Constricted: Beyond the Brothel Walls

by Ryans, Rae

  The admiration for my room touched me, but here was to hoping it was just the start, and she’d warm up to me before the scent and sight of her claimed my sanity.

  “Lord Petre,” Mellissa said as she knocked on the open door. I blinked and made to sit up. “Sir.”

  Her eyes darted around the room, and she kept opening and closing her mouth. “What’s wrong?”

  “I made a promise that I’m gonna break, but I canna keep it, milord.” She shook her head and twisted her hands. “I canna, no’ in the good Lord’s conscience keep quiet.”

  Had my generosity made Korrigan feel guilt? Had she lied to me? Was it the kiss? Had she her own secrets? Questions ransacked my mind, and I anticipated Mellissa’s explanation.

  “Go ahead.” My words shook, and my fingers drummed on my thigh. “You know I can’t read your mind.”

  “Milord, someone …” Tears pooled in her eyes; I noticed the red rims and her lavender stained fingers. I bit through my lip, and my fangs extended at the metallic taste. She sniffled and wiped the streaks away on her sleeve. “Someone beat her, repeatedly.” I stood up fast, knocking a book to the floor, and rushed for the door. “Lord Petre, she didn’t want me to tell ye.”

  My fingers curled around the wooden frame. Shards clattered to the floor under my grip. Why wouldn’t Korrigan want me to know? I lunged forward, breaking another piece of the frame. My chest heaved even though I didn’t require air.

  The mere thought sliced through me. “Who,” I wheezed and forced a cough. “Who did it?”

  What kind of monster lashed a child these days? When I was alive, it was acceptable, but not now … There was only one explanation. I was wrong about Korrigan, or more so, wrong about Jules. I cursed under my breath. The other girls, some of them were scarred too, but not fresh, and they didn’t belong to him. My throat stung, and my eyes burned. I should’ve known better, no, I should’ve taken her sooner.

  “Sir, please wait until she tells ye, but I wanted ye aware. Her back, below where the corset sits … ye will hurt her even with the softest touches … yer hands.” I nodded and stood upright. My cold hands would burn her wounds. My secret though, my blood could heal her, but I understood the need to keep my obscurities under wraps.

  “Where it sat,” I repeated shaking my head and resting it on the door. My teeth ground as I thought of the torture device. Her wide innocent eyes flashed in my mind. Something once beautiful Jules tainted. My hand rose, trembling as I swallowed my guilt. “I don’t want to see that thing ever again.” Korrigan was no longer bound by those false rules. “No wife of mine will wear a whore’s garment.”

  Not in public, and sure as hell, not in my house. I didn’t want to see a constricting stitch of clothing on her ever again. Yet part of me wanted answers; I needed to know who did it, because I would hunt the sick bastard down and give him a taste of his own medicine. My head slammed into the door as I punished myself. She was only eighteen. It was my fault. My head couldn’t see it. A hundred different scenarios ran through my mind.

  “She tis resting now, Lord Petre, but this was going on fer a long time. There are old scars and madam might—“

  Old, long time … my fists clenched, and I cut her off. I forced a breath out of my nose. My whole body wanted to scream, but instead I turned and reached into my pocket for my phone. The number sat there, mocking me.

  “There is more, sir.”

  “More?” I asked as my hand crunched the phone. The odd bits of metal and glass scattered to the floor. “How could there be more?” I growled.

  “She wears two purple streaks,” she whispered, showing her stained hands and took a step back.

  Korrigan entered the sitting room, and I swallowed hard. One streak meant fellatio and two streaks for sodomy. Purple meant no one but Uncle Jules could touch her. Those were his house rules, and I’d learned them from watching the Hampshire House and talking with his men over the past four years. My lips parted the words … everything making sense. “Never again … I’ll kill him; I’ll rip him to shreds.”

  She froze, her eyes darting between Mellissa and me. Her amber eyes blinked, and I tried to get a grip. None of this was her fault, I reminded myself. The blame laid on me. Just a child, innocent and pure. What that monster did to her ... My heart shattered, and my eyes welled. I wanted wrap my arms around her and hold her tight.

  “Leave us,” I said to Mellissa and stormed to Korrigan’s side. She stood outside her door, frozen like a deer. Her teeth chattered, and I realized she wore but a scrap of cloth. “It’s all right.”

  “She … she … told you.” Her gaze fell, and she nibbled her bottom lip. “If you … want to … send me back, I understand.”

  “No.” My eyes widened. Did she think I’d ship her off? “No,” I squeaked again. “Korrigan, of course I’m not sending you back.” I dragged her to my chest and kissed the top of her head. Over my dead body; that was the only way she’d go back to that brute. My head shook, and the words released. No, no, no … Her heart beat loud and fast, and her walls crumbled. They took her body down, collapsing to the floor, and I fell with her. My arms surrounded her, careful not to touch her back. She smelled of lavender now, but the rich honey scent remained. Her scent. “He’ll pay for what he’s done to you.” I lifted her chin. “All of it.”

  Fingers grazed down her neck, stroking her vein as I crushed my lips to hers. She gasped against me as my tongue dipped into her sugary mouth. Heat seared through me, and my gums throbbed to release. Two glasses of blood wasn’t enough to ease the fire she created inside of me. Drinking from her … oh, the sweet blossoms, spilling over my tongue. The taste of her flesh, her breasts filling my mouth … all of her, God how could I wait. Just a kiss, two tongues gliding, and I couldn’t pull my head or body away. I took a deep breath, savoring her enticing scent, as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

  Those little globes pressed Korrigan’s heat against my chest, and my hands lowered, burning her skin against me. Korrigan whimpered, and I opened my eyes. Had I hurt her? No, her eyes stayed closed, and her hands dug into my hair, yanking me closer. As if sensing my stare, she opened her eyes a fraction and broke our kiss. She panted as her hands rearranged her robe.

  “Why are you wearing this … rag?” I asked and leaned away.

  Her eyes met mine. “You didn’t tell me what to wear.” Tell her? I cocked my head. “Masters choose what a woman can wear inside the household.”

  I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. She actually expected me to dictate what she could wear. What had Jules done to her mind? His words echoed, “Enjoy her, she was mine.”

  “Let’s go,” I said, rising and pulling her up with me. I stormed back into her room, leading her straight into the closet. “I bought these for you.” My hand ran over the various drawers and wardrobes filled with new clothing in all the latest styles. “That thing you wore here, burn it. Hell, Korrigan, burn it all.” I turned to her again, but her walls reconstructed into a stonewalled facade. “You are not my whore,” I said, cupping her face. “I don’t want one of those.”

  “What do you want?” she asked, and I smiled, dropping my head to hers. “I know only what I was trained.”

  “Forget everything Jules taught you. All I want is you.” My hand fell to her heart. “The real you not this frozen puppet.”

  She raised a brow and parted her soft lips. I wouldn’t last the night without the walls between us. Her touch, those lips, I craved them. How could I let her go, to even think of leaving her alone? I dragged myself away, and told her to dress in something nice. A minute longer, lost in those lips, and my plan would’ve been over.

  “Why me?” she asked as I left the closet. “Petre?”

  I smiled and replied, “Why not? Get dressed, gorgeous.”

  Mellissa rushed in as I left the room. Korrigan was in capable hands. I, on the other hand, needed fresh blood, as much as she needed many delectable meals. Oh and an icy cold shower was in order too.

&nb
sp; How had this all escaped me? I’d watched her, and there were no signs at all. Starved, abused, and molested. Jules turned my stomach sour but was I any better? Had he thought I’d send her away once I’d learned the truth? We were both monsters, but curse or not, I’d take care of Korrigan until her dying breath.

  My head shook as I entered my bathroom. The dinner hour quickly approached, and my reservation was less than an hour away. I’d get to the bottom of this, though, and Jules would pay. My fist struck the wall, cracking the porcelain tile. Too young, not to mention well below the legal age even in the Delphia, Korrigan was too young. The age of consent for a prostitute operating in a brothel was eighteen.

  “I see you’ve found another one,” the ghost of Hestin said. Ignoring him, I stepped into my shower. My frown deepened at his voice. Not now old man, I begged. “I do say she’s the best one yet.” Hestin turned me into a vampire and Nikolai into a demon horse. He deserved the curse after he’d raped and killed his daughter. “Lovely little bosom, but those hips are too slim. I heard rumors that her ass is rather agreeable.”

  My jaw popped, and I reached for his neck. Laughter filled my ears as he disappeared, only to reappear out of my reach. The damned ghost. “Temper, you wouldn’t want your new woman to see you all riled up over nothing.”

  No one else saw him. That put a serious damper on things, because I couldn’t hurt him either. He was a phantom, a shade of time that mocked me. “Go away.”

  “Of course, you could end it … put her out of her misery, the poor tortured soul. But if I were you, I’d take full advantage of her talents, and then send Jules a tip.”

  Air pushed through my flaring nostrils, and my vision tinted red. My hands reached for Hestin again, disregarding that it did nothing. The burn flared, tearing down my throat like sharp claws. Lights flickered, and Hestin wavered in and out. Knees crashed to the floor, and I cradled my head. No, this was hunger.

  “No, this is reality.” I hated that he read my thoughts. “The deal was for a woman to love you … not the other way around.”

  Hestin’s laughter filled the room. Perhaps that was always his plan. To drive me mad for eternity, force me to question everything. As for love, yes, I loved her more than any other woman I’d met in my three hundred years. More than Jules, but more than love, I respected her. If I had stolen her away four years ago, I would have waited.

  “Immortality suits her; she’ll face it here or in hell.”

  “She is pure,” I said louder than I anticipated. “Hell is for sinners, damned souls, and demons.”

  “She is a whore named after the Goddess of whores. Her mouth and ass have seen more action than our pricks combined. There is no place in heaven for whores. Cut her loose; she isn’t going to save you.” With those words trailing, he disappeared.

  I let his words sink in and stepped back into the shower. Images of the fat bastard they’d called Uncle Jules flashed through my mind and my stomach heaved. Blood splattered against the white tile, tinting everything pink. Oh, he would pay and as God was my witness, I’d make him suffer. For Korrigan, I would end his existence. My eyes narrowed as the pink puke swirled down the drain. All I needed was to figure out how to murder a demon.

  The last of the blood-tainted water washed down the drain, and I stepped from the shower. There wasn’t any sign of Hestin, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t want him to ruin this evening or my increasing better mood. Honey and vanilla, I already smelled her on my skin as if she belonged there. My hands worked quickly, first relieving the tension she’d built within me, and then dressing in a black suit, with a grey shirt, and a black tie. My hair, I slicked back into my collar.

  Her heels clicked over the hardwood floor, and I turned, sucking in my breath as she stepped into my room. A long sleeved, silvery lavender dress hugged her fragile frame, and her dark hair spilled down her back in spiral waves. What stunned me the most was her smile. Warm and real, not forced or fake, and I returned the gesture. “See, now you’re even more beautiful.”

  I took her hand and kissed it, watching the blush deepen in her cheeks. “You look charming,” she whispered as her eyes darted down. There was a gap between us, and I closed it. Hestin was wrong. Everything about this woman felt right.

  My lips brushed over hers, hovering as the electricity grew between us. “Do you mind me kissing you?”

  Korrigan shook her head. “I’m no good at it.”

  Her hands curled into mine. “Then we’ll have to practice.” I leaned down again and nibbled on her bottom lip. “But I think you’re perfect. Do you enjoy it when I kiss you?” My lips trailed over her jaw as she gasped. I chuckled against her scented skin. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  Her pulse throbbed against my lips just like another area of my body. The rhythm matched, creating its own music, but the crescendo would not occur tonight. “If I do something –anything- you don’t like, I expect you to tell me, Korrigan.” I cupped her face and kissed her again. “I mean it.”

  “Okay,” she said, grabbing my lapel and kissing my cheek. We were off to a much better start, but six lengthy months remained for me to win her heart. Hestin’s words were futile. An angel smiled upon me, my personal savior, and I would prove him wrong. “Petre?”

  “Hmm?” I said pressing my lips together. She stared down at her hands.

  “Can you not call me that.”

  Chapter Five

  I asked him to call me Korri as I’d done with Mellissa. Petre chuckled, and I spun toward the doorway. My feet refused to budge as my heart pounded louder in my ears. Asking for something, anything, was new to me. Should I have added a please? My brow scrunched, and I smoothed my hands over the soft dress. The palms of my hands grew damp and sticky the longer Petre took to respond.

  The name, my name, I hated it. Every time I heard the word, it served as another reminder of Jules. I wanted to erase all traces of him from my new life. Mellissa helped with removing my shameful marks. She even said Jules lied about the dye, and that we’d buy some tomorrow to remove them forever. Tonight she’d made talc and mixed it with pigment to cover them again. She even helped with my hair and makeup. I hadn’t recognized the girl in the mirror, but I liked her. And I appreciated Mellissa even more. Petre stepped closer; his coolness rushed over me like a breeze.

  “Sweetness, honey, baby … no, not that one. It’ll come to me, but,” he whispered against my neck.“Why a new name?”

  His hands brushed over my sides as his lips grazed over my exposed neck. I didn’t want to lay myself out there for him to pick apart. Petre hummed, and I yearned to lean myself against him. Not yet, I wanted to get to know him, and feel this out before the walls came down. But he made it difficult; that kiss refused to leave my mind, and my body droned with its energy. Those lips of his were lethal weapons, and I hated how they’d affected me so much. My body wanted him, but my mind –thank God- kept the brakes on.

  “Korri?”

  “Tell me about where you’re from,” I asked, deflecting his question and squirming out of his grasp. “On the way, please, I’m starving.”

  The smile twitched over his lips, and he held out his hand. “What do you want to know?”

  I took my time down the stairs. Even the heels were alien to my tiny feet. “Everything, anything, I want to know about you since you know much about me.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know that much, sweets.” Petre shook his head as we descended the stairs. “No, that doesn’t work either.”

  I agreed. They all sounded too much like Jules. “What about something in your language?”

  “Dragă iubita mea,” he said. “My beloved honey in Romanian, but I don’t speak it often anymore since moving to Nova Scotia. Here they speak English, Scottish Gaelic, and even some French.”

  Mellissa handed me my coat when we reached the bottom stairs, but I noted right away the jacket wasn’t mine. “Try it on,” she said holding it out for me. I eyed it up and glanced down. This was somet
hing I wasn’t used to. No one gave me gifts. “It tis my daughter’s, but she left it here.”

  I slipped my arms through and found that the coat fit rather well. The sleeves weren’t long, and the fabric framed my body, without the added bulk. It was warm too and free of moth holes. Next, she handed me a scarf and gloves as she winked at Petre.

  “Thank you,” I said. “I’ll take good care of it.”

  “Happy Birthday,” I thought I’d heard her whisper.

  After the door had closed, I watched him closely. I glanced over my shoulder as his arm hooked into mine. There was a sense of joy flushing through me, and I couldn’t quite place it. To me this was just another day, another year closer to my impending doom, and I spent the majority of the day alone. Some people didn’t like being alone, but I disagreed. My comfort in life was in the safety of loneliness. As long as I remained alone, no one hurt me.

  Petre opened the passenger door of a black car. “What’s wrong?”

  The chilled air cut through me like a knife, but it wasn’t from the temperature. No, I wasn’t sure what caused my hair to stand up, or the goosebumps to erupt. My breath sucked in as I took my seat, forcing a smile over my lips, and hiding the shake of my hands. His eyebrow rose, and I knew he was waiting for me to explain. I couldn’t relay what I didn’t understand. “I’m fine,” I lied. “Nerves maybe.”

  A slow smile spread over his face as he reached across me to buckle my seatbelt. After it clicked, Petre turned to me and cupped my cheek. “You are a jewel,” he said, but his face held pain. “My precious gem, sparkling on the inside. Don’t lose that.”

  I opened my mouth to ask what he meant, but his lips covered mine. Despite the chill, I reached for him, feeling the smoothness of his jaw in my palms as I held onto his face. Damn those lips, I thought as they parted, and his tongue slipped into my mouth. Heat exploded in my belly, quickly rising into my cheeks. The best birthday present was Petre, and for the moment, I didn’t care why he chose me.