Broken

by Willow Winters

  I take a deep breath and chance a look, just a small glance to see what’s happening.

  My breathing slows, and the only thing I can hear is my blood rushing in my ears. My heart thumps, thumps, thumps way too loud. They’re going to hear me; they’re going to see me.

  I feel a small sense of relief as I see a row of trashcans blocking the path. I can see past them though. Maybe twenty feet from me, there's a group of men gathered in the parking lot of a warehouse.

  I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s not good. So far, no one's spotted me since I'm peeking around the corner with just part of my head showing. I could still get down on the ground, try crawling in the dirt and gravel, and hope I get through unnoticed.

  Instead I watch, paralyzed with disbelief at what I’m seeing.

  A man’s standing apart from the others. It’s not the fact that he’s in a custom-tailored suit when they rest of them are all in wrinkled khakis or worn-out jeans. He’s one of the tallest men, with broad shoulders that stretches the rich fabric tight across his gorgeous frame. But that’s not it either. His very presence is a dominating force. It’s the air around him.

  He’s a dangerous man. The other men may be mean, or even pure evil. But this man is ruthless, calculated, and something tells me he can get away with it. He’s a man who isn’t denied, and for good reasons. The shadows on his face only make his high and sharp cheekbones even more severe. A light dusting of rough stubble lines his hard jaw.

  He’s handsome in the most sinful ways, but he’d break you without thinking twice. Maybe even intentionally.

  He straightens his crisp white shirt from under his dark navy suit with a gun still firmly in his hand, his finger on the trigger. His barely contained anger is evident even at this distance. He’s listening to the man screaming, the one being dragged over on his knees to the center where the other men are circling.

  Another man, Ricky, is yelling back. At least I think that's his name, since that's what it sounds like they're calling him. Ricky is obviously in charge of the group of men who are mostly dressed in dark denim jeans, and Henleys or hoodies.

  All but him.

  All of them are under Ricky's control, except the man with the absolute power.

  Their guns are pointed at the one man who’s unarmed and on his knees. Two men are pushing down on his shoulders, forcing him to maintain that position.

  “Fuck you! Fuck all of you!” the man on his knees yells out and spits on the ground.

  “So it’s true!” yells one of the men holding him down.

  “Fucking pig! Fucking liar!” the men are yelling, practically chanting. I realize with a start that the man being forced to kneel must be an undercover cop. I fumble in my clutch for my phone. I need to get help.

  “What did you tell them?” asks Ricky. Bang! I almost scream and have to cover my mouth with my hands as the sound of a bullet cries out and echoes through the alley. My phone drops to the ground, and the screen cracks from the impact.

  My heart stills as Ricky yells out and grabs the cop's shoulder.

  Somehow I don’t think they heard me, or saw me. Their focus is on the cop who's still on his knees clutching his leg and wincing in pain.

  “The next one will be in your skull.” Ricky walks closer to the man and puts the gun up to his temple, twisting the barrel of the gun to taunt him. “What did you tell them?”

  The kneeling man attempts to laugh although he’s in obvious pain. “Just do it. You’ll never get anything from me.” He sneers as blood soaks through his jeans. It’s so dark, it almost looks black.

  No! No! I need to do something. As I bend down to get my cracked phone, the man in the dark suit moves forward. A hush falls over the men. The only exception is Ricky, who’s cussing and making threats that don’t seem to affect the undercover cop.

  “Is it true?” a deep, rich voice asks so calmly that it doesn’t seem real. The loud click of his gun cocking makes me take a step forward. My head shakes. No. No.

  It’s silent. Everyone's waiting for his answer, even Ricky.

  “Fuck you, you fucking criminal.”

  “What did you call me?” The man’s voice raises with a deadly tone. He points his gun at his target’s head.

  “You really going to make me say it again?” the man on his knees asks, but his voice cracks. The fear of imminent death is finally coming through.

  And with that, his death sentence is complete. One shot, bang, and he falls to the ground. The man in the suit moves his arm again and aims at the ground this time. I can’t see, but I hear the shots ring out, again and again. Bang, bang, bang!

  I shake my head with disbelief, tears leaking from the corners of my eyes. They killed him, and I saw the whole thing. My blood runs cold, and the sickness I'm feeling threatens to come up my throat.

  And then I do scream. I shriek louder than I ever have before.

  A pair of hard, unforgiving arms wrap around my waist and chest before a hand covers my mouth. I struggle against what feels like an unmoving brick frame holding me tight, my back to his hard chest. Caught. I’ve been caught. I fight for my life; my nails dig into his skin, piercing and scratching. But it does nothing. He’s so much taller than I am, so he easily picks my body up off the ground and wraps his hand around my throat, suffocating me. I struggle as much as I can. But it’s hopeless, I'm already losing consciousness. The last thing I see, before my world goes black, is the man in the suit looking down the alley. His intense gaze is focused solely on me.

  Olivia

  I wake with pain radiating in my shoulder. My throat feels bruised, and my head throbs with an unrelenting ache in my temples. Zip ties dig into the flesh of my ankles and wrists. They're so tight it feels like every move against them, no matter how small, cuts my skin.

  My heart skips a beat, and I struggle not to open my eyes as I realize what’s happened. I’ve been taken. I register I’m not alone when I hear voices. I need to be still. I need to be quiet. I need to get the fuck out of here. I can't risk drawing unnecessary attention to myself until I can figure a way out of this.

  “Who let him in, Ricky?” I recognize his voice immediately, the voice of the man with power. The dangerous man from earlier, the man in the suit, and right now he sounds pissed. The sound of his anger alone is enough to paralyze my body.

  “It’s a mistake anyone could have made, Kade.” Ricky’s words are hard. The man in the suit might be in charge, but it's clear Ricky is as well.

  “It’s a mistake that could have ruined me.”

  “You never made more than a handful of contacts. He would've had nothing on you,” Ricky says dismissively.

  “It’s unacceptable.” Kade’s words are sharp, and nearly make me jump. But I’m too scared to move. I have to remind myself to breathe as I begin to feel lightheaded.

  “Well, we found out before anything got leaked,” Ricky grumbles.

  “Are you sure?” Kade asks.

  “We’re positive.” I gather my courage, and slowly open my eyes to find myself in a cramped and dirty office. It’s really small with drop ceiling tiles covered in dust and a flat wood laminate door.

  Kade’s sharp blue eyes are narrowed and hard. He obviously doesn’t belong in this cramped, dirty office. There are cardboard boxes stacked in the corners, and a dirty old chair behind what looks to be an even older desk. Nothing in here is expensive. It’s cheap and filthy. The other men belong here. But the man in the suit doesn’t. He's as out of place as I am.

  Two other men are seated in the far corner, while Kade and Ricky are standing in front of the desk to my left. Ricky leans against the cheap desk piled high with papers and folders, feigning a casual position. But the air is tense around the two men.

  Ricky yells sharply at the men in the corner. It's something in Russian, definitely Russian. The only word I understand though is a name, Vic. The two men shake their heads, but only one replies. Of the two, he's taller and more built. His voice is deep, and he has a thi
ck accent. After watching their exchange, I'm assuming he's Vic.

  It’s obvious they’re obedient lap dogs. Now that I look at them more closely, I can see that both of the men in the corner are young. The short and pale one could be eighteen or younger. The other, Vic, is maybe in his early twenties. Vic looks deadly though. If you saw him walking down the street toward you, you’d run in the opposite direction. He looks like he’d love to take his anger out on someone. He probably does. He has a toothpick in the corner of his mouth, and he keeps looking at my body like he wants to be alone with me. Inwardly I shudder.

  I need to get the fuck out of here.

  Ricky responds to Vic with rapid-fire Russian, and somehow he seems even angrier than before. I don't want to make myself a target for that anger, but I can't help staring at Ricky during his tirade. His face is sunken in, and he has dark bags under his eyes. They don't look like the kind you get from lack of sleep though, more like the kind that come with age and alcohol.

  Vic’s eyes bore into me. He ignores his boss and looks intently past both men at me. I can feel his hatred. Whatever happens, I cannot be left alone with him.

  Kade and Ricky continue to argue and Kade takes a step forward, blocking Vic from my sight. I heave in a breath I didn’t know I was holding and try tugging uselessly on the zip ties binding my wrists. I wince as they bite into my skin.

  It’s useless.

  As the weight of my situation starts to suffocate me, I feel Kade's piercing stare. My body trembles, and I slowly move my eyes to meet his. Somehow I already knew they were on me.

  I’m struck by his masculine beauty. To say he looks like a sex god and CEO wrapped into one would be an understatement. But there’s more. There’s an edge of danger that’s undeniable. His frame is domineering--tall, with broad shoulders and narrow hips. But it’s his expression that’s the most intimidating. My eyes sweep over him from his dark hair and piercing blue eyes, to his plush lips, slightly downturned with disapproval.

  My eyes lift to meet his again, and I’m entrapped. As much as I want to look away, I'm forced to stare back.

  My shoulders hunch inward with fear, and I feel like I can't breathe. It’s as though he’s choking me.

  “And what of her?” Kade asks with his eyes still firmly on me. “His partner?” My eyes widen and I try to shake my head to deny it, but I can’t. I’m paralyzed.

  “No, just a dumb bitch,” Ricky says scornfully. Kade whips his head around to face him. Kade takes a step forward and the two men cower slightly, shifting in their seats. Vic attempts to right himself, but it’s obvious he feels threatened. Ricky stands his ground, but I swear I see a flash of fear cross his eyes.

  “Tell me you did a background check on her?” He speaks slowly, and with menace dripping from his voice. “'Just a dumb bitch' isn’t good enough.”

  Ricky keeps his gaze on Kade and gestures behind him toward the two men in the corner. The younger one looks to Vic with worry evident on his pallid face. Vic starts to respond in his heavily-accented English, “It’s in--”

  “Fucking get it!” Ricky snaps, causing the younger lackey to jump up and scurry from the room. Vic doesn’t move, but he averts his eyes from Ricky and stares fixedly at the door where the other man went through.

  Ricky's sallow skin turns red with anger as his veins swell in his neck. As explosive as his anger is, Kade's the one that scares me more. I don't think Ricky would appreciate the comparison though.

  “Doesn’t matter who she is.” Ricky looks at me with a crooked smile exposing his yellowed teeth. “We’re sending her with you.” He looks back at Kade with a wicked glint in his eyes.

  If he's trying to get a rise out of Kade with that comment, it's not happening. I look to Kade to gauge his reaction, and he's completely expressionless. It's clear he's utterly disinterested.

  My body shakes harder, and I open my mouth to speak. “I--” “I--” I try to speak, but my throat is so dry. It croaks, and I stutter. I shake my head. My blood seems to boil, and my breath falls short. Heat overwhelms me.

  “You- you- you- what?!” Ricky yells, and I instinctively jolt back. I scoot backward on my ass, my hands awkwardly and painfully dragging on the dirty linoleum floor until I feel my back against the wall. A sharp pain shoots through my shoulders and ankles. I can barely move with the zip ties holding me hostage. My heart beats chaotically, and it’s only then that I realize I’m crying.

  “She’s not even trained,” Kade sneers. I don't know what he means by that, but for some reason his disapproval of me hurts. My chest aches, and my face falls with sadness. Please, please don’t leave me here with them.

  His anger may scare me, but I feel as though I’d be safer with Kade.

  “That’s for you to do. You’re supposed to be an expert in this field, yet we’ve never seen your work,” Ricky says as he leans against the desk once again and crosses his arms. Kade shoots him one arrogant, icy look before he speaks.

  “For a good fucking reason. If I'd worked with Barrow like you pushed me to, I would've been fucked.”

  “Well you weren’t,” Ricky says as he dares to take a step forward, closer to Kade. Kade doesn’t budge. “And now I’m not feeling very trusting of anyone.”

  Kade tilts his head and cocks a small but threatening grin. “You expect me to accept her, train her and show her off to you? When for all I know, she’s a fucking cop!” Kade’s shoulders lean forward with the last words.

  Ricky’s eyes turn cold and it's clear he's not shy about his hatred for Kade. “She’s not a cop. We have her license and paperwork done. I’m sure of it.” I want to speak; I want to plead with them to let me go. But I’m frozen with fear, my eyes darting between the two of them. “She goes with you, or she gets shipped off.”

  I break into a cold sweat, and I have to force myself to keep breathing when I hear what Ricky says. That option can’t happen. I don’t want to get shipped off, because whatever the fuck that means, it’s not good. It can’t be good. “If you don’t take her, you can take another. I don’t give a fuck, but it’s time we see what you can do.”

  Kade turns away from Ricky and looks at me for a moment before walking forward. I've still got my back up against the wall. My arms and wrists ache from being held behind me with zip ties. I can feel a trickle of blood from the plastic cutting into my skin.

  My skirt has ridden up and my pale thighs are exposed. With my ankles bound, I’m trapped.

  He crouches in front of me and seems to inspect every inch of me. He licks his lips as his eyes travel down my body. His masculine smell fills my lungs.

  “Please,” I beg in a whisper. “I won’t tell anyone.”

  Ricky smiles wickedly at my words. He moves to the door as the man from earlier finally comes back. He hands a yellow folder to Ricky. “That’s what they all say.” He mimics my voice and mockingly says, “I won’t tell a soul.” Ricky, Vic, and the pale toady laugh, and all hope leaves me as hot tears fall down my cheeks.

  Kade doesn't laugh, instead he continues to watch me. I lick my dry lips and try to wipe away my tears by brushing my face against my shoulder. I want to plead with him to take me away from them, but when I look up at him, there’s no sympathy there. Only hard and cold blue eyes seemingly made of ice. My head falls to my chest, and I wish I could disappear.

  “So, what will it be?” Ricky asks, drawing Kade’s attention from me. He rises and walks away from me and I find myself trying to crawl toward him. I can’t stay here. Not with Vic looking at me like a predator and the threat of being shipped off.

  Kade grabs the folder from Ricky and opens it. I don’t know what’s in there, but whatever he’s looking for, I hope he finds it. I watch as his eyes travel down the page and then the next. Suddenly, he looks back at me with an expression of dissatisfaction.

  “You’re on birth control?” he asks.

  My cheeks flame. I swallow the spiked lump in my throat and try to verbalize an answer, but I can’t, so I nod my head.
/>
  They must have my school records. I just went to the gyno on campus a few months ago, after I decided to give myself to Daniel. I went with the shot because it seemed easier than having to remember to take a pill every damn day. I almost didn’t get the last injection since we broke up, but I went and got it since I’d scheduled the appointment.

  He shuts the folder and shoves it against Vic's chest.

  He looks at Ricky and then back at me. I can’t read his expression. I don’t know what he’s going to do or say, so I do the only thing I can do at this point. I wait with bated breath.

  “After today, I could use a distraction.” Kade turns back to Ricky and nods once as he says, “I’ll take her. And then you give me what I want.”

  Ricky’s lips pull into a wide smile and he says, “Deal.”

  Olivia

  My throat’s hoarse from screaming through the gag, and I’m getting tired. I'm starting to really feel the exhaustion weighing down on me, but fear is keeping me wide awake.

  I’ve tried to kick the trunk open to no avail. I've been kicking this entire time, hoping that maybe someone would see the thumping. It’s not really kicking though since my ankles are bound. So I’m pushing all my weight to my chest and thrusting my legs upward. It hurts. The zip ties rip into my skin with each blow. But I have to try.

  It’s been a long time since he put me in here. I don’t know exactly how long, but I’d guess hours. The first time he slowed to a stop, I thought he would get out and try to stop me and shut me up. But he didn’t.

  He either doesn’t care, or he’s confident that my struggling and muffled screams are useless. The soft sounds of the car rumbling and moving effortlessly against the smooth asphalt make my eyes shut. My fate’s no longer mine, but I still have fight in me. I can’t give up hope. I heard my phone go off in the front of the car a while ago. It rang a few times, but there's been nothing since.