Silk

by Heidi McLaughlin

  The water had a dingy smell to it, but anything would do for the moment. Once the shower water hit the sores on my back, I gasped and turned quickly away. Biting my lip, I slowly washed the front of my body before letting the water hit my back again. I knew it would hurt like hell, but my sores needed to be rinsed off. I did my best to soap up a washcloth and run it over my tattered skin to help clean off the dirt and dried blood. I wanted the pain to go away. I wanted to feel numb.

  Instead, my body didn’t listen and I felt every ounce of heartbreak, every single ounce of loss, and it all came crashing down on me. Sinking to the shower floor, I did something that I hadn’t done since the night I told Brett everything that happened with Daniel. I cried and shook until the shower water turned ice cold; and even then, I cried some more.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  When I finally crawled out of the shower, I was shivering uncontrollably and couldn’t stop. My chest was on fire and it felt like I was hyperventilating. Teeth chattering, I staggered out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around my body since I didn’t bring my clothes in with me. The second Daniel saw me he bolted away from his computer at the desk and took my face in his warm hands. It almost felt like they seared my skin I was so cold compared to his heat.

  “What the hell did you do, take a cold shower?”

  He lifted me in his arms and placed me on the bed, his face was a worried mask as he wrapped all the blankets around me and tucked them in. He climbed in behind me and folded me in his arms. I wanted to pretend it was Brett, but even I knew my imagination wouldn’t let that happen. Being too weak to move or speak, I didn’t even respond to his touch when he rubbed my arms and legs to generate heat.

  “I promise everything will be all right, baby. You’ll be happy with me. I know it,” he whispered in my ear. “You need to stop tormenting yourself.”

  The shaking grew worse and he cursed under his breath behind me. Please, just let it end, I thought to myself. Closing my eyes, I thought of Brett. Of how his gray gaze glittered like the sea after a storm, how his arms held me close, and how his lips tasted when he would kiss me. I could almost imagine I could hear his voice whispering in my ear how everything will be okay and how he would find me. For me to trust him. With thoughts of Brett consuming my mind, I drifted off into the deepest and best sleep since being taken, and I prayed that I could stay there with him. Unfortunately, I wasn’t so lucky.

  ***

  When I woke up, I had no clue how long I was out that time, but there was one thing for certain … I was burning up. The blankets were still wrapped tight around me and Daniel still had his arm draped over my stomach. I tried to wriggle out of the blankets, and once I got free of them tucked around me, there was something else that gave me pause.

  “Good morning, baby,” Daniel whispered huskily in my ear. “I can’t believe you slept so long. I thought I was going to go insane with you lying beside me naked.” He pushed his hips into my ass, and when I tried to get out of his hold he held me tighter.

  I groaned and let out an audible huff. “Yeah, I can see how hard that must’ve been for you. Do you mind letting me go?”

  “I don’t think so,” he growled low. Daniel bit down on my shoulder, and I cried out, hissing in anger.

  “Ow, Daniel. What the hell are you doing? Get off of me … now,” I shouted. I tried to jerk away, but he held me tighter against his body. His hand rose higher and undid the towel around my body so he could expose my bare breasts. His hand grasped onto one and kneaded it firmly, almost painfully.

  “Shh … baby. I’m not going to hurt you. I’ve needed you for too long, Melissa. Please let me love you and be with you the way we used to be. I miss the times we had together.”

  “You can’t force it, Daniel,” I warned, my heart beating out of my chest in fear. I had never been in a situation like this before, and even though he was my ex-husband and never hurt me other than the altercation at his house, it was still scary as hell. I swallowed hard and continued, “If you do force me, then no amount of loving me will make me love you back. Please let me go.”

  I gripped his wrist and tried to pull his hand away, hoping to get him off me, but it didn’t work. Panic started to build and I knew I had no other choice but to fight if it came to that. Oh, please God don’t let it come to that. I knew I wasn’t strong enough physically to fight him off. Daniel quickly turned me over so he could see my face, and pried himself between my legs by pushing my thighs apart. His hands held mine firmly by my side and I was trapped … two seconds away from a fate I didn’t even want to imagine.

  Daniel lowered his body onto mine, his eyes so dark that I couldn’t even tell it was him staring back at me. It was the same look that had my blood chilling when I was in the car with him earlier; the same look that scared the shit out of me.

  He smiled down at me and said, “I’m not forcing you, Mel. I know you want this just as much as me. I keep remembering the way you looked when we got married and those words you said to me that night when we made love. I want to hear you speak to me like that again. I want to feel your tight little pussy clenching all around me.”

  Tears pooled in my eyes, and when I closed them to block out Daniel’s ice cold gaze the tears ran hot down my face. “Don’t be nervous, baby. You know I love you, right? This will be good for us both. Once I make love to you, you will forget all about Brett and the life you had before.”

  Brett.

  There was his name, the man who would fight for me no matter what. As scared as I was, I had to fight back for him. I wasn’t going to lie there and let him take me without a fight, even if he was a man I used to love and share many intimate moments with. Those times were over. I was a different woman and in love with a different man. I was strong. I was a fighter.

  “No,” I demanded angrily, piercing a deathly glare at him above me. “Nothing you could ever do to me will make me forget about Brett. I love him, Daniel, not you … not anymore.”

  His smile immediately vanished and the room took on an unearthly chill. He gripped my chin and squeezed, holding me in place while he bent his head low to speak against my lips. His voice was laced with venom when he snarled, “Well, isn’t that just a shame. I was hoping our first reunion would be fun, but I see you don’t want it to be that way.”

  He descended on my lips with punishing force, delving his tongue in deep, and biting my lip. I bucked against his body and screamed as loud as I could, but it was muffled by his hand as he slammed it across my mouth. “I see you want to play rough today. I remember you used to like it like that if I’m not mistaken.”

  I jerked my head hard and away from his hand. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins and I knew I was ready to fight. I might not make it out of the room, but by God I was going to try. The only thing I hated was what I was about to do, or better yet, what I was going to let him do.

  “Fine,” I spat. “You want me, then take me. I don’t care anymore.” Releasing the tension in my arms, I relaxed them and didn’t fight against his grip. My legs loosened against his waist and I let them fall open. I had never felt more vulnerable in my life, but I had to make him think I was giving in.

  Daniel gazed at me, hesitantly. “You’re not going to fight me on this?” he asked, a smile growing on his face.

  I gritted my teeth and turned my head. My hands were still bound above my head in his vice like grip, but I hoped he would let them go at some point. Sighing, I closed my eyes. “No, I’m not going to fight. Just get it over with,” I told him.

  Chuckling, he leaned down and bit my ear lobe before trailing kisses down my neck. His grip was loosening on my hands, but I needed them free. As he moved lower to lick down my breasts, he finally let my hands go so he could massage them while he sucked on one of my nipples.

  Daniel groaned. “Your nipples taste so good, baby. I could suck them all day long.”

  I bit back my hateful remark by biting my tongue, and keeping my anger in check. My hands wer
e shaking, but it was only because I wanted to hit something, preferably his face. If I could just move over a little bit I could reach for something to hit him with. As his head moved lower down my stomach, my insides tensed when I realized what he was going to do next.

  Shit!

  Daniel kissed his way over my stomach down to the inside of my thigh. My heart was thundering out of my chest and I wanted to scream for him to get the fuck off of me, but I knew I couldn’t. In his mind he might not have seen it as rape since we used to be married and he loved me, but in his now warped mind I had no clue what kind of psychotic thoughts he possessed.

  He nuzzled my clit with his nose and then buried his face in my sex, gripping my thighs tight. I bucked against the bed and moved over in the process so I could get closer to the bedside table. Daniel moaned and said, “Ah, I see you like that now don’t you? See … I told you you’d enjoy it.”

  Dammit! I need to move closer to the table. Having him touching me felt wrong on so many levels; all I wanted to do was cry and fight and get away, but I had to time it just right and use enough force to make an impact. My bag was on the floor by the bed so all I needed to do was get it, hopefully throw on a shirt, grab the keys to the car, and run out. He will definitely be surprised when I drive out of here in his stick shift car that he thinks I probably can’t drive.

  When he delved his tongue deeper, I bucked again and moaned, moving my body closer to the edge. Lifting my hands above my head, I gripped onto the headboard and slowly moved them over to the table. Daniel chuckled. “Does it feel good, baby?” he asked gruffly.

  Swallowing hard, I took in a deep, shaky breath and nodded. “Yes,” I breathed. “I need more.”

  He chuckled again and started to taste me more vigorously. Slowly, my hand grazed the lamp on the table and thankfully it was one that could be moved and wasn’t part of the table like you find in fancier hotels. Daniel was moaning and licking me greedily and I knew I only had a minute or so before I needed to make a move.

  Gripping the lamp post, I counted to three. One … two … three.

  Daniel looked up just as I heaved and bashed the lamp down on his head not only once, but twice. Blood spurt out of the opening in his head and I screamed and scrambled off the bed. He collapsed onto the mattress and then down to the floor, groaning, as I ran and grabbed my bag. The tears in my eyes blurred my vision, but I hastily opened my bag and felt around for a shirt and pants.

  Blood was on my hands and legs, but I didn’t care. I picked the first thing I found and threw it on with no bra, and slid a pair of pants on with no underwear. I didn’t want to waste time putting on shoes so I grabbed the keys and took one last look at Daniel. Bursting into tears, I didn’t know if I’d killed him or not because he was bleeding and not moving. It could be a farce to see if I’d help him, but it wasn’t a chance I was willing to make.

  With blood on my hands and tears streaming down my face, I opened the motel room door and was blinded by the sunlight of the day beyond. Quickly, I ran to the stairs and bumped into a couple that was walking up.

  “Oh my goodness lady are you hurt?” the man asked, wide-eyed, staring at the blood on my hands and my disheveled appearance.

  Gasping, I could barely get the words out when I answered, stuttering, “Call … call the police and get them here quickly.” My breath hitched and my throat tightened with my next words. “Tell them,” I began, choking on my words. “Tell them that Daniel O’Briene is here at this motel and that he’s hurt. Give them my name. It’s Melissa Ashford. I’m sure they’ll know who we are.”

  As soon as I gave them the information I rushed down the steps and bolted for the car. The guy yelled something to me, but I couldn’t hear him. All I could hear was the pounding in my ears and my inner self telling me to run, to find a place safely away where I could call Brett and Mason and tell them where I was.

  When I got in the car, I started it up and immediately stalled out when I tried to back it up. Angry with myself, I slammed my hands against the wheel. “Not now,” I screamed at myself. “Come on, you can do this.”

  Cranking the car, I put it in reverse and backed out of the space. I took one last glance at the hotel room door where behind it Daniel was bleeding out. Trembling, I put the car into first and took off out of the parking lot.

  Please don’t let him be dead.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  The police chased by my car on the opposite side of the road and I knew I should go back if I had the protective custody of the police, but I needed to find a phone and call Brett as soon as possible. About two miles down the road I found a gas station with a pay phone. I pulled up in front of it and cursed when I realized I didn’t have any money. Or at least I didn’t think I did until I found my purse sitting behind the passenger seat.

  Rummaging through it, I found some change in my wallet and quickly got out of the car. There weren’t that many people around, but the ones that were around stared at me curiously with my bloody hands, pink T-shirt, and pajama bottoms. My hands were shaking so bad that I couldn’t even put the money in the slot on the pay phone. I took a few deep breaths and it didn’t help. There was no way I would be able to dial his number correctly with the way my hands were trembling.

  I stood there and cried until a woman about my age came up to me, cautiously. “Do you need help?” she asked calmly, her kind blue eyes searching over my body. “I’m a nurse, sweetie. My name is Abbey. Are you hurt anywhere? Do I need to call the police?” She glanced down at my hands and then back up to my face.

  Shaking my head, I licked my dry lips and responded, “No, I’m not hurt. I need help to call my boyfriend and then the police. I have to let them know I’m okay.”

  Abbey nodded and pulled out her phone. “What’s your name, sweetie?”

  “My name’s Melissa Ashford,” I said.

  Abruptly, her gaze met mine and her eyes went wide. “Oh my God, you’re the one everyone’s been searching for. I thought you looked familiar. Your picture has been all over the news. They said you had been kidnapped by your ex-husband.”

  “It’s true,” I whispered.

  “Okay, if you don’t mind I’m going to call the police first, and then I’ll dial whoever you want after that. The authorities need to know you’re safe and to come for you.” I nodded and sat down on the hood of the car, hanging my head so I could cry. I wanted to hide because now there were so many people milling about and staring at me. I wanted to crawl back in the car and just pretend that none of what happened ever existed, that it was all just a bad dream. Abbey dialed 911 and told them where I was and that I was safe. When she got off the phone she came back to me.

  “They said to stay here. I told them I would stay with you until I knew you were perfectly safe. An ambulance will be here soon to escort you to the hospital.”

  Furrowing my brow, I asked, “Why the hospital? I’m not hurt.”

  Abbey smiled apologetically. “I don’t know what happened to you, Ms. Ashford, but it’s plain as day that you’re not okay.” She pressed down on my skin and shook her head. “You’re also severely dehydrated and need to be taken care of. People die from dehydration all the time. They’re also going to want to examine you to make sure nothing else is wrong. Now give me the number to your boyfriend.”

  I called out the numbers and she held the phone out to me. It rang and rang and I was about to hang up when Brett finally answered the phone, “Yeah.”

  “Brett,” I whispered hoarsely. My throat closed up and I started to cry.

  He gasped and yelled to the people in the background. “It’s her! I got her,” he hollered. “Where the hell are you? Mason and I are here at the motel and there was a couple that said you left. So help me God I’m going to kill Daniel if he makes it through this.”

  “You’re there?” I choked out. “I’m about two miles down the road at a gas station. What’s going on now?”

  He sighed. “Look, don’t you worry about anyone but yourself righ
t now. I’m on my way to you. Did you take a left or right out of the parking lot of the hotel?”

  “A left,” I replied.

  “Stay on the phone with me until I get there. So help me God, I thought I would never see you again when your watch ended up in the woods. I thought we had lost you for good.”

  “How did you find me?” I asked.

  “The guy who you were supposed to meet for the plane ride over the border called and informed the authorities what Daniel was planning on doing. He told the police where you were at so we were already on our way when the call came through from the couple at the motel.” I could hear the rumble of his Jeep coming down the road and my heart slammed in my chest when I saw him speed into the parking lot of the gas station.

  His eyes immediately found mine so I hung up the phone and handed it back to Abbey. “Thank you,” I muttered graciously to her.

  “You’re welcome,” she uttered, eyes going wide at the sight of Brett climbing out of his vehicle. He wore a rumpled T-shirt and jeans and his face looked like it hadn’t seen a razor in days. He was still handsome even with the tormented look on his face. His mouth flew open at the sight of me and his eyes glowed with anger.

  I ran as fast as I could to him and jumped into his arms. “Brett,” I cried.

  His arms engulfed me and he held me tight. The sores on my back screamed in protest, but I needed his arms around me. “Shh … it’s okay, firecracker. I got you,” he whispered hoarsely in my ear. “You’re safe now.”

  The sirens from the ambulance sounded off into the distance and I knew they were coming for me. “I love you,” I cried. “I can’t believe you’re here. I didn’t know if I was ever going to see you again.”