She’d been intending to pretend to come after a decent interval so he’d leave her alone, but had surprised herself by actually orgasming against his fingers. It was that thing he’d done with his palm, she realized. Whatever it was, it had worked, and once she had climaxed, he had, thank god, let her be.
He was watching the road, and she was glad of at least a moment without his unwelcome attention focused on her. Her mouth was dry, her arms numb, her leg aching. Her tongue worried the split on her lower lip from his repeatedly backhanding her. James had a temper, one he’d hidden remarkably well when at the office, but he’d hidden far more than that in the months they’d worked together.
Kelsey tried to bring her hands to her face to push away her hair, but the tight grip of the bungee cords around her wrists quickly reminded her that she could not. Warily she glanced again in his direction, glad he hadn’t yet noticed she was awake. She stared at his profile. He had an aquiline nose and a square, masculine jaw. With his gray eyes, dark, straight hair and muscular build, he was an attractive man.
She remembered with sudden horror that she’d confided this to the person she’d thought was Brittney from high school, the “girl” who had so eagerly friended her on Facebook. She had shared with the false Brittney about her boss at the bank, admitting that she’d considered going out with him, even if he was kind of nerdy and quiet. She remembered how Brittney had said those quiet ones were the ones to watch out for. They were usually dynamite in bed, she’d said. Now that Kelsey thought about it, it was Brittney, a.k.a. James, who had brought up the subject of dating in the workplace.
And to think, she’d been sitting in that front desk all those months, under James’ watchful eye. Christ, for all she knew, he’d been masturbating under his desk while he slyly watched her working. And all those pictures of her on his bedroom walls! From literally the moment she’d joined the bank, he’d begun to stealthily stalk her. Maybe he’d planned this whole thing all along. And now he was taking her somewhere secluded—somewhere no one would ever be able to find her.
The thought made her squeak with fear, the sound bursting from her lips before she could stop it. James turned in her direction and smiled. “There she is,” he said in a jovial tone, as if everything were fine and dandy. “I was wondering when you’d wake up. We’re almost there.”
She realized they had left the highway and were now driving along a narrow road that was bordered on both sides by tall, swaying grasses and wildflowers, beyond which loomed a thicket of brush and trees. James slowed the car and turned onto an even narrower road. As the trees thinned, the view expanded to gently rolling hills and the shimmer of gold coins dappling a large lake in the setting sun.
Each bounce of the car along the rutted, unpaved lane sent a jolt of pain through Kelsey’s hurt leg. She shifted on the seat, trying to get more comfortable in her awkward position. “My arms are asleep,” she said, unable to keep the whine from her tone. “Can you please take these cords off? There could be permanent damage from lack of circulation.”
James didn’t look at her as he replied. “You’ll be fine. We’ll be at the cabin in a minute or so, and I’ll untie you then.” He glanced in her direction with a warning expression. “Do you promise to be a good girl from now on?”
What the fuck did that even mean? She wasn’t eight years old, for god’s sake, and he sure as hell wasn’t her father. No, he was just a sick bastard, apparently determined to play out some kind of sado-masochistic Master/slave scenario. How did she fight, when he had all the power, and she had none?
You have to be more cunning than he is. Keep your wits about you. Bide your time. Your strongest weapon is his love, or what passes for love in his twisted psyche. Use it, Kelsey.
She would take her fight underground. She would let James think the violent, sociopathic obsession he called “love” was being reciprocated. She would have to be careful though. Whatever else he was, James wasn’t stupid. She would have to lull him into believing she’d not only accepted her lot, but had come to embrace it.
I will beat you at your own game, she silently promised as James pulled the car to a stop in front of a large log cabin flanked by a screened-in porch. And this time, when I get the gun, I won’t be afraid to use it. And that’s a promise.
Chapter 9
James parked the car beneath the shade of a large tree with low-hanging branches and cut the engine. He released his seatbelt and then Kelsey’s as well. “Welcome to your new home,” he said with a peculiar smile that sent shivers of trepidation along Kelsey’s spine. He opened his door and climbed out, moving out of Kelsey’s line of vision as his shoes crunched on the gravel. A moment later he pulled open Kelsey’s door. He crouched beside her and reached behind the seat to release the bungee cords.
A thousand stabbing needles of pain pricked her arms and hands as she pulled them forward onto her lap. She flexed her fingers and curled her hands into fists, wanting nothing more than to smash one into James’ face.
He pulled her from the car and she saw he was holding the gun. The gravel was rough and warm beneath her bare feet and the wound on her leg had resumed its throbbing. It was hot outside and she was thirsty. She turned toward the cabin, expecting James to help her inside. Instead, to her extreme dismay, he pushed on her shoulders, forcing her to her knees on the dusty gravel.
“I want you, Kelsey. I want you so fucking bad.” His voice was hoarse with lust and she saw the huge bulge of his erection beneath his shorts. With one hand, he tugged at his fly and pulled it open, while gripping a handful of her hair with the other. He pushed his shorts down to his knees to expose his cock and balls.
James leaned against the hood of the car and dragged her closer, pulling her up by the hair. “Suck my cock, baby. Do it good. Make me come like I made you come. And make sure you swallow every drop.”
The head of his large cock was pressing insistently against her lips, his fingers twisting her hair so it tugged painfully against her scalp. “Do it,” he urged, an angry tone now edging his voice. Without choice, Kelsey let her lips part, and James’ thick, heavy cock slid into her mouth. He groaned with pleasure, loosening his grip somewhat on her hair. She had a brief fantasy of biting down so hard she bit it off, but even if she’d dared, it was shoved so far down her throat she couldn’t close her mouth.
She heard the clunk of metal on metal and then felt his second hand on her head, holding her still while he fucked her face. She struggled not to gag as he slid in and out of her mouth and it was hard to breathe with the constant onslaught. The small rocks beneath her knees were digging painfully into her skin.
The gun, she thought suddenly. That was the sound I heard. He set it on the hood. Make him come and then make your move. Infused with a sudden energy, Kelsey brought her hands to his crotch and forced herself to cup his balls. He groaned, his grip tightening in her hair. “Yeah, baby. That’s it. Yeah.”
He continued to rut into her mouth for another minute or so and then he stiffened and thrust hard, his bitter jism shooting down her throat. His grip eased in her hair and his hands fell away as he gave a deep, satisfied sigh.
A spurt of adrenaline propelled Kelsey to her feet. There it was, glinting darkly in the sun. Kelsey grabbed the gun before James even had a chance to open his eyes. Her heart was beating high in her throat. He opened his eyes slowly and stared at her. In another second he’d leap to life and try to grab the gun.
Not this time, motherfucker.
Her hands were shaking as she took a step back, but determination overrode fear. She clutched the gun and cocked the trigger. Aiming at his face, she imagined the bullet tearing through skin and bone and exiting the back of his head with a splatter of blood and brains.
She squeezed the trigger.
The gun clicked.
James smiled grimly.
Kelsey stared at him, baffled. Confusion, shock and dread collided in her head, short-circuiting her ability to process what was happening. Again she pulled the
trigger, and still nothing happened. Acting off instinct, she threw the gun as hard as she could at James’ head. He lifted an arm to deflect the weapon, which fell with a thud to the gravel.
“You stupid little bitch,” he hissed as he lunged toward her, his shorts still down around his knees. In a moment he was on her, his hands closing hard over her wrists as he jerked her forward. “You are a very, very bad girl, Kelsey Anne.” His tone was menacing, his eyes sparking with anger.
He kept one hand firmly on her wrist, using the other to reach into the car. He pulled out the bungee cords and grabbed her other wrist, jerking her arms roughly behind her back. He bound them tightly with the cords, while Kelsey struggled ineffectually against him.
“It wasn’t loaded,” she heard herself say in a faint voice.
“Of course it wasn’t loaded, you nitwit. You’ve already made your murderous intent clear. Leaving the gun where you could reach it was a test—a test you failed. I guess you’ll just have to pay the consequences.”
He had something in his hand. As he held it before her, she saw it was a pocket knife. He flicked it open, revealing the sharp silver blade. Kelsey felt as if all the breath had been sucked from her body.
But instead of slitting her throat, James hoisted her face-down over the hood of the car. “When I was kid,” he said, his voice breathless with exertion, “if we misbehaved, our dad would punish us the old-fashioned way, with a birch switch. He used to make us go out and pick our own switch before supper. You would sit through the meal trying to choke down your food, scared out of your skin about what was coming.”
Kelsey’s cheek rested on the hot metal of the hood. She was too paralyzed with fear to move as James reached up and cut a long, thin branch from the tree. She could hear him stripping off the leaves and twigs.
“You’re lucky,” he said from behind her. She felt him step back and wondered if she could manage to get away somehow. “You don’t have to wait through a meal of overcooked chicken and boiled peas. I’m going to whip your behind right here and now, you bad, bad girl.”
The switch whistled through the air and bit into the backs of her thighs, leaving a searing sting in its wake. Kelsey screamed. The next blow hit her squarely across both ass cheeks. She screamed again and tried to roll away, but James’ firm hand on her back stopped her.
“Naughty girl. You just lie there and take what’s coming to you. It’s okay to scream, though. No one will hear you. It’s only you and me, babe. Just you and me.” He struck her again and again until she felt as if her skin were being flayed from her body. She struggled and cried out with each biting stroke but James just kept on, and on, and on, until all the fight went out of her.
She lay limp and sobbing as the whippy rod continued to slash over her ass and thighs. Finally, finally, the beating stopped. Her body was bathed in sweat, the salt stinging her abraded flesh. She felt something warm and wet rolling down her legs and realized with dizzying horror that it was blood.
~*~
James dropped the switch and crouched behind Kelsey, staring in fascination at the welts he’d raised, his eyes tracking the slow roll of bright red blood where the branch had cut her soft white skin. He hadn’t meant to hit her quite so hard or for quite so long. Though it had been over a decade since he’d felt the cut of the switch, James still remembered its fiery sting. But his father had never made him bleed.
But then, he’d never tried to shoot his father in the face, either. Kelsey had tried to kill him! In cold blood, she’d pulled that trigger, fully prepared to murder him. The thought was too much to handle just then, so he pushed it away, focusing instead on the rivulets of blood that trailed along her welted thighs.
He had done that. He had chastised his naughty girl with a beating, and now he would find a way to forgive her.
He realized his cock had returned to a rock-hard state, despite his having just orgasmed. He leaned forward and parted his lips, licking her skin as his cock throbbed. He drew his tongue down her leg, tasting the warm copper of blood mingled with the salt of her sweat.
I write the rules, he told himself, refusing to allow himself to be shocked at his behavior. We’ve left the world behind us now, well and truly. My word is law. Kelsey lives or dies by my hand. The thought thrilled him, power surging through his blood like a drug.
Kelsey was crying quietly, the tumble of her hair hiding her face as she rested against the hood of the car, her feet barely touching the ground. She looked so fucking hot like that, naked, arms bound behind her back, her ass and thighs welted and bleeding. Though he’d planned to take her inside and make love to her in the master bedroom, he realized he couldn’t even wait as long as it would take to get her there.
Standing, he unzipped his shorts and pushed them down his legs, kicking them away. He grabbed her hips, lifting her to the proper angle as he nudged his aching cock between her legs. He brought one hand to his mouth and spit on his fingers. He reached for his cock with that hand and guided it to her tight entrance.
She stiffened at his touch. “No!” she whimpered through her snuffling tears.
“Yes,” he replied. She squealed as he pushed his way inside her velvet heat. He felt like a god, powerful and dominant, completely in control. How dare she resist him? That would have to change. He would beat it out of her. He could see now that was the only way.
He pulled her fully onto his shaft, groaning with pleasure as her vaginal muscles massaged him. Her skin was hot to the touch. He looked down, watching his cock slide in and out of her. The sight filled him with fiery lust and he began to pummel her savagely.
“Bad girl,” he grunted breathlessly as he rode her. “Bad, bad girl.” His balls tightened and he knew he was seconds away from exploding. He looked down again at their conjoined bodies. He pulled out just as the spurting began, adding the cream of his ejaculate to the blood and sweat glistening on her welted ass and thighs.
When his heart had slowed and his head had cleared, he let go of the bound girl and took a step back. As he pulled his shorts back on and zipped them, he saw that fresh blood had seeped through the bandage on her calf. She lay limply over the hood of the car and, now that the bloodlust of his desire had eased away, James felt a rush of remorse.
Quickly he leaned over her and released the cords that bound her arms, which fell lifelessly against the hood. She didn’t move. She didn’t even appear to be breathing, and for a heart-stopping moment he thought she was dead.
He leaned over her again and put his face close to hers. Relief flooded him when he felt the soft rise and fall of her breathing. Gently, he reached beneath her and lifted her as he stood upright. Her eyes were closed, but they opened as he maneuvered her into his arms.
He carried her along the path and up the porch stairs to the front door. He had to set her down as he reached for his keys and unlocked the door, though he kept one arm securely around her shoulders so she wouldn’t fall as she leaned heavily against him. He pushed open the door and deactivated the alarm.
The air was close and musty, but once he got the air conditioner going, it would be fine. Again he lifted his darling into his arms and carried her through the living room into the master bedroom.
In the few times he’d visited the cabin since his mother had died, he’d always stayed in the room he and his sister had shared when they were kids on their summer vacations, but that wouldn’t do, not now that he had Kelsey with him. He was master of the house. Kelsey might be his unwilling captive for now. In time, though, he’d teach her to be his lover, his soulmate, his wife.
Once they might have been equals, back in that other life, under others’ rules, but all that had changed now. Kelsey had left him no choice. Now it was up to him to help her understand that a man needed to exert a firm hand to teach his woman her place in his world. Once she understood that, they would explore the new frontier of their love together, far from the prying eyes of others.
He laid her gently on her stomach on the bare mattress, not e
ven minding if she stained it. Soon he would cover it with fresh sheets. “You rest while the tub fills,” he said to her back. She didn’t respond. He sat next to her and stroked the hair from her face. “Kelsey. Look at me.” She turned her head and fixed her large green eyes on his face. Her cheeks were flushed and damp with tears. Christ, she was beautiful.
“Kelsey, listen to me. I want you to understand something. You did a very bad thing, and you were punished, and now it’s over. You are forgiven. I still love you. There’s nothing you can do that would make me stop loving you.” He waited a beat, half hoping she would respond in kind. She didn’t.
She didn’t love him.
Not yet.
That would come, in time. He understood now that his love alone was not enough to penetrate her sweet but thick head. She needed concrete lessons, and the switching he’d given her was only the beginning. He would break her down, wiping away her ego and her resistance. Only then could he build her up into the woman of his dreams. Only then could he claim her as the love of his life, and he of hers. They had time. All the time in the world.
“You’re going to stay put while I run the bath, right? You’re not going to try anything stupid again, are you?”
Slowly she shook her head.
James nodded. She looked too spent to try another escape, and anyway, he was bigger, stronger and faster. Still, why take chances? “I’m going to set the alarm. If you try to open a window or an outer door, it will trigger the alarm. You don’t want to do that, Kelsey,” he informed her. She didn’t react. She was exhausted, poor thing.
He stood and stared down at her a moment, examining her ass and thighs. Yes, it had been a thorough whipping, but she’d be fine. The cuts were superficial, though there would probably be some bruising. He shrugged philosophically. Now she would think twice before she tried anything stupid again.
He set the alarm and then went into the bathroom to fill the tub. He added some bath oil he found in the cabinets and pulled out some towels. When he came back into the bedroom, Kelsey hadn’t appeared to have moved at all.
The Abduction of Kelsey Page 9
