Severed: A Dark Romance (The Taken Series Book 1)

by Dani René

  I turn and lead her into the building that will be our home for the next three weeks. It’s situated close to three of the names on our list. And that’s the reason I chose it, because while Caia can heal, I can kill.

  11

  Caia

  It’s the second day in the house he’s brought me to. It’s a comfortable log cabin in the middle of nowhere. I haven’t left the room in all the time I’ve been here, still unsure as to what he wants from me. Even though they haven’t hurt me, I find that being wary is the only way I will survive this.

  Seeing him again has brought back memories of what I went through when I was locked up in the Savage dungeon, but it’s also brought back the memory of what I begged him to do. What he took from me, violently and without remorse.

  I meet those blue eyes, the plea clear in my hazel ones as I watch him. There’s a war raging through him, the good and bad of Drake Savage.

  “I’m going to fuck you. I’m going to take your virginity and own it. And when I do, you’ll be mine.” His voice is gravelly as he promises me what I’ve just asked him for. It’s a vow. And I know if he makes good on this, if he really steals my virginity, I’ll belong to him. No matter what those men do to me, I’ll always be his.

  “Then do it,” I challenge him, praying he’ll take the bait and do the one thing he’s not supposed to do. “I don’t want them to have it. Please?”

  The corner of his mouth tilts up when he leans in closer. His lips shimmer with the saliva his tongue paints them with, and I follow the action.

  “Hearing you beg me to do it makes me even harder for you. It makes me want to rip into you and make you cry,” he growls, and as he utters the words, he’s already pushing his slacks down those long, muscled thighs. His hand grips the hard, angry erection jutting from his hips. Seconds later, I’m lifted against the wall and he’s driving into my wet, tight heat.

  I cry out as agonizing pain burns through me, and I know there’s no going back now. I belong to him. He owns me. And there’s nothing I can do about it.

  It’s silent in the house, but I know he’s still here. It’s as if I can feel him. He ordered me to come up here and shower, to change into some fresh clothes, and sleep. My body is still aching from the hard mattress I was allowed when I was in Thanos’s house, and the bed I’m now lying on is a stark contrast. Staring up at the ceiling, I wonder what Drake’s plan for me is. Will he keep me? Or will he let me loose on the world?

  When I laid eyes on him again, my heart stuttered wildly in my chest, reminding me of the night he took my virginity in that office after I’d begged him to. But when he looked at me, there was no affection in his gaze. Perhaps my stupid, young heart wanted more, wanted him to care.

  I never thought I’d see him again, yet here he is. He promised to save me, and he did. It took him four years, but he made good on a promise. Sighing, I roll over onto my side and close my eyes, wishing for sleep to steal me away.

  “Wake up.” The gritty tone of Drake’s voice startles me awake. When I open my eyes, I notice he’s dressed casually in a pair of dark jeans and a black T-shirt that hugs his frame. “We need to talk,” he tells me, then leaves me in the room once more.

  The sun streams through the small window opposite the bed, warming the room. It’s been so long since I’d seen the sun, it seems almost foreign to me. The artificial lights in the mansion were something I’d become accustomed to.

  Rising from the bed, I slip on the sandals I’d found in the small closet the first night I stayed here and make my way downstairs to find River, Drake, and Dante. I recall meeting Dante years ago, the twins who look so alike but are so very different in personality.

  “There she is.” River smiles, but the two Savage men just glare at me as if I’m a problem they need to sort out. “Sit,” River says, pushing a chair toward me.

  Perching myself on the stool, I open my mouth to speak but realize I have no idea what to say, so I utter the words I’ve wanted to since they stole me from Thanos. “Thank you,” I rasp, glancing at each man.

  “No need to thank us,” Dante smirks. “Perhaps you’d want to hear us out before you say those two words, because we’re not saviors, gorgeous.” A cold shiver races down my spine at his words, and I wonder then if they’re going to kill me.

  “Ignore my brother,” Drake finally speaks. “We need to know what happened to you in there. We need names of the men you saw and met while living with Thanos.” He’s all business, lifting a mug of steaming liquid to his lips, and I find myself licking my own in response. The boy who took my virginity is gone, replaced with a man who’s cold and closed off.

  But then again, he always was like that.

  “I can’t remember them all. There . . . There were a lot of parties.” Dropping my gaze, I focus on the countertop instead of looking into those blue eyes that have pierced my heart so many times before. I should never have let my emotions get the best of me, but there was something about Drake that made me want more. That made me want him. Even in his anger, he’s handsome. Even in his darkness, he’s light.

  “Well, then tell us what you do remember,” he responds, sighing as he sets a mug of coffee in front of me. “Drink that. It will warm you up.” Snapping my gaze to his, I offer a small smile and accept the hot drink. It’s the first time in years I’ve tasted coffee, and I gulp the scorching liquid, ignoring the burn on my tongue and down my throat as I swallow it.

  “There were four men who were there every time he had those dinner parties. One was a friend of my father, Leonard Harrelson. The CEO of LH Corporation. They deal in computer hardware.”

  “We know him,” Drake says, then glances at Dante. “Get info on him. I want everything, all those dirty secrets. We’ll pay him a visit tomorrow.” Dante nods, pulling out his cellphone and leaving the room as he says hello to someone on the other end of the line.

  “And the other three?” River questions, placing a hand on mine.

  My gaze flits between the two men who remain in the room. “What are you going to do to them?”

  Drake sets his mug down, leaning on his elbows. His face is merely inches from mine. His hot breath fans over my mouth, and I want to lean into him. “We’re going to gut the fuckers until they’re nothing more than roach food.”

  River chuckles beside me, and Drake straightens to full height, leaving me cold, not only from his words, but also from the absence of his mouth close to mine.

  “What are you going to do with me?” I whisper, my voice raspy with fear at what Drake’s intentions are. He turns to fill his mug, his back to me for a moment before he pivots and glances at me with an arched brow.

  “That all depends on you.”

  Straightening my spine, I question, “What do you mean?”

  “You can either walk away from this with a new identity,” he tells me easily, waving his hand at River who places a yellow folder before me.

  My trembling fingers tug at the tape holding it closed. Opening it, I find a passport with my photo and a name that’s not mine. “What’s the other option?” I question, tracing my index finger over the image of me in the small blue book.

  “You can work with us to take everyone down.”

  Shock races through me as I lift my gaze to his. “Work with you?”

  “Yes. Kill the assholes. Shut down the operation my father started,” he says. “The problem is, since Thanos is dead, the other clients would’ve heard about it through the grapevine. We need to plan this so they don’t suspect I’m the one killing each of them off.”

  “What’s the catch?” I ask, setting the fake passport on the counter. I pick up the mug and round the counter to get a refill, which puts me right beside the man affecting me more than anyone ever has.

  He watches me pour the coffee but doesn’t respond until I meet his blue eyes. The corner of his mouth tilts into a sinfully dark smirk.

  “The catch is you get to work alongside me, little raven,” he whispers. “If you can handle be
ing around me and not think about how I took your purity.”

  “You’re still the asshole I remember from four years ago,” I bite back, my voice not wavering with fear this time, but burning hot with anger.

  “I’m even worse now, little bird,” he tells me confidently. “I’m far from asshole, more like . . .” He purses his lips as if he’s thinking about what to tell me. “Satan himself.”

  “Does that mean you turned into your asshole monster of a father?” I retort, not sure where my confidence is coming from, and I realize that remark could get me killed. He may need me, but once he’s done, he could easily murder me. Drake snaps his hard glare on me, his hand gripping my neck and squeezing, causing me to cough. In shock, the mug slips from my hands, falling to the floor with a loud shattering crash.

  He leans in close, so close I can taste him. “If you ever say that again, I won’t think twice about ripping you apart, little raven,” he bites out, anger vibrating through him into me. “I’m nothing like that monster.” Tears prick my eyes as my blood turns cold. My lungs protesting, needing air.

  “Drake.” River’s voice is distant as he calls to his volatile best friend. “Dude, let her up. She’s just trying to piss you off.”

  I reach for Drake’s wrist, my nails digging in deep, feeling his flesh tear as I scratch into him. That only makes him smile. He brushes his lips over my ear and whispers, “Remember, little raven, I love it rough. I love when you draw blood from me while I make you wet with my dick. Do you remember that night, little one? Because I do. I remember every wet, slick, tight part of you.” He releases me, stalking from the kitchen, leaving me gulping in air.

  “Ignore him. He’s just going through shit,” River says, as if his best friend wasn’t just choking the life from me.

  “He’s a monster,” I grit out, my throat burning.

  “That he is, but he’s as broken as you and me, babe,” River offers, rising and leaving me in the kitchen to seek out Drake. I don’t know what to do. Without them, I’m not sure I’ll be able to survive. But with them, I may be broken even more. I just need to decide which is the lesser of two evils.

  12

  Drake

  “Did you enjoy that?” River questions when he finds me outside smoking. My body is still vibrating with a rage I never thought I’d feel again. When Malcolm died, it finally eased up, the anger that’s so palpable it runs through my veins. It ate away at me for years.

  Alongside the rage was the fear that I’d turn into him. It was a constant reminder that it could so easily happen. I worked hard to fix myself, to focus on the end goal, to be free of the organization he started. But with each step forward, there were two back.

  “I did,” I finally respond to my best friend. I can feel his gaze burning a fucking hole through me, and I know why. He’s angry with me for hurting Caia. I’m angry at myself for what I did, but there was fire dancing in her eyes as she struggled to suck in breaths. I wanted to steal them, to swallow them and bask in her warmth.

  “You’re an asshole.” He tells me something I’ve known all my life. He pulls out a packet of cigarettes, lighting one while staring at me.

  “Tell me something I don’t know, River.”

  He sighs, blowing out a lungful of smoke, the white cloud billowing around him. Dante is just off the porch talking to someone on his phone, and I know he’ll soon have the info we need. My brother paces back and forth, something he does when he’s nervous or when he’s ready to blow a gasket. I wonder which one it is this time.

  “She has feelings for you,” River mutters around the smoke hanging from his lips. I didn’t want to admit it, to acknowledge it, but he’s right. I saw it in her eyes. It’s clear as day when she looks at me. Needless to say, I’ve still got some fucked-up feelings for her too. Only, I can’t act on it. She needs to be free of this life and me as soon as I’ve gotten all the names from her. Seeing her alive is strange, especially after I thought she’d died along with my soul.

  But I can’t deny my mind has been on her since she went to bed last night. I watched her sleep for a while. Seeing the rise and fall of her breaths calmed me somewhat.

  “You know, Drake—”

  “River, I don’t need your fucking pep talk right now,” I bite out my frustration, pinning my best friend with a glare. It’s not his fault; I’ve done this to myself. Let her in, and now I’m lost in the feelings that are taking over me. This is why I never let anyone in before. Emotions are murderous vultures that peck at your life. They devour you as you lie dying once you’ve offered your heart to someone.

  “Jesus, you’re really hung up on her,” he says. Stepping up to me, he leans in, whispering, “If you want her so much, then fucking take her.”

  My hand grips his hair, tugging him closer as I crash my mouth to his. Groaning when our tongues make contact, I bite down on his lip, causing him to grunt against me. I want to kiss her. I want to kiss him. I’m so fucked up I can’t even get hard without hurting the person I love so much.

  The thought invades my mind as River’s tongue invades my mouth. His lips are hot against mine, the warmth snaking its way through me, but it can never melt my ice-cold heart. The image of Caia beside me, her hands on both our dicks while she watches us runs rampant through my mind, and I know I have to have them both.

  “Get a room.” Dante’s gruff voice breaks through the haze of need burning me alive, and I have to pull away from River. “I have a positive location on our guy. He’s scheduled to have a dinner date this evening with his wife. It’s their anniversary.”

  “Looks like we’ll have to deliver our gift in person.” I smile, knowing how this is going to play out. “Where is the dinner?”

  “Gorlois, that place down on the west side of town.”

  Nodding, I make my way inside to find the woman who’s fucking with my head and my heart. Taking the steps two at a time, I shove open the bedroom door only to find her naked as she’s pulling up a pair of white panties.

  “Jesus,” she grits out angrily. “Can’t you knock?”

  “No.” Entering the room, I settle on the dressing table, ignoring the fact that she’s attempting to get dressed. Her tiny tits jiggle with every movement, and my kiss earlier with River is only serving to make me harder than a fucking steel pole. “Have you decided what you want to do?” I question her.

  She stills, taking me in for a moment before she tugs on the jeans I’d bought and placed in the room this morning. She doesn’t know I left her alone for a few hours earlier and bought her enough clothes, toiletries, and underwear to last her a year. When I walked into the store, I found myself wanting to spoil her, to see her smile, but all I’m getting now is a scowl. Not that I blame her. Perhaps it’s better that she hates me.

  “I want revenge,” she finally answers once she’s fully dressed. The blue top she’s wearing makes the dark ink on her skin pop against the light color.

  “Oh?” I arch a brow at her.

  “Yes. I want to kill my father,” she tells me with confidence in her voice. There are fine red marks on her neck along with the butterfly tattoo that covers her flesh. The marks are mine. She’s mine. She always has been.

  “That’s a rather valiant remark, Caia,” I tell her. I wonder if she knows her father sold her to us when she turned eighteen. She must if she wants to kill him, or it might be that she witnessed what a monster he truly is.

  “I’ve seen what he did to my sister. She may be dead now, but I need to avenge her somehow.”

  She doesn’t yet know that her sister is at my house. And she doesn’t know that her father is looking for his youngest daughter. “Harper is alive,” I tell her, hoping to put her at ease.

  Her body goes rigid, her face a picture of shock and confusion. “What?” she utters.

  I rise from the bed, stalking toward her. “I found her; or she found me,” I whisper. “She’s safe at the mansion.” Caia shakes her head, disbelieving me for a moment before I grip her chin between my th
umb and index finger. “She’s alive. Now, tell me what your choice is?”

  She lifts her gaze to meet mine, her plump lips parted as she takes shallow breaths. Every time I’m near her, all I want to do is make her mine, to feel her body mold around mine as I claim her, but I have so much to do before I can ever venture into the unknown with her.

  “Will you hurt me?” She finally voices her concern. Her tongue darts out, swiping along her lower lip, making it glisten with saliva, and I can’t help leaning in, allowing myself to taste her. The flavor of coffee is still on her, and I lick along the plump flesh, savoring her sweetness with the bitterness of the caffeine.

  “I will.” My promise has her gasping. “But when I do hurt you, little raven, you’ll love it. You’ll beg me for more. Just like you pleaded with me to steal your virginity all those years ago.”

  I watch her now, intrigued by the change in her. There was fear in her eyes when I found her, but now I look at her, and that’s been diminished. In its place is a fire so fierce I want to burn in her wreckage.

  “Then take me to your house. I want to train with your men, because I need to make my father suffer for what he’s done. And I need to see Harper.”

  I always knew Caia was strong. Resilient. And as she learns more about who she is, she’ll see that she was destined to walk beside me. I’ve spent four long years fighting my need for her, but her choice is to go with me. Since that’s the case, I know I’ll not be able to deny her when she begs for me again.

  I won’t touch her until she asks for it. And I know, if she feels anything like I do, she will ask for it. For me. I nod. “Fine. Then you’ll train with me. You’ll play along with my rules because the men I’m about to take down along with your father are not stupid. This is your choice. Once you step foot on the Savage compound again, you cannot leave unless you’re...”