“Come now, dear, you are incredibly smart and very intuitive, you always have been. So, how about we all do each other a favor and, for once, be completely honest. I don’t love you. I never have. As a matter of fact, I despise everything about you. Surely, you must know that by now.” She spat out the hateful words with a sneer on her face.
“The sad thing is, I always knew you didn’t love me like you should have. I just never knew why.”
“You want to know why? I think I can manage that before I let Marshall and Devon get rid of you like they should have ten years ago.”
Grudgingly, she nodded her head yes. If nothing else came from all of this, she would die knowing why her mother hated her so much. Still, she couldn’t die letting her mother think she was a weak little girl. Lifting her chin, she stared her right in the eye.
“Yes, Mother, why don’t you enlighten me?”
Constance Vanderbilt clapped her hands.
“Magnificent, such bravado, even while facing death. I tell you what, boys, if you want to hold onto her for your stupid anniversary, you can, but you need to move far away. All ties to me would be severed, think about it; you can have her for a full year and enough money to be comfortable. Hell, you can keep her indefinitely; I don’t care if you kill her. I just don’t want her escaping.”
“Fuck you …”
“So crass. Oh well, what do you expect from a little bitch born of a whoring mother?” She laughed as Kara’s eyes widened at her insinuation. “That’s right. You aren’t spawned from me; you were spawned from your whoring father and the underage little trollop he had working as his secretary at the time.”
“You’re lying.” But Kara knew she wasn’t lying. It all made perfect sense. The complete and utter lack of compassion, the way she would catch her father looking at her sometimes, and the way the brief spark of love would be extinguished by something her mother would say or do. The fact that Ethan was doted on, while she was ignored. How she looked like her father and Ethan, but nothing like her mother. “No, I understand now. Ethan is yours, but I am not.”
“Correct.”
“But, how … why did you raise me?”
“I couldn’t let that little cunt ruin everything I had planned for my future. I’m not saying it was easy raising you; it was a hardship. After all, you look remarkably like her. You know your father couldn’t—can’t—keep his dick in his pants, especially around the younger ladies, and even some men. Isn’t that right?” she asked, looking at Marshall and Devon.
“We can attest to that,” Marshall said, winking at Kara. “I prefer women, but in a pinch...”
“Indiscriminate sex is Stanley’s thing. He doesn’t care who it is; hell, I think he would screw a donkey if it was willing. He has a kinky side. I mean, he likes me to spank him, slap him, and basically dominate him in bed. Which doesn’t bother me; after all, I like sex, too. I especially like to be rough during sex. I might not love him, but he lets me go as far as I want, the rougher, the better. However, I wasn’t going to let his sex addiction ruin what we had. I like living in the Governor’s Mansion and being the wife of someone with that much power.”
Kara found herself laughing, actually laughing, at the craziness of what she was hearing come out of her supposed mother’s mouth.
“What are you laughing at?” she spat at Kara.
“You are a freak show. My father cheats on you over and over, and you stay with him. What a weak person. You think you’re strong, yet you aren’t. Not really. A strong person would have left.”
“Weak? I controlled your father, I called the shots. Thanks to Devon and Marshall, you will die a tragic death; they will once again get away. We will mourn the loss of the daughter we had finally reconnected with. The sympathy will be worth the effort to get rid of you.”
“You are truly crazy; you know that, right? You stole me from my mother, as a pawn, all for power and prestige?”
“I didn’t steal you. You were legally bought, and no one was the wiser for it. I pretended I was pregnant. Enough money can pay off the most moral of doctors to forget that I had an emergency hysterectomy during the delivery of Ethan.”
Kara didn’t care to hear anymore, but as long as her mother was talking, it was giving them longer to find her. Even if Marshall and Devon weren’t going to kill her right away, she didn’t want them to move her to another location.
“If you didn’t want another child, why would you want to raise me?”
“I had wanted another child. Just not you. But it wasn’t meant to be, so I was fine with the one I had. Then we found out about you because that little bitch honestly thought your father would leave me for her. After I told her to be on her way, I realized it might be advantageous to have another child. The perfect little family, older son, younger daughter. An idea was sparked. I thought I could fake loving you a little better, and maybe I could have if you didn’t look so much like her. If only you would have looked more like your father, like Ethan.”
While she spoke, she paced the floor in front of Kara, her Jimmy Choo heels clicking on the floor. As Kara stared at her, she realized that her mother was on a precipice about to tip over the edge into lunacy. While she still maintained her perfect facade, there was a spark in her eye that showed her that Constance Vanderbilt had completely lost it.
“You came so suddenly that I was forced to have an at-home birth, with no drugs. We were so thankful that you were safely here,” she scoffed.
“What happened to my mother?”
“She sold you without blinking an eye. She really had no choice; after all, at the tender age of seventeen, she had twin boys who were only one and a newborn to care for. She couldn’t afford to feed another mouth, especially after she lost her job for fucking her boss.”
Kara gasped at the meaning of her words.
“That’s right; Devon and Marshall are your brothers. Born from the same whoring cunt, fathered by the same cheating bastard. I couldn’t have another child, but nothing was stopping her from having child after child.” Kara couldn’t hold back the bile; she vomited at the realization that her brothers had raped her. After she emptied her stomach, she glanced to her brothers, who were smiling cruelly at her.
“You knew? All this time, you knew, and you still did those things to me?”
“Our mother killed herself shortly after you were born. The weight of having sold you was too much; you were more important to her than we were.” Marshall said the words so forcefully that spit flew from his mouth. “The woman who raised us wasn’t what one would call a nice person. She beat us relentlessly. Molested us. She especially loved to toy with Devon. Constance rescued us from her when we were fourteen. We owe everything to her; anything she asks of us, we will gladly do.”
His voice had become strangely monotone, and that scared her more than anything. It was as if he was reciting a prepared speech, but he wasn’t selling it well. Constance was oblivious to the change in his voice. As he spoke, he walked toward her mother and slowly wrapped his arms around her. She wound her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. The embrace wasn’t romantic, and it was not sweet, but it was disturbing to watch the woman who raised her with her hands entwined in the hair of the person who had tormented Kara.
Kara once again felt sick to her stomach as her brother stuck his tongue into the mouth of the woman who she had once thought was her mother. Devon walked up behind Constance and ran his hands up her ribs, around to her breasts, where he ripped the shirt she was wearing open and reaching into her bra, he tugged on her erect nipples until she moaned in pleasure.
“You disgust me. You’re animals, every one of you!” she shouted.
They ignored her shouts of disgust and continued to make out; in fact, it appeared her reaction was encouraging their tryst. Kara squeezed her eyes shut and tears leaked down her face. The image of the two monsters, who she had just found out were her brothers, undressing the woman, who until a few minutes ago she had considered her moth
er, albeit a terrible mother, but her mother nonetheless, was more than she could handle.
“Open your eyes, you little cunt,” Marshall yelled at her. “Get a good look at us fucking your mommy. Oh wait; she isn’t your mommy, is she? Watch as she takes us from both sides, and remember what it was like to have us inside you. Because once we’re done with her, the fun begins. Now that you know there are two of us, and now that Devon isn’t fixated on you, the games we have planned will be so much better.”
She shook her head, refusing to open her eyes and witness the sight of them with Constance. But she could still hear the grunts and groans of their copulation. There was no way to cover her ears.
“Open your eyes and look, or I will buttfuck your boyfriend before I kill him,” Devon roared. She shook her head and whimpered. “Now!”
Reluctantly, she opened her eyes to the exhibitionism in front of her. Her stomach knotted as she watched the gyrating sweat-soaked bodies. It was a horrific thing to witness the erotic scene. Kara squeezed her eyes shut tight and swallowed the bile back once again.
“Little sister, open your eyes!” Devon singsonged to her. “I want you to remember we will always love you the most.”
Her gaze dropped to the ground, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw something that made her feel moderately better. She still had her ankle bracelet on. For some reason, they hadn’t removed any of her jewelry, and the most important piece was on her. Knowing that she was still wearing the bracelet that would allow the police to find her meant that help was eventually coming. Kara knew in her heart that Caleb would do anything to find her and that even if it would upset Ethan and set back his recovery, he would do so to get her back.
Resisting the impulse to keep her eyes shut, she forced herself to look. If it would keep them happy and give Caleb the time to find her, then it was worth it. But as soon as she opened her eyes, something registered as off about the scenario she was watching unfold.
Sure, they were still in the throes of passion, but something wasn’t right. Constance had allowed them to tie her hands behind her back and was spread eagle on the ground with Devon on top of her, but Marshall had removed himself from the moment, and Constance was completely unaware of the shift, and it was too late for Kara to do anything to stop it. Marshall took hold of her mother's head by the hair, tugging her head back slightly to expose the neck. Constance was still in the moment and thought it was all part of rough sex. Marshall tugged a little harder to get her attention; clearly, he wanted her to know what was coming, as with his other hand, he pulled the knife across her neck. Kara let out a blood-curdling scream.
Constance Vanderbilt had known that she was going to die while one of the boys she had taken advantage of was still thrusting into her. As Kara screamed, she watched the blood that had sustained the life of the woman she had been meant to love and had come to hate, drain out of her and spray all over Devon.
The severity of it all felt like it was crashing down on her. She felt the gravity in the room crushing her and slumped, literally hanging by her bindings. Nothing could have accomplished as much with as little effort as this had. She hung limply in the disgusting prison she had been shackled to; the prison where she would lose her life because she was suddenly certain that there was no way Caleb would find her in time. If he had called Ethan, they should have been able to get the coordinates of her whereabouts quickly, and the police would be here already. Shouldn’t they storm the building? Would they wait until the right opportunity presented itself to charge in, and if so, how much longer would it take?
Defeated. Broken. Looking to the ceiling, she began to whisper The Lord’s Prayer. The monsters that were her brothers heard her, and it seemed to agitate them. She smiled a grim smile and recited it again, louder this time, defiance sparking inside of her.
As they advanced on her, scalpel in Marshall’s hand and rope in Devon’s, she continued to pray. There was nothing they could do to her. Nothing they hadn’t done. She would not let them win by seeing her fear. So, she prayed. She let peace and calm claim her. Out loud, she asked God to help Ethan and Caleb understand.
Marshall was visibly furious as he pulled her down from the hook she was attached to, but Devon seemed to be devastated at the mention of Caleb. Marshall thought he was no longer fixated on Kara, but he was wrong. If Marshall had seen the expression on Devon’s face, he would have been furious. Kara found it disturbingly sad. If he wasn’t a coldhearted, sadistic monster, maybe she would have cared.
As she slid to the ground, she saw something reflect in the warehouse from outside the window. A light. Just a flash, then another. Her heart soared; either the cavalry was here, or the angels were waiting to guide her to heaven.
Then she saw it again. Blink, blink, blink. Stop. Blink, blink, blink. Stop. The cavalry was here. They knew she could see them, but Marshall and Devon weren’t looking. A single tear leaked from her eye as the room erupted in chaos.
32
Caleb felt like he was going to jump out of his own skin. Standing outside the decrepit warehouse while waiting for the go sign from the captain was almost more than he could take. He didn’t want to push his luck. They didn’t want him here; he was too close to this. They wanted him with Ethan because they were both too emotionally involved. But, the fuck they were going to stop him. They weren’t going to sideline him when Kara’s life was in danger. Not while she was in the hands of that sadistic madman.
“We have eyes on the prize,” Santiago’s voice said in Caleb’s ear piece. SWAT had positioned themselves around the perimeter of the building and had finally gotten eyes into where she was being held. He was desperately waiting for some news from them, so when he finally got some intel, he just about collapsed with relief.
“Roger that, can you take out the subject, without hurting the prize?” asked the captain.
“Negative.”
“I need visual, what can you see?”
“There is one deceased woman on the floor and three subjects standing in front of the prize. The prize is alive and well.”
Define well, Caleb wanted to know. Did well mean untouched or did it just mean breathing?
“Did you say three subjects?” Caleb asked.
“Roger.”
“Hold your position for now; we need to know what threat they pose.” Bob’s voice was tense as he issued the order.
“Copy,” Santiago said.
“Fuck that! Sir, with all due respect, we can’t leave her in there and wait to see what they are going to do!” Caleb whispered into his mic. He couldn’t scream, even though he wanted to do that very thing.
“Stand down, eight seventy-four, or I will pull you. Copy that?” Bob was furious, and when Caleb didn’t respond, he repeated, “Copy that?”
“Yes, sir. But even if I lose my job, I won’t wait much longer. Those motherfuckers are unpredictable.”
Caleb took a deep breath to center himself. He wanted to charge into the building, but he knew that wasn’t a good idea. Yet, every cell in his body was telling him they couldn’t wait much longer. Every second that she was in that room with those three people was one second too many.
“I need more detail, tell me what else you’re seeing,” Bob demanded.
“Two males, two females. Female one, the prize, is naked and tied up. The two male subjects look strikingly similar, either twins or at the very least they are related, one male has burn scars on his neck.”
“Devon Bristol …” Caleb whispered, his stomach twisting in a knot.
“Female two? Friend or foe?” Bob asked.
“Unknown. I can’t get a visual on her. She has her back to the window…here’s something familiar, wait, she’s turning around…shit…”
“We need intel, what did you see?” Caleb asked, jumping on the mic before his captain could say anything.
“Female two is Constance Vanderbilt. Oh, sweet Jesus…” Santiago broke off.
Caleb had felt momentarily happy and worried that
Constance Vanderbilt was there, happy because she could help, worried that she was also a hostage. But then he felt his blood pressure rise at the tone of Santiago’s voice.
“We need to know what’s going on,” Caleb growled.
“Female two is not a friendly, repeat, not a friendly. Female two and both male subjects are,” he cleared his throat, clearly shocked, “undressing. It’s apparent that they are familiar with each other,” Santiago said.
There was a prolonged moment of silence as everyone absorbed what he had just said. They were undressing, familiar with each other, sweet lord almighty. Had her mother really done this? Had she been part of it all along?
“I think we need to move. They aren’t letting her out of there alive,” Mueller piped in when Santiago stayed silent.
No shit, Sherlock, Caleb thought. Kara had been right all along; there definitely was more going on than anyone had ever suspected. No sooner had Mueller said that than a blood curdling scream, one he recognized as Kara’s voice, split the night. Caleb felt his heart stop beating for one brief moment in time.
“Intel! Who was the source of the screaming?” snapped Caleb, somehow managing not to charge into the building.
“The guy without the burns just sliced the throat of Constance Vanderbilt. She’s dead,” Santiago answered.
“We need to move. They just killed the governor’s wife. Whether she was involved, we just hit a shit storm of epic proportions. These men will not let her go; right now, they don’t know that they’re surrounded. We have the element of surprise,” Caleb pleaded.
“Eight seventy-four, copy. Four eighty-four, stay in position. Team one, take the back entrance, two go in, one covers their flank. Team two, take the side entrance, two in, one cover the flank. Team three, take the front entrance. Eight seventy-four, stay where you are. Do not move a muscle.”
Yeah, fat fucking chance, thought Caleb. 874, which was his badge number, was most certainly not sitting this one out. Caleb began to move toward the front entrance. He was as quiet as SWAT and just as skilled. In fact, he had a conversation with Ethan in recent weeks about joining SWAT, which was made up of other detectives throughout the police force, but they hadn’t decided yet. If he still had a job after today, he would be applying.
In the Night (Darkness Falls Book 1) Page 27
