“Yes,” she was sobbing now.
“I said quiet,” he snarled, tightening his grip on her middle and securing both of her arms in the process. “One last chance, blondie.”
She was nodding, trying to pull in air from around his hand. Ethan inched his palm lower, allowing her nose enough air, but keeping her mouth firmly covered.
“Better,” he told her. “Now, you live pretty close to here, right?”
She nodded again.
“How far?” he demanded. “And let me remind you, if you scream or do anything stupid when I remove my hand, then I will make you sorry…”
Slowly, he shifted his palm from her lips, watching her closely as she took a large intake of breath.
“Please!” she whimpered. “Please don’t do this. Just let me go. I won’t tell anyone. I won’t—"
The same palm sealed her mouth closed again, cutting off her sentence.
“I said, how far?”
Her body tensed at Ethan’s question. It was almost as though her brain was finally catching up with recent events, and now she was trying to decide how she could best fight back, without risking the wrath of her attacker. He had news for her. It was time to comply or die. She was out of options.
Comply and die, he thought with a smirk as he tightened his grip around her, and slowly lowered his other hand again.
“Just a few minutes from here,” she squeaked in a whisper.
Ethan nodded. He already knew full well where she lived, having followed her on more than one occasion. Even as he held her trembling body steady, he could barely believe that the little blonde hadn’t noticed him on any of those instances. Were people seriously so dense that they thought they were safe, just because they were within touching distance of their homes?
Yes, the small voice in his head confirmed. Yes, they were.
“Good.” He was pleased she hadn’t lied to him. Fear could often make people do stupid, reckless things. “Then lead on, blondie. We’re going to cut through the graveyard, in case we get any unwelcome attention, but rest assured, if you do try to run or scream, I will punish you for it.”
His cock hardened inside his pants at the small whimper that escaped her throat, but Ethan ignored its urgent throb. There wasn’t much time, and anyway, he had to get the woman out of sight. Every moment in the street was perilous, and he knew it.
They were moving then, his strong body forcing his victim forward. Manhandling her body, he managed to maneuver the blonde toward a break in the brickwork, ordering her to climb the waist-high fence that led into the cemetery. It meant that he had to release her in the short term. She had to get herself over the fence, unless of course, he opted to literally throw her over. She eyed him warily as she reached the other side, and for a split second, Ethan could see the debate in her mind; her eyes told him the whole sorry tale.
This was it, they flashed. This was her chance to run for it, and in a heartbeat she turned on her heel and was gone.
Ethan growled with irritation as he completed the leap over the fence and pursued her. There was no sense of panic in his body, because he already knew he’d reach her. He was faster than her, stronger than her, and every inch as determined. Over the course of the last few months, he’d honed himself into the perfect predator. His long, agile strides reached her within a moment, dodging the gravestones as she darted past them. With one well-timed jump, he crashed into her body, sending them both hurtling for the long grass. Of course, the woman screeched as he took her down, but the sounds were soon muffled by the earth as it connected with her face.
Wrestling her with ridiculous ease, Ethan reached into his jacket pocket and pulled his favorite gag from its confines. She’d probably be bruised and cut after the fall, but that was tough shit. She’d made her own bed by running, and now he couldn’t take any more chances. Now he had to shut her up.
“That was stupid,” he told her as he pushed the plastic ball into her protesting mouth.
Immobilizing her body into the dirt with his bodyweight, Ethan secured the gag quickly before he forced her scrabbling arms back behind her back. She was still trying to screech into the plastic, but the sounds were subdued. He shifted his weight, holding both wrists in place with one hand as he reached into the same pocket for his handcuffs.
“Really stupid,” he whispered in a low growl as he went to work securing her hands in place behind her. “Now you’ve gone and done it, darling. Now you’ve angered the beast.”
Sometime later, Ethan stared down at the woman’s lifeless body at his feet. His mind was euphoric, the way it always was after the kill, but somehow, the high wasn’t as good as he’d hoped. It was tainted, though he couldn’t say why. It seemed to be getting more and more difficult to satiate his hunger, and now it appeared even blondie’s death wasn’t going to satisfy him. His head ached, the weight of all the desire and expectation mingling with something else.
Yes, there was something else.
Someone else.
Lily.
He had no idea why the image of her face popped into his head now—of all times— but there she was, dark hair swinging, piercing him with that hypnotic green gaze. Ethan drew his eyes closed at the thought of her, blocking out the desolate scene before him. Why was Lily in his head now? Why were his visions allowing this sordid scene to contaminate the thoughts of her when he wasn’t even sure what fate awaited the woman yet? He had a sense that she was important—or could be— but at the end of the day, Lily could equally end up just like blondie.
“Shit,” he whispered, drawing in a deep breath as the confusion pounded in his mind. “Shit, shit, shit.”
Ethan tidied up around him unthinkingly. It was like he was on autopilot, having completed many similar tasks in recent months. He removed the gag and cuffs, slipping them back inside his jacket pocket, before he abandoned the blonde’s body, retracing his steps toward the kitchen door. There was no chance of finger prints. He always wore leather gloves to alleviate that little problem, and there’d been no force used to enter the building. As far as he knew, she’d lived alone, so it might even take a few days before anyone found her. Not that it mattered to him either way.
As he slipped out of the back door, using blondie’s keys to lock the place up, Ethan fleetingly wondered at his state of mind. He was vaguely aware that this behavior wasn’t normal, but the fact rarely troubled him. He’d been thinking about taking women for a long time, but his reasoning didn’t apply to all of the opposite sex. He’d loved his mother intensely, and he would skin any man who tried to hurt his little sister, Kitty.
And then there was Lily.
Lily, Lily—everything now was always Lily.
She seemed to always be in his head, holding a promise that made his heart miss a beat, though he still couldn’t fathom the reasoning for the effect she had over him.
As a psychology graduate, Ethan had given his proclivities a great deal of thought, and he knew he didn’t hate women. He didn’t even want to hurt them all. It was just some women, some of the time—when he got that feeling—when the urge just got too strong to fight. Then he wanted to take them. Then he wanted to exert his power over them. He couldn’t explain it better than that—it was like there was a disconnect at those times. Ethan had a moral compass, but it was just fucked up. He knew it was wrong, but somehow, he couldn’t bring himself to care. Taking them excited him, and finishing them off was the most intense sexual climax.
Locking his latest victim’s garden gate, he glanced around, ensuring there was no one around before he made his way back into the graveyard. Once he was well inside the boundaries of the cemetery, he hurled the small set of keys into a nearby bush, signaling the end of blondie.
And that was when it happened. A vision of Lily filled his mind again—this one as clear as day. Ethan had never experienced anything like it. It was like the woman was standing right in front of him, except she wasn’t there. He knew she wasn’t. But, by God, she must be close. So close, an
d—he paused as the shocking truth dawned on him.
Lily was in danger.
Ethan could sense her apprehension, and dare he say it, her fear. The thought made his feet halt, his brain racing to catch up with recent events. Something was about to happen which would result in the intimidation he could sense. Ethan wasn’t sure what, but he knew instinctively that it was all unraveling soon. He could feel the pressure bearing down over him, robbing him of air as the image of her green gaze slipped from his face.
“Lily!”
He whispered her name in one long rush of air, grasping his chest as the sound left his lips. Lily was out there, somewhere close, and she was in trouble.
Ethan’s feet were running before his brain had even reached the obvious conclusion. He had to go to her. There was no question about that in his mind as he raced across the damp grass.
She needed him, and Ethan wasn’t going to stand around and let anything happen to her. Lily was his—and no other man was allowed to touch her.
Chapter Five
Shimmying down the drainpipe of her parents’ small semi-detached house onto the small, brick porch was just as difficult as Lily remembered, especially when she was wearing one of Jody’s mini-skirts. Lily’s father would never let her have the latest fashion in the house, calling it scandalous, but Jody had insisted Lily wear one tonight. Although it rode up her thighs in a particularly unladylike way as she made her descent, Lily was glad she’d borrowed the small black number. She’d always liked her long legs, and it would be nice to be able to flaunt them for a change.
Landing as lightly as she could at the side of the porch, Lily scurried into the nearby alley. Her father rarely missed anything, and no doubt he would have heard something of her escape. When after a moment there was no sign of anyone from the house, she tiptoed to the end of the alley and out onto the main road. Lily could see the light was still on – just as she expected it to be. Her parents were creatures of perpetual habit. Every night they retired to the same room, sitting in the same seats they’d adorned for years, and watched the same inane programs on the television. They’d been amongst the first to get a color set last year—a fact that had caused excitement among Lily’s friends—but the truth was, she barely got to watch the thing. Her father had decided almost at once, that the small box in the corner of the room was wholly inappropriate for his only child, and had devised new ways to keep her away from it. Lily imagined them inside the house now. Newspaper and ironing set aside, Lily pictured them, her father smoking his pipe by the fire as her mother sat beside him knitting and her heart sank. She loved them both dearly, but she’d decided years ago that nothing about their life was even vaguely aspirational. Lily wanted a different life to the one they’d chosen. A more fulfilling life.
It took less than ten minutes to reach the edge of Sloan park, where Lily found Jody already waiting for her.
“You’re late!” she hissed as Lily hurried across the road to join her. “These skirts might look great, but I’m bloody freezing.”
“Sorry,” apologized Lily at once.
One quick look at her friend confirmed her assertion. Jody was also modelling one of her trendy new mini-skirts, and looked every inch as fabulous as she always did. Lily tried hard not to envy her friend, but with Jody’s long blonde hair, and big brown eyes, Lily had to admit, she often failed in this regard. Lily knew she was attractive in her own way, but Jody had looks that could kill.
“It took longer to get down the pipes than I remembered,” Lily continued, as she tried to explain the delay.
Jody waved her hand dismissively. “You’re just out of practice,” she quipped. “And we’re going to be late if we don’t get moving.”
Her long legs were already striding down the street, and Lily scurried to keep pace with her just as a car slowed its pace at the curb beside them.
“Ladies!” The sound of a male voice filled the night air, and they turned to see the grinning face of a young guy leaning out of the driver’s seat. “Where are you going at this time of night? Can we give you a lift somewhere?”
Lily’s heart pounded beneath her thin coat. Shit, she thought as she sneaked a quick look at the car again. There were four of them in there, each as menacing looking as the next.
“Piss off,” shouted Jody as her attention turned back to the path ahead. “We’re not going anywhere with you lot.”
“Whoa,” came a reply from the back of the car, and despite the feeling of dread ricocheting around her body, Lily s eyes darted back to the driver just as he spoke.
“That’s not very nice, is it, boys?”
There was a chorus of agreement from the men in the car at that, the sound making Lily’s feet move even faster than they already were.
“Let’s get out of here,” she whispered into Jody’s ear. “I don’t like this.”
Jody’s eyes flitted to meet Lily’s, her friend’s full of defiance. “Fuck them,” she hissed in reply. “This is the way we’re going. They can just piss off.”
“The blonde one’s desperate for some attention,” mocked the guy from the passenger seat.
“She sure is,” called the driver again. “And I’ll be happy enough to take care of her little dark-haired friend, too.”
Lily gulped at his words, dread dissolving into terror as they resonated. She scanned the road around them. The place was deserted, save from a few empty cars parked on the road ahead. There was no one to call for help, and even if there had been someone, this street was still too close to her parents’ house. Someone here might recognize her, and get a message to her father.
“Come on, beautiful,” leered the driver. “Hop in here, outta the cold. I’m sure there’s room for both of you in the back with Steve and Ben.”
Her gaze returned to the back of the car like a morbid reflex, and the look of the grinning faces there made her stomach turn. Instinctively, Lily had an idea what fate might befall them if they ended up in the back of that car, and, all of a sudden, it was hard to take another breath.
The screeching of tires was the first indication of another car, and as she glanced down the road, the headlights of the other vehicle almost blinded her. There was nothing especially ominous in its arrival itself, but the speed the other driver was doing made Lily shuffle toward the nearby garden fence in panic. The car approached so fast, that she reflexively reached for Jody’s arm, intending to pull her to safety before the two vehicles collided. She watched in horror as the moving car hurtled in the direction of the stationary vehicle, braced for what seemed certain to be an almighty impact. Squeezing her eyes closed, Lily held her breath and waited for the inevitable. There didn’t seem to be anything else for her to do. It all happened in a matter of seconds, and there was no time to react—no time to get away. The sound of tires braking hard on the road made her belly twist into a painful ball.
“What the fuck?”
In the end it was Jody’s words that drew her eyes open, and Lily panted in amazement at what she saw. The two cars hadn’t collided as she’d assumed, but the new arrival had in fact managed to stop just a couple of inches in front of the other vehicle. The stunned expressions of the men who had caused her such trepidation should have amused her, but Lily was too consumed with the other car, or to be more precise, with the man who now emerged from the dark interior.
He was tall—taller than she recalled any other man being—and he lunged from the driver’s seat with the sort of agility not regularly associated with a man of his stature. His eyes briefly fell over the pair of women, and the fierce intensity in his gaze made Lily’s heart thunder even faster. Turning back to the car full of men, the tall stranger leapt across the hood of the other car, landing on his feet just a yard away from where Jody was standing. Her friend gasped, but the sound was drowned out by the angry tones of the driver, who yanked his door open and jumped out of his own car to face the threat.
“What the fuck is your problem, friend?” His growl reverberated through the
air, but Lily saw the way he gulped as he took in the size of the other guy.
Face to face, the new guy was easily half a foot taller than the one who had called out to her and Jody.
“You are my fucking problem,” sneered the other man in response. “And I am definitely not your friend.”
The first driver chuckled, apparently trying to maintain an air of cocky bravado, but Lily had an idea he wasn’t quite as sure of himself as he glanced back to the other men in his car. “Are these girls friends of yours?” he asked in a half laugh.
“Who the hell is this guy?” cried one of the men emerging from the back of the vehicle. “Does he want some trouble?”
The taller man laughed, but something about the sound made the small hairs on Lily’s nape rise. It was so dark and intense, like something out of one of those late night movies her parents would never let her watch, but that she’d sneaked a peek at with Jody on occasion.
The tall guy shifted his weight, turning his attention to the newest man, who he also towered over. “The question is,” he began, inching toward the two other men. “How much trouble do you gentlemen want—all over two women you don’t even know?”
Lily blinked at the scene playing out in front of her, her mind whirring into action despite the deafening thunder of her heart. Who was this guy, and how the hell could he know that about the men in the car? It didn’t make any sense, but neither did the interaction she was witnessing at that moment. The tall guy was outnumbered, four to one. There was no logical reason why he should seem so intimidating to the other men, and yet as she stood shivering behind him, that’s how it seemed. The men from the first car seemed unable to take their eyes from him, and if she didn’t know better, it seemed they were shrinking back toward their vehicle.
The driver turned toward the guy who’d climbed out of the back seat, shaking his head at his friend. “We don’t want any trouble,” he reassured the tall man. “We’re just having a little fun, that’s all.”
Flawed: (A Psychological Dark Romance) (The Dark Necessities Prequels Book 1) Page 3
