3

The room swam as Vladimir returned to consciousness. He tried to gain his bearings, recalling that he had endured a severe beating. He had expected to awaken in the dark on the hard, freezing floor of the assembly area and yet he was…warm.

Steadying his vision, he opened his eyes wide and saw that there was a lit candle positioned only inches from his face; a piece of paper protruded from beneath the wax drippings. He reached for it and felt excruciating pain in his balls and abdomen; he thought he might also have suffered a few broken ribs.

Gripping the paper, he looked down and found that he was in his skivvies. Given the painful throb that still pulsed in his groin, he doubted that he had walked himself back to his room and that he would have taken the trouble to remov...

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