With his other hand, he tangled his fingers in the remnants of my torn shirt and pulled hard.
The soft fabric gave way completely, baring my chest to the cool air and his hot gaze. A shiver ran through me.
"Please don't," I breathed, but it sounded weak, even to me.
His answer was to lower his head. His lips brushed the hollow of my throat, leaving a soft, dry kiss. Then his tongue slid against me, hot and wet, sending a jolt through my aching body.
A sudden, burning shock ran through me, and my hips jerked involuntarily. A quiet, strangled sound slipped out before I could clamp my jaw shut.
From his chair, Li Ming chuckled. "Already, Yua? Tsk."
I squeezed my eyes shut, focusing on the bite of the metal around my wrists and using the pain as an anchor.
Jin's mouth continued its exploration, moving to my collarbone, laving and nipping gently.
His hands were not idle. One palm moved in slow, firm circles over my stomach, while the other crept higher, his fingers brushing against my skin.
"Oh, God."
A sudden wave of pleasure hit me, and I gasped, my back arching without me even thinking. My face burned with humiliation at the reaction I could not control.
"He's responsive, isn't he?" Li Ming mused.
The castaway made a low, approving sound against my skin.
He abandoned my chest, and his hands moved to my pants.
I tensed and tried to resist. But with a few deft movements, the button was undone, and the zipper lowered. He did not remove them. He simply pushed the fabric slightly down my hips, exposing me partially to the cool air.
I turned my head away in shame.
I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to calm myself, when I felt his hand slip under my waistband. I gasped, the sound rough and broken, and my whole body stiffened beneath the restraints.
He was hot, so hot, and his grip was firm.
My back lifted off the bed. I could not stop it. The chains held my arms and legs, but my spine moved on its own, arching helplessly against the sensations.
Then he began to stroke.
The sensation was overwhelming. It had been so long since I had been touched, and never like this, never with such deliberate, devastating skill.
My breath came in short, ragged gasps. I tried to fight it, really I did. I thought of cold water, of dull paperwork, of anything but the heat of his hand. But my body continued to betray me, responding despite every attempt I made to resist.
A burning, familiar heat wound through my stomach, the pressure rising fast and becoming harder to control.
"Look at him," Li Ming said softly and cruelly. "See how he enjoys it. His nobility crumbling for mere physical sensation."
Tears of shame and frustration blurred my vision. The fear, the helplessness, and the way it felt so wrong made everything inside me twist painfully.
Jin stopped.
The sudden loss of contact left me trembling. I let out a small, helpless whimper before I could stop myself.
He leaned over me, his silver hair falling like a curtain and blocking out the room.
His amber eyes held mine. There was no malice in them, just a deep, curious hunger.
And then he kissed me.