Covetous

by Natalie Bennett

  She wasn't that important to me, but she was too Willow, and I needed an insurance policy for the future.

  "Have you found anything else on her?" I slipped my phone back into my pocket.

  "I'm waiting on a phone call, then I should know something," Enrique replied. I nodded and took another sip of my drink. I'd be gone all day again.

  There was too much shit I needed to keep track of. Most of the Capos did exceptionally handling what needed to be handled on their own, but I had worked too goddamn hard to fix all my father's greedy fuck ups to relax right now.

  I had stocked the house with food, and Willow wasn't confined to a room like a caged animal. That would have to be good enough for now.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  The same smell of fresh coffee greeted me when I woke the next morning. I blinked the sleep from my eyes and glared through the bright sunlight, looking around the room.

  Pierce was gone. After he had used his hand to make me come, he sat watching me until I fell asleep. I had been completely aware of him holding me when he finally lay down himself. His firm, defined body pressed into mine, his strong arms securely wrapped around me.

  I was ashamed to admit it had felt...nice. The scent of him lingered on my skin.

  No one had ever held me like that before. Abigail was the only person who ever even hugged me. She was my best friend, the sister I once had, reincarnated as a sweet, spunky soul. I missed her. It felt like I'd been gone for months instead of two days.

  I pulled my knees to my chest and stared blankly across the room. There was no one to blame for this situation other than myself. I knew having anything to do with Pierce would end badly, but I never expected him to kidnap me.

  If I hadn’t followed Pierce…no, if I hadn’t let him fuck me in his office, I wouldn't be here right now. But why was I here? It had to go beyond him wanting to break me, whatever the hell that meant.

  What if Seth did have something to do with Jackson Serban's death? It wasn't impossible to believe.

  I saw Seth as my father, and sometimes that made me forget who he really was.

  He was probably organizing a manhunt by now to find me, but I wasn't holding out much hope for that. If he knew Pierce had me, I'd have been rescued the first night I got here.

  Running my fingers through my hair, I got out of bed and slipped on my robe. I searched the entire house from top to bottom, even going as far as swinging the barstools at the windows. That didn't get me anything but a half-broken chair.

  There was a total of three locked doors in the house. One I assumed went to the garage, and the other two were isolated on the other side. I wondered how long he had been planning this. The place had clearly been proofed for this purpose. Or, Pierce was a psycho, and this was a sick hobby of his. I sincerely that wasn’t the case.

  A clock hanging in the living room read eleven-thirty. I scrubbed my hands over my face, as if that would ease the pounding in my head. Standing from the couch, I made my way over to the kitchen and began to open the cabinets that someone had stocked with food.

  I found a loaf of bread and put together a cold cut, before grabbing a can of tea from the fridge. As I ate my sandwich, I went over all my and Pierce’s interactions. Every little word I had ever said to him, and vice versa. He was so arrogantly charming, so flawlessly put together.

  He hid his dark side incredibly well. He also clearly had secrets, and he thought I did as well, but all I had was a shameful past I couldn't bring myself to tell him about. I was ashamed to tell the man who kidnapped me about my past. Yeah, I had my own set of issues, for sure.

  When I was done eating, I pitched everything in the trash. I don't know what made me open the freezer. Bored curiosity, I suppose. At first glance, it looked like a regular run of the mill ice box, stocked with foods I couldn't imagine Pierce eating.

  It was the large Ziploc bag wedged in the back corner that prickled my curiosity. I reached in and pulled it out. It wasn't heavy, but it wasn't exactly light, either. It had to have been there at least a few days. There was freezer frost on the outside of it.

  I turned it over, studying it, trying to figure out what I was looking at. It was the pulmonary veins and aorta that gave it away.

  The longer I was alone, the more I noticed how insanely clean Pierce was. Not a speck of dust or crumb was in sight, the floor was insanely shiny, and even the damn groceries seemed to be put away in order.

  His closet was nothing but a capsule wardrobe. Dress shirts in dark gray, black, navy, and white hung in color-coordinated rows. We were total opposites. I was lucky to find half my clothes in my closet on a good day.

  As day turned to night, a light rain began to fall. Shortly after, it was a full-blown thunderstorm and the power went out. There wasn't anything comparable to being stuck in a giant dark house in the middle of the woods. By the time Pierce arrived, my paranoia was at an all-time high.

  He entered the house carrying two large brown paper bags and another large bag that read Agent Provocateur on the front of it.

  He glanced at me sitting on the couch and took his bags to the kitchen. I got up and trailed after him, like a puppy that had been alone for too long.

  "How long have you been in the dark?"

  "Forever!" I answered, on the verge of hysteria.

  He paused and looked at me. I could see the amusement on his face. "Are you afraid of the dark?"

  "Sometimes." I didn't tell him this was because of my horror movie obsession.

  "There is never a reason to be afraid of the dark. Monsters don't disappear in the light." He bent down and opened the cabinet beneath the sink, leaving me to turn his statement over in my head.

  Was he talking about himself? The heart. I didn't want to bring it up. What if he got upset that I’d found it?

  "Go shower and put this on, minus the robe."

  He stood and thrust two bags into my arms, with a flashlight balanced on top of them. "You have fifteen minutes."

  He turned away again and ignored me altogether. The sex in his office seemed almost like a distant dream. If it wasn't for the ache between my legs, I might have thought it was. I watched him, feeling more confused than ever before.

  His suit was still perfectly pressed, he moved with confidence like he didn't have a care in the world. I wanted to grab hold of my shoulders and shake myself for being so attracted to him.

  "Ten minutes," he stated, still not looking at me.

  "What happens after ten minutes?"

  "Then I do it for you." That didn't scare me. He didn't scare me. I'd dealt with a real monster before, and Pierce wasn't one. Even if he did have a heart in the freezer. Because that sounds logical.

  I wanted answers more than I wanted to test him, so I clicked on my flashlight and wandered down the hall into the main bathroom.

  Flipping the bags upside down on the vanity, I found one held hygiene products, the other lingerie. I picked up a black mesh chemise and matching G-string. This is what he wanted me to wear? Seriously?

  Whatever; what would griping and whining about some lingerie get me? Surely not a ride back to my father's. I was trying to be smart about this, but I had no idea how to go about doing that. There wasn't exactly a handbook written on how to act when you've been kidnapped. Throwing myself on the floor and crying wasn't an option.

  Maybe someone else would have decided now was the time to prove they had lady balls. That was idiotic at best.

  Fight Pierce?

  Yeah, right.

  I wasn't a pushover, and I could handle myself in a brawl just fine without resorting to cat scratches and hair pulling, but I wasn't delusional, either. He could hand my ass to me on a silver platter. Last night was a lesson learned. Plus, did I really want to provoke him? No.

  Beg him to let me go? I'm sure that worked for about zero percent of people who were kidnapped.

  By the time I'd showered and brushed my teeth and hair, I knew ten minutes had well elapsed. Dressing quickly, still not giving a
shit about what I had on, I crept back down the hall to the kitchen, stopping when I saw Pierce staring into the freezer. He looked lost in his own little world.

  I was debating if I should run down the hall and lock myself in the bathroom or play it off like I had no idea there was an entire human organ in his freezer.

  The choice was made for me when he finally glanced over and saw I was watching him.

  "Come here," he gruffly commanded, making no effort to move away from the refrigerator.

  Telling myself to get my shit together, I steeled my spine and went to him. I stopped mere inches from him, tilting my head up so I could investigate his face. He took his time letting his gaze sweep over my body, studying me like I was a rare artifact. When the blue eyes that kept haunting me finally met mine, I couldn't deny I liked what I saw in them.

  He reached out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me in front of him and the open freezer. With the power being out, no cold air flowed out of the stainless-steel box. The first thing I noticed was that he'd taken the heart out.

  Pierce pressed into me from behind, sliding his arms around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder. "Why do you think you're here, Rebel?"

  I only had one answer; it was the only thing that made sense every time I went over the possibilities.

  "My dad hurt yours." I turned my head to look at him.

  "No." He kissed my cheek and moved back, turning me around and pressing me against the fridge. No? I furrowed my brows, searching his handsome face for answers.

  The small lamp by the sofa flickered back on, adding a dim glow to the room. Pierce lifted his hand and ran his knuckles down the left side of my face.

  "You saw the heart." A statement, not a question.

  "What heart?"

  He clucked his tongue at me and shook his head.

  "You're too smart to pretend to be dumb. So, I'll ask you again. Did you or didn't you see the heart?" His voice had gone hard. He drilled his eyes into mine, daring me to lie.

  I hated the way he was talking to me, and I was still pissed he’d choked me. My temper got the better of me, despite my struggle to keep it in check.

  "I didn't see any fucking heart. What kind of psychopath has a heart in the freezer?" I snapped, mentally kicking myself in the ass. So much for not provoking him.

  "I never said there was a heart in the freezer.”

  Shit.

  A smile spread across his face, but there wasn't anything friendly about it. "I've been easy on you, but I think we need to go over some rules." Keeping his gaze trained on me, he began to loosen his tie.

  Dread started to build in my stomach. Please don't let this man be into some sadistic kink.

  As if he could read my mind. "Don't worry, Rebel. I won't make you call me master. As long as you treat me like one."

  I gritted my teeth and glared at him.

  "The first rule: don't ever lie to me again. Secondly, the word No…it doesn't exist when I tell you to do something. And thirdly, like I already told you, when I do tell you to do something, just do it." He pulled his red tie over his head and looked at me expectantly. He could take his rules and shove them all the way up his arrogant ass.

  "You already broke rule number one. Twice." He took his suit jacket off and sat it on the kitchen counter. "I want you on your knees." He placed his hands on my shoulders and forced me down. My knees hit the cold floor the same time the fridge came back to life.

  "I'm not doing this." I attempted to get up, and that was the equivalent of poking the beast.

  "I love how you think you have a choice." Grabbing a fistful of my hair, he pushed me back down and held me in place, using one hand to undo his slacks.

  "If you bite me, I will personally pull every last tooth from your mouth and then replace you with your sister," he warned, pressing his swollen head against my lips. His words had me springing into action before they fully sunk in. He could do whatever he wanted to me if it kept my sister safe.

  I open my mouth, and he wasted no time pushing in. My choking didn't deter him. Unpleasant memories surfaced, and I had to force bile back down my throat. This isn't Richard. My eyes dampened, tears threatening to spill, but I didn't let them.

  Using my hands to try and stop him from pushing in how he wanted to only made it worse.

  "You're determined to push boundaries." He grabbed hold of my hands and tightly wrapped his tie around them.

  He worked himself back into my mouth once I was disabled, and thrust in and out, forcing me to take him all the way. His cock smelled and tasted just like his body wash. I knew this because I opened it earlier and smelled it. Struggling, I did the best I could to appease him. The quicker he came, the faster he'd get his dick out of my mouth. Forcing myself to relax, I squeezed my eyes shut.

  "Look at me." He gripped my hair tighter and forced my eyes to open.

  He looked down at me, bracing himself with one hand on the fridge that was now spilling out cold air. His blue eyes were dark, full of something I couldn't explain, that I didn't understand.

  I could tell he was getting close, his movements harsher, faster. The worst part of all this was that I wasn’t bothered about having him in my mouth. I would have done anything for him if he'd only asked me. The realization that he wasn't who I thought he was hurt far worse than it should.

  "The heart," he rasped. "My father used to say he didn't have a heart, so the day I killed him I carved it from his chest."

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Living with Pierce, was not exactly what I would call the end of the world.

  I missed my sister more than anything. Meeting his demands wasn’t a horrible test of my will.

  Had he not kidnapped me to bring me here it would almost feel like an extended stay. Apart from me sucking his cock and being fucked at the drop of a dime.

  The night I’d discovered whose heart he kept as a souvenir, after I’d swallowed every drop of his come, we ate quality take out.

  That was a week ago.

  The next morning, he had me on my knees in his shower, sucking him dry. Before he left, he used his fingers to bring right to the edge before withdrawing and getting dressed for the day, telling me I wasn't allowed to touch myself.

  "I own your pleasure." He kissed me deeply, and then left, leaving me to fester in my anger all day. Before he returned, I gave myself a pep talk. I couldn't let my emotions have reign over my mind.

  He came back and fucked me in every sense of the word. My hands were tied to his headboard. I was on my stomach with that fucking blindfold over my eyes. He played with me like a kitten does a ball of yarn, slowly unraveling it and then pouncing.

  His soft lips trailed up my legs, over the naked globes of my ass, across my back to my shoulders.

  He ate my pussy from the back, his tongue so deep inside of me I couldn't concentrate on anything but what he was doing. His fingers gripped my hips and held me in place. My hands wrapped around his iron bed frame in an attempt to hold myself up as pressure built in my core. Seconds before I came, his dick was replacing his tongue, fingers curling into my hips.

  My breasts smashed into his mattress while my ass stayed in the air. I couldn't catch my breath. The only thing I was able to say was his name. The man was relentless. His cock drove in and out of me for what seemed like hours on end, punishing my pussy with pleasure and pain. He didn’t pull out when he came, leaving his come to settle between my legs.

  Again, he held me in his arms all night, a cocoon of warmth and something akin to safety.

  I don't think I could hate him more than in that moment. I always wondered how a chick could fall in love with a man who wanted to dominate and control them. Though, what I felt for Pierce was far from love. It was just lustful obsession. Still, I found myself wanting to know who the man beneath the suit was.

  Why did he keep me around and in his bed? What made him ensure his house had everything I would need while he was away? And what caused him to be so jaded, that he cut the heart out hi
s father's chest?

  Clearly we both had a past. Everyone did. His was merely darker than mine.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  I ignored the man's agonized scream and closed the garden shears around his thumb.This was a mild method of gaining information. Enrique stood with his arms crossed on the other side of the warehouse, waiting for his turn.

  The man in the chair threw up down the front of himself and continued to sob. He'd pissed his pants an hour ago.

  He was clearly going for gold in the weakness department.

  My father used to heat forks on the stove and then press them into me and my brother's backs. If we so much as whimpered, he'd knock us about, and then lock us in the shed for the night. No relief from the pain, no supper, and no heat in the middle of winter. This man had it much easier.

  "Are you ready to talk? Or would you like your pinky to be next?" I ignored his severed digit and stood back.

  "I say cut off his dick," Enrique called out. I smiled and shook my head.

  "I guess it would be your dick, then. Trust me when I say that would hurt me more than it would hurt you.” Rotating my neck, I began to count to three in my head.

  "Alright, alright," Caleb drooled, sniffling up the snot that was leaking from his nose.

  "He wants to marry her," he choked out. Marry her? I raised my brows. That couldn't be right.

  That notion would have never crossed into mine. It could be argued that I was sick and immoral asshole, but even I had limits.

  Now that the perverse thought had presented, I could see it. The way he watched her when they were together, his small touches here and there that could be brushed off as innocent. And the way he used his men to keep any boys that were interested away from her.Perhaps that wasn't him being fatherly, after all.