“Let’s go get your hand looked at while we wait.”
“It’s fine,” I ground out.
“It’ll give us something to do. Come on, boss.”
Like a zombie, I let Marcio lead me inside. My mind went over every possibility of who could be responsible. Even through the paper work and admitting, I never stopped plotting revenge. Someone was going to pay and I wasn’t going to stop until they did.
Chapter 10
Zain
A blur of colors swirled above me and somewhere within, I knew doctors were working to keep me alive, but all I could focus on was my slave’s face. Her smile beamed above as she leaned down, running her fingers over the stubble on my cheek. It was the moment I knew my heart was hers. We’d just finished making love and I was surprised she was still awake from the punishment I’d put her through. Marks from the spanking and where I’d sucked against her skin marred random places, and exhaustion showed on her face, but that smile and affection…I soaked it in like the starving man I was.
“What was your life like before you got taken?” I tucked a lock of hair behind her ear while she twisted her mouth.
“Lots of school, shopping, the typical college girl stuff.”
“School.” My attention piqued. At twenty-seven, I’d never attended a real college. All my education was done by private teachers that came to my father’s home. “What were you studying?”
She laughed and shrugged. “Nothing too exciting. Just business stuff. My brother owns a really big company. I’m going to work for him when I finish school.” A frown took over her smile. “I was.” Tears appeared and I pulled her to lay down on my chest while I stroked her hair.
“I’m sorry your life has taken a different path. I’ve come to see they often veer from what we expect.”
“No.” She pushed off of me to sit. “I’m going back. I won’t be here forever. Slade will find me. He will. You don’t know my brother.”
“I don’t, but I know my father and his connections. You won’t be going home, Lily. Your life is here now.”
Dark hair spun around her nude body as she turned to get off the bed. My arm wrapped around her waist and I pulled her back, making her lie down again.
“Is it so very bad here with me?” I used the pad of my thumb to wipe the tears from her cheek. “I take care of you, don’t I?”
“Well, yes, but…”
“Stop,” I said, lowly. “The more you think about what can never be, the worse it’ll become. I know this from experience, slave. I was every bit the captive you were. Sometimes we just have to accept what is and continue living with what we’re given.”
Her head lifted while she cupped my cheek. The soft press of her lips had my eyes searching hers.
“Let’s leave together. We can go back to San Francisco and you can get a job while I go to school. You can have a new start. Once my brother knows everything, he’ll destroy this place. We can do it, Master. We can escape.”
The happiness on her face had my hand fitting over her mouth—hard. “No more. You’re living in a fantasy world.” In truth, the temptation rocked me. I wanted to leave with her. Wanted to work a normal job while she went to school. We could get a little place and spend every minute of our free time in each other’s arms. What I liked even more was how she saw us together outside of this place. For some reason, I hadn’t expected that—hadn’t even let myself think of the possibility.
“No,” she said, managing to turn her head away from my palm. “You are the one living in a fantasy. You’re brainwashed into believing your father is more powerful than he is. You watch. My brother is going to kill him when he finds out where I am and what he’s done to all those girls.”
My fingers buried into her hair and I tightened my fist. “The only one killing that bastard is me. Enough of this talk. I want your pussy on me again. Kiss me and let me taste what’s mine.” I spun her underneath me, still holding her head steady and under my control. “You want me?”
Moans poured from her mouth as I let the underside of my cock glide over her wet slit. Her hips pumped, urging me to go faster.
“Yes, Master.”
“You said you wanted to be with me in your little fantasy world. That really true?”
Lily paused and the pink that tinted her cheeks had my mouth crushing into hers. I didn’t need an answer from what I’d just seen.
“I want to be with you, too. There’s no one else for me, Lily. You’re the one.” My hips shifted as I reached down, sliding one of my fingers deep into her pussy. Nails dug into the back of my biceps and I eased another in, thrusting at a slow pace.
No matter what was going through my mind, I couldn’t break my stare from the pleasure on her face. Her sounds grew louder, hypnotizing me. Warmth filled my chest until it resembled nothing short of liquid lava. How had she done it? Come into my life and turned a cold, ruthless killer into a man full of tenderness and love? True, it wasn’t to anyone but her and an outsider would see it differently with the punishment I inflicted on her, but I never thought myself capable to care for someone. To…
“I love you,” I breathed against her lips, telling her for the first time. “God, I do. And nothing will ever break us apart.”
“No matter what?”
Such raw hope on her face. “You have my word, baby girl. No matter what.”
Bright lights shone through the darkness taking Lily away from me. There was something over my mouth and nose that kept rocking my head the slightest amount. For the life of me, I couldn’t react to try to remove whatever was suffocating me…or was it giving me air? I couldn’t think to decide. Fire covered my chest and my body swayed at someone pushing down. Chest compressions? Opening my eyes took every ounce of strength I had, but my surroundings didn’t become visible before darkness blanketed me once again. A multitude of voices grabbed my attention and I fought to make out the words.
“Let's do a Dopamine drip to titrate the patient’s blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure of one-forty.” A voice further away, broke through. “We’re going to have to get him into surgery fast. He’s losing too much blood.”
“You’re bleeding.” My voice was cold as I walked forward, pulling Lily from the corner of the room she was huddled in. Nausea and rage mixed, sending my adrenaline through the roof. “What happened? Who hurt you?” I angled her face to the side, taking in the fresh bruise and laceration on her cheek.
“It’s nothing, really. It was my fault.”
It took everything I had not to shake her. “What. Happened?”
Tears rolled down her cheeks, feeding my anger even more.
“There was a slave. She was hurt. I tried to help.”
My head shook and I lifted her hand to kiss her palm. The long sleeve of the robe fell away and my eyes widened at the claw marks embedded deep in her arm.
“Oh…baby. Did they do this to you, too?”
She jerked her hand back. “No, that was the girl. She’s…”A sob broke from her and she threw herself into my chest, crying harder than I’d ever seen her. “She’s dead. She died in my arms while I was trying to comfort her. Then, Saul found me and—”A deep groan vibrated my insides as she broke.
“No more. I’m here now. I won’t let anyone hurt you again.” I covered her face, leaving her eyes showing as I led her to the shower. The moment the robe dropped to the floor, I knew what I had to do. The bruise on her face was enough to convince me, but the damage I saw covering my slave’s body went past simple murder. I was going to carve my uncle up every way I could for putting his hands on what belonged to me.
Lights broke through the darkness again. I blinked, feeling my eyes roll as what looked to be shadows hovered over me.
“He’s waking up.”
The voice sounded distant and my head turned to the side as I tried to figure out which direction it had come from. More talking and movement swirled and I knew I should have been scared, but the only thing on my mind was Lily. Someone had taken he
r. A man, wearing dark clothes and a ski mask. Was she okay? Was she getting hurt this very moment?
I heard myself groan as pressure pushed into my chest.
Was it my family who’d orchestrated it? Someone she knew and wanted to hurt her because of the murders she committed? How did they know to look on my floor? Did they witness us going inside?
So many question began flooding my mind, but nothing would come in the form of an answer. I was drowning in both theories and what I assumed was my own blood. I was dying, and from my guess, it wasn’t the first time tonight. Was I going to make it out of this room alive and be able to search for my slave, or would she be lost forever?
Chapter 11
Lily
“Rise, baby, and give your Master a kiss.”
I stood, racing for Zain and throwing myself in his arms. My legs ached and my knees were numb from kneeling for the last hour, waiting for him to arrive from one of his missions. The details had been vague when he left, but I knew it was going to be dangerous, just like everything surrounding him.
My arms locked around his neck and I pulled myself as close as I could possibly get. Not two hours before, I’d been covered in blood. Saul had a new slave, one he was breaking, one night at a time. This time, it had been a broken nose and one that seemed to take me forever to get to stop bleeding. And, I’d bled, too. But not from his uncle. Not that night.
The blowout that had happened after the first incident could be heard all the way in our room. Even Zain’s father got in on the yelling, but when it was said and done, I was granted permission to help those who were wounded. I was off limits to every male in the house and as long as it was to give my service, I was able to go as I pleased, but I paid dearly for it.
Rachel’s crescent shaped nail marks were embedded all down the length of my forearms. When Zain reached up to remove my locked wrists from behind his neck and I winced, he knew.
“How bad was it?”
I stepped back, letting him take off the bullet proof vest and belt he wore that carried his weapons.
“Broken nose. Bruises to the face.”
He shook his head and his jaw clenched repeatedly.
“How was your night?” Fatigue was settling in, but I was far from ready for bed.
“Went pretty smoothly. Transaction made. Easy deal.”
My frown was instantaneous. He was never so vague.
“Oh. That’s it?”
His eyes darted to me, but went down to the button of his pants as he began taking them off.
Silence.
“Are you seeing anyone else when you leave? Like…a woman?”
I swallowed hard, hating that my insecurities had me speaking my fears. Zain’s eyebrows drew in as he turned his attention to me.
“What in the world would make you think that?”
All I could do was shrug.
He sighed and cocked his head to the side. “Does it look like I need another woman? I obviously want you.”
His cock was thick and long. So hard and ready for me. Embarrassed, I turned to the side and lowered my head. “We’ve had sex multiple times in one night. You could easily fuck someone else and come back here to me.”
Slowly, he moved forward. I could feel his dominance pushing against my skin like a living thing.
“I’m disappointed in your doubt of me. Have I ever given you reason to believe I’d be unfaithful to you? Have I not catered to you? Cherished and protected you to the best of my ability?”
“You have.”
“Wall.”
The deepness of his voice had me dropping the robe to the floor. I kept my head high as I walked over and stood to face him. My arms rose¸ waiting.
“Trust. Have I not taught you anything? You trust me more with your body than you do with your heart. I want it equally. I want it to capacity. You will learn to believe in me.”
The cuffs locked around my wrists and I watched as he lifted his hand, raking his nails down the center of my chest. The delicious heat had me licking my lips. A tap to my feet and I spread my legs even wider.
“Look at that,” he breathed out. “You have no idea what I feel when I see you give yourself to me like this. Why would I want to risk losing your submission, slave? You may see it as a pleasure for you, but it’s a gift to me. I treasure what we share. Nothing could make me ruin that.”
He grabbed his belt and used the end to slap the outside of my leg, harder than he normally began.
“Tonight will be the last time you question my devotion to you. I’ll make sure of it.”
A steady connection began on my hip and moved toward my knee, working the outside. When it changed to the inside, I sucked in air at the sting.
“Who loves you?”
“You do, Master.”
“And do people who love on each other cheat?”
A cry escaped at the slap over my clit. “Sometimes.”
He moved to the opposite inner thigh with a force that had my jaw dropping and tears filling my eyes.
“Then that’s not love. If I called my brother in here, would you let him fuck you?”
My head shook frantically. Amir’s namesake was someone I tried to stay as far away from as I could. The hate he had for Zain was clear. Zain was the bastard child. The one his father always doted on, if one could say the man doted on anything. It was clear to anyone who saw the three together which one his father favored.
“Answer,” he growled. “I want to hear the words come from your mouth.”
“No, Master. I don’t want anyone but you.”
Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack!
The tears streamed down my cheeks as I searched for my breath.
“It better stay that way. We belong together. You and I. No one else.” He walked forward, slightly brushing down my slit with his fingers. At him separating my folds, I bit my lip, moving against the almost nonexistent touch “Be still. You haven’t earned enjoyment yet.”
“I’m sorry. I was wrong to think you were seeing someone else.”
His eyebrow rose. “You have no idea.”
Four hard spankings to my ass ended with him gripping into my flesh and pulling me into his body. My legs wrapped around his waist while I tried to bring him closer.
“You want my cock?” He rubbed the length along my pussy. I tried rotating my hips to allow him entrance, but he denied me.
“Yes, Master. Give it to me. Show me I’m the only one for you. That you love me.”
One arm wrapped around my waist while the other twisted in my long hair. Zain nipped at my lip, tracing over the bottom one with his tongue before he leaned back to look into my eyes. “I’m going to do more than show you that I love you, baby girl. I’m going to fuck it so hard into your memory that you’ll know no one but me. I may be your Master in this new life of yours, but I’ll become your everything before it’s over with.”
The head of his cock pushed into my opening and I gripped to the chains as he eased in an inch at a time, letting me adjust. His withdrawal left me wanting more and I wasn’t disappointed. In one swift motion, he buried himself inside of me. My scream filled the room and our lips connected at the same time.
“Remember this, slave. Always remember who you belong to. No one is going to love you more than I will. I won’t let them.”
The thrusts came savagely, leaving me fighting to catch my breath. Cold cement stunned my heated skin as he pressed into me, removing the hand in my hair to cover my throat.
“Your life is mine. I feel the proof of it right here,” he said, applying the smallest amount of pressure and slamming into me even faster. “And I’m yours. Put your hand over my heart. Tell me who it beats for.” He let one of my hands free while the other was left above my head.
I took a deep breath, pushing my palm into his chest. “For me. We are each other’s.”
“Yes. Forever. And I mean that. Every day until our last.”
My sob woke me from my dream. From the memories of my Master.
Pitch black surrounded me and I flew to a sitting position, only making it inches up before my head connected with something hard. I froze for the briefest moment before confusion set in. Then…panic.
Frantically, my hands flew up, patting around me, realizing I was surrounded by what felt to be wood. Fear had my legs drawing up, only to be stopped from lack of space. The strangled cry that left me couldn’t be stopped. Was I in a wooden coffin? Some sort of crate?
“Oh, God. Help! Somebody, help me!” My fist beat against the hard surface as my body went crazy inside the confined space. Louder, I became, each plea for help making my throat burn even more from the force of my yells.
But no one came. There wasn’t a sound I could detect, except my own.
Sobbing, I forced myself to calm and replay the events of how I’d gotten here. Nothing was really registering. My brain felt fuzzy and my tongue was thick and swollen in my mouth. Where was I? My ears ached and I wasn’t sure if it was from the dead silence or—
A blood curling scream left me as I saw my Master crumpling to the ground in my mind. Dark crimson poured from his chest. Pain was clearly etched on his features as his knees buckled and he fell to the ground. Was he dead? He’d been rushing forward. Right in the direction of me and my kidnapper.
My head shook and I couldn’t bear to think of the possibilities. Not yet. I moved forward in in what I could remember. Leather. The whole time it had remained, sliding over my face at our rushing through the parking garage. It didn’t lift until the door opened and a cloth pushed against my face. Then…nothing.
Now, here I was, trapped in a prison of my own making. Again. Why had I fought Zain? He loved me and wanted to protect me. Hadn’t he proved that time and time again? Yet, I’d probably broken his arm, if not hyperextended it, and more than likely, he was dead. All due to my stubbornness. Of my lack of indecisiveness. I’d lost the only man I ever loved and it was all my fault.
No, I refused to believe that. He was a fighter. He’d survive.
Lily: Captive to the Dark Page 9
