by A. M. Wilson
The gun dips in gesture to the item on the ground. “Put it on.”
Without stooping lower, I drop my eyes to the floor. The matching collar to Dani’s lies mockingly at my feet. Goddammit.
I stare down this bitch as I crouch to retrieve the device. It curls heavy and foreign around my neck. Snug, but perfectly fitted as if sized only for me. An audible click makes my neck muscles twitch as it snaps into place.
“She’s going to die from the cold.” I push my luck now that I did as she asked.
“Don’t worry. You’re going to get the chance to warm her up.”
A boulder settles on my chest as my mind races to piece together her possible meaning. It settles on one thought. She must be bringing me to Dani.
The gun remains trained on me as Bolt moves farther into the room, forcing me to retreat a few steps. She walks to the corner where the barrier wall meets the one with the door and pulls a thin strip of metal from her pocket. Her slim frame partially blocks my view, but I can make out some of her movements. She slips the piece between a crack and pops out a faux panel I didn’t notice before.
She steps back with a grin.
“In.”
Now would be a bad time to reveal I have a fear of confining spaces. I don’t want to turn my back on her, but I don’t have a choice. And if it means I get to be close to Dani, I’d do just about anything.
I have to crawl on my hands and knees to get through the space, and the breadth of my shoulders is nearly too wide. A sliver of light illuminates what must be the other panel. Fuck waiting for Bolt’s instruction. Minutes have gone by without a sound from Dani. I shove my forearm against the wood, and it gives way with ease.
“Dani,” I call as I emerge on the other side, frantically searching the space with my eyes. Her side looks identical to mine. Right beneath the window between our rooms, I spot her slender frame slumped against the separating wall with her chin tucked into her chest.
I snarl in frustration as my feet slide beneath me in my rush to stand. Blood roars in my ears, and a wave of dizziness nearly takes me out.
“Dani!”
She doesn’t stir.
I curl my fingers into the hem of my tee and bring it over my head before I’m even close. My knees bang against the dirty concrete floor as I drop next to her and grasp her by the shoulders. Her back comes away from the wall, and her head lolls sickeningly on her neck. The feeling of ice-cold skin beneath my palms sends a wave of nausea through me.
“Wake up. Please fucking wake up, magnet.” The old familiar nickname slips out with my panic.
I release one shoulder to jam the T-shirt over her head, hoping the residual body heat will help rewarm her. It can’t be too late. We were just talking a few minutes ago.
I don’t bother with threading her arms into the holes. With a grunt, I drag her lifeless body in my lap and tamp down the devastating bittersweetness of finally having her in my arms for the first time in twenty years.
My jeans-covered legs wrap around her bare ones, and I roll the shirt up her back so we can sit skin to skin. The contact immediately makes me shiver. I pull her head back to rest on my shoulder and bury my face into the soft curve of her neck. My eyes squeeze shut as I muster the courage to check her pulse.
Lub.
Lub.
Lub.
It’s there. Barely.
After a few minutes of sitting together, I manage to get my feet under me and hoist her into my arms. We need to get off the cold floor.
“Can we at least get a fucking blanket in here?”
Bolt appears at Dani’s door as if she’s my personal fucking butler. She points a gun at me but holds a blanket-like material in her other hand.
“You stand over there.” She uses the gun to gesture to the farthest corner of the room.
Every molecule in my body demands that I don’t let Dani within a foot of Bolt, but if she has the means to help, I have to let her. Even if she’s only keeping Dani alive to torture us more. We aren’t giving up yet. I keep my eyes trained on Bolt as I lay Dani on the mattress and move back across the room.
Once certain I’m not going to attack—not that I could because she’s the one with the gun and the collar around my neck—she moves forward. Bolt lays the blanket out flat on the mattress and adjusts a dial on the side. She grabs Dani under her armpits and drags her on top of it.
“Don’t touch her.” The step I take is automatic, as is the way Bolt drops Dani to the mattress and plunges her hand into her pocket. A second later, an electric shock from the collar sends me crashing to my knees.
“Mmph,” I groan and scratch at the object around my neck as a current surges through my body. Fucking hell, my breath is a gasp. That fucking hurts.
“Do I have your attention now, pretty boy?”
The glare I send her way originates from the literal depths of hell.
“So cute when riled.” She glances behind her, almost as if she’s communicating with someone beyond the door. I skim the areas that I can see. I haven’t heard or seen anyone other than her since we got here, but she did have that sniper trained on Dani. She might have an accomplice, which will complicate the hell out of escaping.
“Ready to warm up your little girlfriend?” Bolt’s singsong voice is straight from a horror movie.
My only response is to bring my gaze back to hers.
“Do you like games?”
“No.”
“That’s too bad. I love games. I bet you’re going to like this one,” she croons.
“I don’t want to play any of your fucking games.”
“Then we can end this with a bullet in your brain.” She lifts the gun and clicks off the safety. “I’ll just have to get Niko here to take your place.”
My chest hollows out, and the blood drains from my face. “What did you just say?”
She shrugs. “I heard he’s back in town looking for you. I’d really like to meet him, so the choice is yours. You can take the coward's way out and trade for your brother.”
“Stay the fuck away from my family!” I spit.
“If you don’t want Niko to take your place, then you’re going to rape your little friend.”
A dry heave rasps up my throat. “No.” I swallow nothing but dust. “Don’t make me do that.” The horror blanketing my face more than likely brings her pure joy, but I can’t mask it. I can’t make sense of what she’s trying to force me to do.
“I don’t have all fucking day to argue.”
She saunters closer with a sway of her hips, not stopping until the cold barrel touches my temple. I hold my hands up in surrender and take a slow step toward Dani.
“Good.” She pulls the gun off my head and trains it at my back instead.
Fuck. I’d rather die. I’d die right now if it meant I could get out of here without touching Dani. But that’d leave Dani here alone with this crazy bitch and her sights set on Niko…
I didn’t even know he was in town. It hasn’t been more than a couple of days since she took us. How did he know and get here so fast? Is Aislin with him? The kids? My parents? Goddammit, they should have stayed in Florida where they were safe.
Then again, this bitch lies. She lied about leaving Dani alone, so she could be lying about Niko being in town. But is that a chance I want to take? Let her kill me in the hopes Dani can somehow make it out alive on her own?
At that thought, I look down at the still form ahead of me. There’s no way. I don’t even know if she’s going to recover from this hypothermia without a hospital visit. If I die right now, she’ll probably die along with me. I refuse to give up that easily.
But that means I’m about to violate the woman who used to mean everything to me.
I drop to my knees beside her, instantly feeling the warmth seeping through the fabric of my jeans. Bolt set up a heating pad to help rewarm Dani. I press the back of my hand against her forehead, noting her temperature is slightly warmer than it was before, though still scarily cold.
“Dani.” I lean down and whisper. “Please wake up. I need you awake for this.”
Her eyes flutter open. “I’ve…been listening,” she murmurs weakly.
Before I can utter a word, her brows softly crease in understanding. “It’s going to be okay.”
Knowing Bolt is behind me and can’t make out our faces, I drop my forehead to Dani’s and squeeze my eyes shut. “I can’t do this.”
“We’ve had sex before.”
“Twenty years ago,” I hurl back in frustration.
Her cool palm grips my cheek. “Pretend. If I remember, so do you.”
My heart slows before it begins pounding again as I try to fight against the inevitable.
“Hurry the fuck up already,” Bolt screeches from behind me.
My restraint crumbles. “I can’t fuck with a limp dick,” I bellow with an ugly sneer before I hang my head in resignation and fail to disguise a dry heave.
Deft fingers pull me from my agony as Dani begins tampering with the button to my jeans. It becomes quickly clear that she’s too weak to do it on her own. I brush her hands aside and open the flap.
She plunges her hand inside and straight onto my dick.
“You don’t have to do this.”
“You aren’t in this alone.”
“But I’m about to—”
She cuts me off. “I know. You aren’t alone in that either.”
Her hand is surprisingly warm, considering the state of the rest of her as she curls it around my shaft. I belatedly realize she must have held her palm to the heating pad. I can’t exactly be grateful considering the situation, but there’s no way in hell I could get hard with an icicle stroking me.
What kills me and damns me to hell is the spike of pleasure I feel as Dani gives a tentative stroke.
Fuck. The reaction is natural, but the feeling coursing through me makes me feel like a bastard. I tuck my face into the crook of her neck and stretch out over her on the mattress. Bolt looks on from somewhere, and I want to hide as much of Dani from her as I can. Whatever she’s getting out of this.
She looks beautiful in my T-shirt. The second the thought enters my mind, I shut that shit down. I shouldn’t take anything from this moment. I deserve nothing. Not Dani’s patience and kindness. Not to appreciate an ounce of her beauty. I’m about to put her through an experience so many women in this world have gone through, and it’ll be at my hands. I won’t ever be able to take this back.
“Close your eyes.”
She does as I request. My hand shakes as I carefully brush hers off me and take my shaft into my hand. Bile rises in my throat as I fumble with the crotch of her panties. I don’t want to catch a glimpse of anything more than I have to, so I move clumsily like a virgin teen.
I notch the head at her entrance, drop my forehead to the center of her chest and release a ragged exhale. I adjust my T-shirt over her, holding it up so she can thread one arm through at a time. Dani sifts her fingers into my hair and pushes me past the boiling point of my emotions. With rough movements, I grab her wrist and yank her hand off me. I don’t deserve an ounce of her compassion. I’m about to become a rapist.
As I press her hand into the mattress beside her head, I tangle my fingers with hers and hold on for dear life. My mouth seeks hers in the dim lighting, and I deeply take her lips as I steal from her with a single thrust. My face scrunches in horror, and a wild keen climbs up my throat and beyond her lips.
Her warmth envelops me. I focus on that rather than the praise and excitement Bolt shouts at me. The words from her mouth shred the remaining decency until I’m nothing more than a shell of a man.
Each thrust is on autopilot.
My pleasure runs on empty.
Dani’s breath hitches beneath me, and I cradle that quiet sob like a newborn, knowing I’m going to nurture that pain for the rest of my existence.
“I’m sorry.”
Her grip in mine tightens.
“I’m sorry,” I repeat against her lips as I continue to push into her repeatedly.
I hope she remembers. I hope she’s transported back to a time when we consented to this together. I hope she recalls the way I’d hold her hand tight in my grasp as we made love. And kept our lips joined as if she held the air I needed to breathe.
I shut out the sound of Bolt yelling at me to finish in her as I race toward the end. I want this over as fast as possible, even if that means looking like I’m getting something out of it.
“I’ll be over soon,” I mumble as a warning.
And then I kiss her deeply.
My tongue sweeps into her mouth as I take everything. I kiss her so hard I forget my name. I catalog the taste of her sweetness on my tongue and pour two decades of longing into the press of my lips. The saltiness of tears I didn’t know we cried bled into the crevice where we joined, and I tasted our shared pain.
With a grunt and a shudder, I allow the release to come, knowing it’s the only way for this to be over.
A slow clap begins somewhere behind me, instantly igniting a flash of pain. I look down at Dani, not missing the way she avoids my gaze as I pull out of her. That pain grows stronger.
I shove my dick back into the flap of my jeans, not bothering with the buttons until I take care of Dani. With care not to touch her bare skin, I lower the hem nearly to her knees. Only then do I securely close my jeans.
“What a freaking performance! I’d say encore, but I can tell you two are tired. There’s plenty of time for a soiree later. I’ll return with some food.”
“Is that all this is? We do as you say and get rewarded with basic human needs?”
Bolt shrugs at the door to Dani’s room. “More or less.” Without another word, she disappears and locks us in.
The stakes in the game are rising, and it’s up to us to decide how much we’re willing to risk. If it all leads to death in the end, is there a fucking point to the fight?
16
Reece
Past – 11th grade
Dad hands me a screwdriver, and I tighten the screw on the clamp around the radiator hose. Dropping the tool in the toolbox once I’m done, I pull out a rag from my back pocket and wipe the oil off my hands.
“That should do it,” Dad remarks, looking over the new radiator we just put in his car. “Thanks for the help.”
Dad didn’t need any help. He could have put the part in with his eyes closed. He just wanted company and used the excuse to spend time with me. I didn’t mind, especially since he’s been working a lot of overtime and hasn’t been home as much lately.
“No problem.”
“Let’s start her up, so we know for sure everything’s working.”
I walk to the driver’s side and drop into the seat, then turn the key. Our old car rumbles to life. Getting out, I walk to the front and stand beside Dad. The car has to warm up before we know if the radiator is working properly, so I lean my hip against the bumper.
“You and Dani have plans tonight?” Dad asks, raising his voice to be heard over the engine.
“Just some studying.”
“How are things with her mom? Wasn’t she waiting on results for some tests?”
I shove my hands into my pockets. “Yeah. The mass they found in her leg was benign. She has surgery scheduled to remove it next week.”
Dad nods. “That’s good.”
We both look over to the neighbor’s house when a shout comes from the backyard.
“Shut your mouth, you little bitch!” Aislin’s mom screams.
A moment later, a door slams, and we see Aislin dart across her backyard, heading toward ours. She comes to a stop when Niko meets her between our yards. He wraps his arms around her shoulders and walks her out of sight, no doubt bringing her through the back door. Aislin always comes to our house to see Niko when her mom becomes belligerent. She and my brother are as thick as thieves.
“One of these days, that woman is going to get an earful from me,” Dad mutters darkly.
/> He keeps an eye on the house to make sure Aislin’s mom doesn’t come outside looking for her. We don’t associate with the woman, and she’s never come over to look for Aislin when she disappears, but we all watch just in case.
After a few moments of silence from the house next door, Dad turns back to the car. “Check to see how the temperature is doing.” I walk back to the driver’s door and look at the gauge on the dash.
“It looks good.”
“Shut her down.”
I turn the car off, then toss the keys to Dad after he closes the hood. We’re putting the tools in the garage when a car pulls into our driveway behind ours. I have a smile on my face as Dani gets out and flounces toward me.
“Hey, Mr. James.” She waves at my dad. “How’s it going?”
“Nothing to complain about. You?”
“The same.”
I drop a kiss to her lips before I take her book bag off her shoulder and sling it around mine.
“You need anything else, Dad?”
“Nope. I’m good here. You kids go study.”
Walking in through the front door, we pass by Mom sitting in the living room folding clothes.
“Hi, Mrs. James.”
Mom looks up and smiles. “Hey, Dani.”
“We’ll be in my room studying.”
“Leave the door open.”
I roll my eyes and mutter, “Yes, Mom.”
“I’ll bring you guys sandwiches and drinks in a bit,” she calls as we enter the hallway.
“We’re fine. We don’t—”
I’m cut off by Dani. “That would be great, Mrs. James. Thank you!”
We pass Niko’s room and hear sniffling and quiet words coming from behind the partially closed door.
“Aislin must be here,” Dani remarks quietly, her brows dipping in concern as she eyes the door.
“Yeah. Got here a few minutes ago.”
Dani doesn’t know much about Aislin’s situation, but she’s been here a few times when shit hit the fan next door.
“I feel so bad for her.”
“We all do, but there isn’t much we can do for her. You know how it is here.”
