“Take deep breaths when I enter you. Don’t bear down,” I said and pushed the head of my cock into her before she had a chance to respond.
Mara cried out, and I held still as her body tried to reject the intrusion. I couldn’t pleasure her because she’d come, and it wasn’t time yet.
After a few moments, I was able to slide the rest of the way into her dark heat. After a few slow, deliberate thrusts, I reached down and stroked Mara’s bud until she began to cry out. I felt her body quaking around me, and her climax pulled me over the edge as well.
My cock emptied into her as the aftershocks of her orgasm wracked Mara’s body with pleasure. When I was done, I cut the binds on Mara’s wrists. She again did something I didn’t expect.
Mara stood up and threw herself into my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck and nuzzled into my chest. “I’m sorry I ever did anything to hurt you,” was all she said.
I reached down and picked her up. We needed to clean up, so I carried her to the shower and held her body while the water heated up.
There was no way I could know for sure if her affection was real, but it felt genuine. It also felt good. She was mine now to do with what I pleased. I’d broken her, and Mara was happy.
Total submission was what she needed. It was why she was such a bitch before. No one had ever given her what her body and mind craved. Every time people caved to her bitchy attitude and gave her what she thought she wanted, it actually hurt Mara more.
Her father had seen it. It’s why he treated her the way he did. Except he could never be what she needed, so instead he’d only acted like a monster. He’d failed her because his end game was money and business connections.
There was time to figure that out later. At that moment, I just wanted a shower and then some breakfast.
I washed her gently with the cloth. When I was done cleaning myself, I was half hard again. Mara smiled and reached her small hand down to encircle my erection. She stroked me a few times, and I couldn’t help but groan. Her hands were so soft and gentle. She tugged at me until I was hard and throbbing again.
“Come here,” I said and pulled her to me. “Put your arms around my neck.
She did, and I cupped her ass with my hands. I picked her up so that her pussy hovered over the head of my cock. She wrapped her legs around my waist and lowered down. Mara flexed her velvet channel and it sucked my cock all the way in.
I pressed Mara against the shower wall and rutted into her as her lips found my mouth. I drew my cock out slowly but plunged back into her hard.
Her body convulsed when she came, and I felt her spasm around my girth. Mara’s orgasm almost took me with her, but I held back. I made her come several more times before I gave in and released.
I was lost in a fuzzy post-orgasm bliss when I heard the burner phone I’d set up for negotiations begin to ring.
Chapter Ten
Mara
I found more clean clothes in the bedroom while Salvatore went to answer the phone. It was impressive how well prepared he was for the job.
There was more to it than that, though. Despite everything that had gone on between us, I felt safe. My former life had been filled with uncertainty, and a great deal of that had been caused by me.
Salvatore didn’t take any shit from me, and that had shifted something inside. I hated Dino for trying to take what wasn’t his, but I didn’t feel the same way about Salvatore.
He’d pushed me to my limit, but it was as if he knew what I needed. Maybe it was because there was no power behind Dino. He had to operate off of fear, because if anyone figured out what a pussy he really was, they’d destroy him.
Hell, I probably could have destroyed him. That wasn’t the case with Salvatore. Yeah, I knew how to press his buttons, but he was dangerous. I’d taunted him about being an animal, but there truly was a beast inside of him.
Salvatore had real power, and it scared me. He killed people, and that turned me on. I wasn’t sure if that meant he was the monster or I was.
When we had sex in the shower, it was something more than fucking. I’d connected to him in a way that we couldn’t have accomplished with words. It wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t broken me first. There was a strange look in his eyes when he’d finally released. He hadn’t expected to feel the way he did. Salvatore didn’t say anything about it, but I could read it in his expression.
He might have said something if we hadn’t been interrupted. But it was probably good that we were. I was reading way too much into the situation. The entire situation was a fantasy. None of it was real. The kidnapping wasn’t real. The feelings weren’t real. I was just some rough sex to pass the time. Salvatore wanted out of the country, and not once had he ever even asked what my plans were once the job was done.
The phone call was my father. Salvatore gave him the number to use in the event a satisfactory deal couldn’t be reached through messages. It was typical of my father to send one message and then call.
I couldn’t believe that my father hadn’t offered Salvatore any money for my return. Perhaps he thought that my kidnapper had defiled me already and I was as useless to him as my mother was when he let her die. I’d begun to wonder if he’d called to say goodbye when Salvatore tried to hand me the phone.
“He’d like to speak to you,” he said and gave me a nod. Trust. He was confident I could handle it without coaching. That gave me a bit of a lift.
“Oh, Daddy. You have to help me. When are you coming to get me? The man said you have to give him money. Why can’t I come home?” I sobbed through my best fake tears.
“You’re coming home, princess. Don’t you worry,” he said calmly.
“Daddy, I have to give the phone back to him. Please help me. Don’t let him hurt me anymore,” I said and handed the phone back to Salvatore.
“You’ve got twenty-four hours to wire the money to the accounts I sent you in the message.” Salvatore listened for a moment to whatever my father was saying. “Fine. I get it. Forty-eight is it. Don’t even try to come back to me asking for more time. It won’t end well for Mara.” He paused again. “Okay, yes. You can, for thirty seconds.”
Salvatore reached the phone out to me again. “He wants to speak to you. Make it quick.”
“Daddy?” I said and turned the tears back on again.
“Mara, sweetie, don’t worry. Are you still wearing your mother’s necklace? Or did that barbarian steal it from you?”
“I’m still wearing it. I’m sorry I’m not wearing yours. Oh Daddy. I’m so scared.”
“Don’t be scared. Your mother is watching over you,” my father said and then hung up the phone.
That had been an odd thing to say. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what had just happened, but the phone call didn’t end the way I’d expected. Although I’m not quite sure what I expected.
“You did well,” Salvatore said.
He took the battery out of the phone and smashed the burner. I wanted to tell him that it probably wouldn’t be enough, but I convinced myself that I was just being paranoid.
I’d find out soon if my father wanted me dead.
Chapter Eleven
Salvatore
When Mara told me what her father had said, I thought it was strange too. To me, it sounded like a death threat, and I wondered if we were going to see any of the ransom money. Would Mara’s father just let her die? He’d let her mother pass away when it would have cost him a small piece of his fortune to help her.
For some reason, my stomach was in knots, but we needed to eat. The last thing you needed when you were running for your life was to get lightheaded from hunger. There were cans of corned beef hash in the pantry, and I figured I’d fry some up for us. It would have been better if there were eggs and toast too, but we had to use what was in storage.
“Mara, why didn’t he just pay up?” I asked as I moved the food around in the pan with the metal spatula.
“He’ll pay,” she said. “You asked for mor
e money than we originally agreed on. My father is worth a lot more than ten million dollars, but he doesn’t have that much lying around in cash.”
“You really believe that’s all that’s going on?”
“Yes,” Mara said, but her former bravado was gone.
“Who is your father?”
I only asked her because something wasn’t right. Mara had become nervous, and when I agreed to take this job, she’d assured me that her plan was foolproof. I should have known better than to trust someone I didn’t know with my life, but desperate times...
“What do you mean?” The sickeningly sweet sing-song of her voice told me I’d hit the nail on the head.
“Your name, Mara Santiago, is fake. Who are you? Who is your father? I can tell by the way you’ve been acting since you got off the phone with your father that you’ve come to the conclusion that you are in over your head. Well, princess, I’m in there with you. Come clean so we can figure this out.”
“My name is Mara,” she said. “My name is Mara Rossi. My father’s name is Anthony Rossi.”
“Jesus Christ, Mara. Your father is the Red Butcher? He and his associates are the ones looking for me. Your father is the one who put me on the blacklist.”
“I know,” she said.
“You knew? Is this a setup? Why would you do that?” I said and drew my gun. “You’re working for your father?”
“No, Salvatore. No. He doesn’t know that it’s you who took me. I only hired you because I figured that with my father after you, you’d be desperate enough to take the job,” Mara said.
“I’m taking you back. Right now. We’re getting in the car, and I’m dropping you off a few miles from your house. This is over.”
“Salvatore, please don’t do that. I’m doomed if you take me back. Even if I tell him that you raped me, I’m still worthless. Please. You don’t have to keep me after this, but at least give me a fighting chance. With half of the ransom, I can get away and start a new life.”
“You can keep the other half of the gold. I’ll take the half you’ve already given me. That should be enough for you to get away.”
“It’s not and you know that. I’m the Red Butcher’s daughter. I need more than just enough to get away. I’ll need to buy protection from another family. You know that. You know how much it costs to stay alive once men like my father turn on you. That’s why you didn’t take the gold and run. You could easily fly to some tiny tropical country and live like a king with just what’s in that backpack I gave you. It’s not that simple. Friends cost money.”
I wanted to wrap my hands around her throat and squeeze, but I couldn’t do it. I wanted to scream and punch a hole in the wall, but I couldn’t do it. I hated Mara, but I felt the compulsion to protect her at the same time.
“I’ll be back,” I said and headed for the back door.
“Where are you going?” She sounded frightened.
“For a walk. I need to clear my head. Don’t leave. I won’t go far.” I wished it was a lie. I wanted to be able to walk out that back door and keep going until I was far away from the mess Mara and I had created.
Chapter Twelve
Mara
Two Days Later...
I woke to Salvatore shaking me. Before I could ask him what was going on, his hand slipped over my mouth. For a moment, I thought he wanted another round of celebration sex, but then I saw the look in his eyes.
The night before, we’d gotten a message from Salvatore’s offshore banker that the deposits to his accounts had been initiated. We were supposed to check back in the morning for confirmation that they’d been completed and the money was available for withdrawal.
“Get up,” Salvatore barked at me. “Get dressed now,” he said and let go of me.
“What’s going on? Why are you freaking out?” I was still half asleep and his panicked tone hadn’t infected me yet.
“Be quiet for a second,” he said. “Can’t you here that?”
I listened, and my blood ran cold. The sound of tires crunching on the gravel drive was faint but definitely there. A few seconds later, we could hear footsteps and car doors slamming.
There was no time for me to get dressed. I had seconds to pick up my jeans and t-shirt, and then Salvatore dragged me through the living room to the basement door.
“I don’t want to be trapped down there,” I said as he pulled me down the stairs.
“There’s a safe room down here. Come on, Mara.”
I followed Salvatore into the room with the dirt floor and brick walls. On the side of the room you couldn’t see from the main basement room was a door.
Salvatore punched a code into the small number pad above the door handle. We went inside and he closed us into the room.
“I hope this door holds. This room was designed just to keep out intruders. It sounds like whoever is out there brought a small army.”
I finished getting dressed, and regretted not grabbing shoes. If we had to run, I’d be in trouble.
Salvatore handed me a handgun and we moved to the back wall of the saferoom. My heart thundered in my chest, and I wondered if the men outside were my father’s soldiers here to retrieve me or if it was the men looking to kill Salvatore. Either way, things didn’t look good for the man I’d hired to kidnap me.
I tried not to think about what might happen to Salvatore while we listened to the footsteps of the men above us. Why did I care? It wasn’t as if he cared about me in any meaningful way. We were terrible for each other, and once the ordeal was over, I was certain he’d be happy to be rid of me.
“Aim at the door,” Salvatore said quietly.
I trained my weapon in the direction of the door and listened as the heavy footfalls came down the stairs. It worried me that I could hear the men outside of the safe room. It meant that the walls weren’t thick enough.
“I guess this means the deposit didn’t go through,” I said.
“That is the least of my worries right now. I’ll be lucky to survive this, and what’s going to happen to you when your father finds out you’re not a virgin anymore?”
“Well, I guess that means we shouldn’t let them take us,” I said.
“I have no problem killing whoever comes through that door, but can you pull the trigger?” Salvatore asked without taking his eyes off the door.
“I’m good with a gun. One of my bodyguards taught me to shoot,” I said.
“Knowing how to shoot isn’t the same as being able to kill someone, Mara,” Salvatore said. “What if your father is with them? How are you going to feel if I have to kill him? You need to know that I will if it comes down to him or me.”
“You think I give a shit if he dies? He deserves to die after what he did to my mother. I’ll shoot him myself if given half a chance.”
Salvatore gave me the signal to stop talking, and I heard it. The men were right outside the door. I could hear voices, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying.
There was more shuffling and muffled talking. Then, it went quiet. Salvatore had moved to where our shoulders were touching. He turned to me for a moment. His gaze lingered on my lips. For whatever reason, I leaned in and kissed him. My chest ached because it felt like good bye.
“Blow it,” I heard a man yell, and they did.
Chapter Thirteen
Salvatore
The door blew in and dust and smoke blinded me. They’d brought explosives, and that was the one thing my safe room couldn’t handle. I cursed myself for not investing more money in a better unit, but I never truly believed that someone would come after me with explosives during my retirement.
My mistake was underestimating the tenacity of my enemies.
A flash-bang grenade dropped into the center of the room from the doorway. I yelled at Mara to get down and covered her body with mine. It was lucky coincidence that she didn’t shoot me in the gut during the confusion.
Men poured through the door. I felt their hands grabbing my arms and head. They couldn
’t see very well either, but that didn’t stop them from punching and kicking me. I allowed the attackers to pull me off of Mara so that she didn’t get hurt by a stray fist or kick.
Once we were out in the main area of the basement, the air cleared enough to where I could see what was going on. A large man in tactical gear grabbed Mara by the hair and began to drag her toward the stairs. She screamed in pain as he tore her hair, and I tried to get to her as she fought him. Every part of his arm and hand was covered, and her attempt to claw his skin did no good.
There were only three men in the room with us, the others must have still been in the safe room. Or I’d only imagined that there were more in my disoriented state. I made a split-second decision and shot the two behind me before turning my gun on the one holding Mara. I didn’t bother aiming for center mass because I knew they would’ve been wearing body armor.
The one with his filthy hands wrapped in Mara’s hair also wore a helmet. He must have been more important and less expendable than the others. Either that, or he was smarter. My only chance to drop him was to shoot him in the face. Whoever these men were, they’d underestimated my ability to hit my target.
One shot and the goggles covering his eyes exploded. When he fell, it was lucky that he didn’t land on Mara. She scrambled for cover under the stairs, and the other men, who I hadn’t imagined, came running out from the saferoom. They aimed their weapons at me, and in what I thought was my last moment, I wished I could see Mara’s face one more time.
I fired at one of them and took him out. After that, I aimed at the next. If I was going to die, I’d decided to take as many of them with me as I could. None of them were wearing protective helmets. It’s probably why the chickenshit cowards had stayed back in the saferoom while their buddies took the bullets.
A pop reverberated through the basement, and I felt a burning in my thigh. I’d been shot, but it wasn’t a mortal wound. Still, the pain and weakness in my leg brought me to my knees.
Hitman's Obsession Page 6
