by Measha Stone
Kendrick stood under the hook where he'd found Kelly hanging and took gulping breaths of air. The whirlwind of nausea in threatened to revolt at any moment. She'd been so vulnerable, so helpless. A light bruise was forming on her jaw, where she must have been struck.
He wanted to wake up the assholes, so he could knock them out again.
Peltner’s belt still lay on the floor, and he found himself clenching his fists. They were going to beat her, use her, rape her. If she hadn't told Alex what her plans had been, he wouldn't have been able to help her. If she had gone off half-cocked like usual, no one would have been able to stop them.
But she hadn't, he reminded himself. She had told someone. She had at least done that much to assure her safety. She had still gone too far with her little plan to capture Ted, but she hadn't been completely impulsive. Once he was through being terrified for her, angry at her, and had calmed his nerves, he might convince himself she was trying to do what she thought was right.
"They're here," Alex called down to Kendrick.
One of their own was laying on the ground, so he'd have to have an explanation. He’d have to tell them their lead detective was one of the bad guys they put their lives on the line trying to find.
It all went as he'd expected—a long list of questions, pictures of the room, more questions. One officer went up to speak with Kelly. The ambulance came to collect the two men who had begun to wake. Peltner tried to convey his innocence with rants about the evil women of the city. He wasn’t hurting the women, he was cleansing them. The EMTs finally gave him a sedative.
After two long hours, Kendrick climbed the stairs to find Kelly. Alex was sitting with her in the living room. The lights had been turned on, and he wished they'd left them off. The grime and the dirt of the house only attested to Ted's filth.
"I don't think he lived here. I think he only used the basement. It doesn't look like much else has been touched," Alex offered when Kendrick entered the room.
He merely nodded acknowledgment. He saw Kelly watching him, and he wanted to touch her, to comfort her, to kiss the breath out of her. "Alex, can you take her home?"
"Sure." Alex stood from the couch and helped her stand.
Tears sat on the brim of her lids, and he could tell she was trying to hold them back. If he touched her, he wouldn't be able to stop. He'd let himself loose. The fear, the anger, it would all spill out, and he needed to keep himself composed.
"Kendrick?" She paused at the doorway.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. Unruly curls had fallen in front of her eyes, and a lone tear slid down her cheek.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"I know." He turned away, not wanting her to see him fighting tears of his own.
Chapter 30
Kelly adjusted the cold pack on her shoulder as she laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling fan going around and around. It was the most her brain was able to process. Her phone rested on her chest. A box of tissues sat beside her. All her crying left her with a splitting headache, which at least distracted her from the pain in her shoulder.
Alex had done his best to comfort her when he'd brought her home the night before. He'd explained Kendrick needed to process everything then he would call her. She told him he was naïve.
"He's never going to forgive me," she had cried into the sleeve of his coat. “First, I dump him ’cause I'm an idiot, then I go off trying to be all undercover and shit…’cause I'm an idiot. Who wants an idiot for a girlfriend…or wife, for that matter?"
"He will forgive you. He's gonna be pissed for a little while, but he'll forgive you. It's what you do." Alex had managed to get her out of his coat and into a nightshirt without much discomfort to her arm.
Luckily, she had pain meds in her bathroom, and Alex had gotten a dose down her. He'd given up the fight about her going to the hospital and settled for getting her comfortable in her own bed.
"It's what you do for what?" she asked, turning onto her uninjured side and pulling the comforter up to her chin.
"It's what you do when you're in love." She heard the words, but began to drift to sleep.
When she woke in the morning, Alex was gone. Her phone and the tissues were on the bed with a note telling her to call him. She decided a text would take less energy and typed out two words:
I'm alive.
She checked the time on her alarm clock. If she rushed through her shower, she would make her nine o'clock class. Getting on with her life was her only choice now. She'd lost Kendrick forever with her antics. No amount of crying and regret would fix that.
The hot water helped soothe her angry muscles. Her shoulder was still pissed, but she did her best to wash and dress, pushing through the pain. She took one look at the mangled mess of her hair and decided to leave it. It would hurt too much to try braiding it or tie it up. A few layers of cover up faded the angry bruise on her cheek. Hopefully enough no one would notice.
The cab driver was more than willing to get her to school as fast as possible, in exchange for the extra twenty she promised him. She welcomed the speed of the cab and the jostle of the car. It kept her mind on the discomfort of her body and away from the sharp pang in her chest.
Kendrick had been so distant, so angry; she'd never seen him in such a state. He barely made eye contact with her. All she wanted was his arms around her, to blanket her from the mess and pain. Instead, he had handed her over to Alex, as though she were any other woman on the street.
"Here you go," the cabbie said with his thick accent as he pulled to the curb in front of her building.
She paid the obscene bill and climbed out. Two of her colleagues saw her and joined her as she made her way into the building toward her office. Their gazes briefly landed on the bruise.
“Opened the closet door right into myself,” Kelly laughed and touched her fingertips to her cheek. If they didn’t buy the excuse, they were kind enough to leave it unsaid.
The day would go on. It wasn’t her first heartbreak. And just like the other times, she’d heal.
She began to wonder if it was normal to lie to herself so often.
Thankfully, her classes ended early on Friday. She longed to find her bed and sink into the mattress and stay there until Monday. Having wasted so much on the cab ride to work in the morning, she opted for the bus home.
As usual, it was filled with college students at first, but by the time she rounded toward her own neighborhood, it thinned out. Mostly people heading home from work and a few families. The families always caught her eye.
A mother softly read a book to her two young kids. A man sat with his daughter on his knee, showing her pictures on his iPhone as the bus swerved through traffic. More than ever, she wanted to be swallowed up by her bed. She was gloriously relieved when the bus pulled to her stop.
She readjusted the strap on her bag as she stepped off the bus and began the walk to her apartment. A beige sedan drove past her, and for a moment, she hoped to find Kendrick pulling up to her building.
It didn't stop.
"Get a grip," she muttered to herself as she climbed the steps to her front door.
She tossed her bag and her purse on the loveseat and began to strip out of her work clothes. The blouse slid from her arms, and she began to reach for her bra hooks.
A new pain shot through her shoulder, and she decided to leave it. Gingerly, she maneuvered her arms through her robe sleeves and fell onto her bed.
"Shit!" she said to the empty room. It was Friday and per their usual, her friends would be expecting her at dinner.
The insistent ring of her doorbell convinced her to roll off the bed. She made her way to the front door and pressed the intercom button. Before she could speak, she heard Jessica and Alex bickering.
"I just don't know what possesses you to help her with her harebrained ideas!" Jessica's voice boomed through the speaker.
Kelly released the button, not wanting to hear Alex's retort, and buzzed the door open.
&nb
sp; She unlocked her door and left it slightly ajar before she situated herself on the couch. Whatever was coming up the stairs, she figured she'd need more energy than she possessed at the moment. Of course, Alex had told Jessica what happened; he told her everything.
The door pushed open, and Jessica rushed into the room, plopping herself down on the couch beside Kelly.
Kelly allowed herself to be pulled into a hug, while Alex shut and locked the door.
"Are you okay? Where are you hurt? Why didn't you go to the hospital?" Jessica peppered her with questions, leaving no room for any actual answers. Her arms squeezed Kelly, shooting hot pain through her shoulder. Only when she grimaced, did Jessica loosen her hold and pull away to look at her.
Kelly tried to give a half smile, but the tears streaming down her face gave her away.
"I pulled a bunch of muscles in my shoulder. I'll be fine in a few days," Kelly assured her, but the tears continued to fall, and her voice was shaking from the effort to keep her ugly sobs at bay.
Alex sat on the coffee table in front of the two women. "Did you take any ibuprofen today? That will help." His voice came across as soft and concerned.
Kelly shook her head. "No, I just got home a little while ago. Can you grab me some?"
Alex patted her knee and went in search of the medication.
"Jess, I really fucked it all up this time." She let the hard sob take over, and she leaned against the back of the couch. "He's never going to forgive me."
"Yes, he will," Jessica said with a certainty Kelly didn't believe. "Why did you break up with him? What happened?" Jessica pushed away a clump of hair from Kelly's face.
"I got it into my head I couldn't possibly have both things I wanted. That you can't have a family and be submissive at the same time."
"Did Kendrick tell you that?" Jessica's soft voice was braided with accusatory undertones.
Kelly shook her head and sniffled. "No. I didn't talk to him about it. I decided for us. See? Not very submissive-like either. And I disobeyed him by attempting to catch Ted. Which ended up being a trap for those two sick fucks to kidnap me!" Her sobs became louder, and she buried her face in the couch.
"Technically, you didn't disobey. If you were broken up, then you weren't—"
"Here, take these." Alex interrupted Jessica and shot her a glare as he pulled Kelly to sit upright.
She took the three small pills and downed the glass of water.
"Kelly, you need to get back in bed. Get some sleep and don't worry about Kendrick. He will come around. He loves you too much to let you just waltz out of his life." Alex shoved the empty glass at Jessica who took it with surprise in her eyes. He helped Kelly stand from the couch and walked her to her room.
"You keep saying that. But you saw him last night, Alex. You saw how much he hated me." The sobs came again, but much quieter.
"No, I didn't. I saw an angry man who did what he could to keep the insane situation controlled. You get in bed and stay there. If you need anything, you just say something. I'm in the living room, and Jessica will hang out until Royce comes to get her." He helped her out of her robe and didn't bat an eye at getting her bra off and aiding her in slipping on a nightgown.
Kelly eyed him suspiciously. "When did you get so alpha?” she asked, while he maneuvered her sore arm into the sleeve.
He remained silent as she slid into bed, and he covered her with the blanket.
"Just rest," he said, turning off the lamp beside her bed, darkening the room.
She watched his figure as he left her room. He left the door open a crack before he went back to Jessica in the living room.
"What was that? I was talking to her—"
"You were giving her bad advice." Alex's voice was forceful. "She doesn't need excuses for her behavior. She fucked up, and she will have to deal with it with Kendrick. She doesn't need you filling her head with technicalities.”
Kelly knew Alex was right. If there was to be any chance with Kendrick, she'd have to own up to her mistakes. Tell him what really scared her. As horrifying as it sounded, she could do it. But would he take her back? Or would he walk away?
Chapter 31
Kendrick stared at the empty dungeon room at Gallant Domination with a heavy sinking sensation in his chest. Unable to shake the dark feelings, he'd decided to go to the club to clear his mind.
His afternoon five-mile run had done nothing to help and sitting at his apartment only made him more anxious and annoyed.
"Hey." George clapped Kendrick on the back. "I didn't think you'd be in tonight."
"Where else would I be?" Kendrick turned away from the play space and headed to George's office. He kept a bottle of bourbon in his desk, and Kendrick needed it.
"I heard what happened with Ted. I figured you'd be with Kelly." George followed behind him and shut the door.
Kendrick rifled through the top drawer, looking for the key to the liquor cabinet and glared up at George when he couldn't find it. "Where's the key?"
George grinned widely and crossed his arms. "I know love is blind, but Christ, man." He laughed. "It's in there." He pointed to the drawer when Kendrick's glare turned murderous.
After another shake of the contents, Kendrick succeeded in his search and headed to the mini cabinet.
"What the hell happened?" George asked as he plopped down in his chair and tossed his feet on his desk. "I thought you two were going good."
"We were." Kendrick slammed a glass on the counter and opened the bottle. "Something spooked her, and she broke it off." He corked the top and grabbed his drink.
"Her choice," Kendrick said and threw back the amber liquid in one swallow. He licked his lips and planted the cup back on the tabletop.
"What spooked her?" George eyed him as he poured a few more fingers of bourbon.
"I don't know. She wouldn't say. Just said what we had couldn't be a long-term thing, and that was it. Then I get a call from her friend telling me she's at Krush trying to trap that bastard."
He threw back the second glass.
"Do you know how I found her? Hung up from the ceiling. Naked. Barely able to touch the ground. The bastards had twisted her so much her shoulder was all fucked up. She's probably in a hell of a lot of pain today."
The memory of finding Kelly in such a position brought back all the terror. Driving like a possessed man, he'd maneuvered through the busy city traffic to get to her in time. Only to find out, once at Krush, she'd been taken. Over and over, the images of horrible things happening to her played through his mind as he rushed to Ted's house. It had been a guess, a good one, but still, he could have been wrong. So much could have gone wrong.
Her spitting curses and threats to her captors had revived his hope of getting to her unharmed. He nearly ripped the doors from the hinges to get to her.
Seeing her hanging from the fucking hook, so helpless, so vulnerable, made him feel murderous. She'd trembled when he took her down.
"You haven't called her? Gone over to check on her?" George asked with shock, his feet dropping from the desk. "Man, get your ass to her house." He stood from his chair and shot Kendrick a glare of his own.
"Of course, I called her. Went straight to voicemail. I left four messages. Four, George. Have you ever known me to chase down a woman like this? Hell, she has me all tied up inside. All fucked in the head."
"Yeah. That's love, dickhead," George spat at him.
"I'm aware of that," Kendrick stated dryly, prying himself out of his chair. "Last night was the first time I've ever been unsure of being able to control myself. If I had touched her, even to comfort her, I wasn't sure if I could do it without hurting her. I was so pissed! She completely disregarded her own safety. I told her to stay away from Ted, and instead, she hunted him down! I was giving her space, time to think about what she wanted, so we could work it all out. She was off trying to be an undercover cop!"
His temper rose again. "Any other girl and I would have said fuck it and moved on, not wallowed l
ike a little pussy all week."
George's deep chuckle caught Kendrick's attention, and he turned his stare on him.
"Don't go getting pissed at me." George put his hands in the air. "You weren't mad because she disobeyed you. You were pissed and hurt she left you, and you thought she didn't care. You think her going off and planning this little sting had nothing to do with you? You think, you dumbass, she wasn't wallowing in her own self-pity this week?" George got up and strode to the door of his office, yanking it open.
"You're an idiot. Go to her house. Drag her out of whatever mess she's put herself in tonight, whip her ass for being so careless, and then love the fuck out of her. You claimed her. I saw the bracelet. You pretend it's just a little marker, something to keep the other Doms away during play here. But it's more. It's your marker. It's your claim."
After a long stretch of silence, Kendrick walked to the door, his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans. "I can't lose her. This whole thing…it's brought back all of that shit with Elizabeth." He dragged a hand through his hair and pushed it back in his pocket.
"Yeah. I get that. But this isn't then and she isn’t Elizabeth. That shit wasn't your fault. This isn't either. You got to Kelly in time. You saved her from that fuck." George slapped a comforting hand on Kendrick's shoulder and gave him a shove through the door. "Now go."
Kendrick headed to the lobby. The early sounds of the dungeon were beginning to come alive, with laughter and chattering filling the rooms. He ignored everyone as he focused on the front door.
His lead team member was at the reception desk, waving him down. Kendrick shook his head, reached for the front door, and threw it open.
Whatever trouble his man was having would have to be figured out on his own.
Kendrick had a woman to hunt down.
When Kendrick pulled his car to the curb at Kelly's building, the lights were on in her apartment. Relief flooded him.
Friday nights were permanently scheduled with her friends. Although he hoped she'd used good sense to stay home, a small part of him feared she'd gone out. Her shoulder had to be hurting, she needed rest, not dinner out.
