Damaged Queen (Darkness Within Duet Book 2)

by Sam Crescent

  She paused, not doing anything, but looking … gutted. It lasted for a few seconds before she suddenly laughed, which sounded forced. “It doesn’t matter though, does it? You’ve already decided that you hate me. That you’re going to go through with whatever you’re about to.”

  “Is this where you try to convince me not to?” he asked.

  “No.” She stood up. “You can try to break me. It’s fine. You can punish me whatever way you see fit.”

  “And what are you going to do about it?”

  “Nothing. I’m going to go through with it and know that deep in my heart, I didn’t want to run away ten years ago. I ran out of fear, not out of a need. I didn’t beg to leave.”

  “But you took the ten grand.”

  She laughed. “Yeah, I took the ten grand. Didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter. Alan made sure I had no choice. He wouldn’t let me leave without it. His poison didn’t stop there. I couldn’t go anywhere without his say-so. He was the one who held all the cards. The one who made me do all that nasty shit. I had no choice. None whatsoever. I have to live with all I’ve done, and right now, I really see it wasn’t worth it. That’s okay though. Think what you want, whatever will help you sleep at night, Draven.”

  The dress didn’t hide anything. It showed her body, the curves that he loved about her. They were as full and round as she’d been when they’d been younger. She still had amazing tits, full, ripe, and beautiful. He loved her hips as well, the way they were designed to he held as he fucked her. Just looking at her, he wanted to do that right now. But so much had changed in ten years.

  Pushing those concerns to one side, he took Harper’s arm, and for as much as she was showing her strength, he felt the faint tremor of her hand. She wasn’t quite as poised and ready for this as she liked him to think.

  He walked her downstairs to where the party was in full swing. The moment he appeared, there were a few seconds of silence. If he’d not been holding her, he wouldn’t have seen a change within her.

  Harper kept her head high, like a queen, even as she shook in his arms.

  He saw Axel watching her. His best friend clearly thought Draven was making a mistake and would regret it later.

  Moving through the crowd, Draven stopped and made sure men and women looked. She was his prize.

  “So, who is this pretty little lady?” Frank asked. He was an older man, late fifties that had a thing for young women and liked to sell pussy for far above its valued price.

  Harper tensed up.

  Frank went to touch, and Axel stopped him.

  “She’s to be looked at, not touched.”

  “Ah, you still have a no-touch policy. You always know how to spoil a party.”

  “When it comes to the hands of dirty old men, of course,” Axel said. “The point is anticipation, and don’t forget, he’s the one in charge.” He pointed toward Draven.

  Draven moved her around the room, making her very much aware she wouldn’t find any help tonight.

  She was to be on display, ridiculed, humiliated, and to know her place.

  When it came time for dinner, Axel grabbed his arm and tried to give him another warning. “Are you really fucking sure about this, Draven? Are you ready for this?”

  Draven was done.

  Men and women were seated at his large table, the same table that had seen a lot of death. Everyone present tonight had all been witness to a lot of ugly shit.

  As Harper went to sit beside him, Draven caught her wrist.

  “No, you will sit on the floor.”

  Silence fell around the room. Harper looked toward Axel, who sat down at the other end of the table. Harper should have been sitting down there, and if she’d not done what she had ten years ago, she would have been. They wouldn’t all be waiting for her punishment, to see her hurt.

  Axel didn’t offer any comfort or protest.

  Harper sat down on the floor.

  “Kneel up. I don’t want to have to work to feed you.”

  He was treating her like a dog, but she did as he requested.

  One glance at her and he saw her cheeks were red. Tears were in her eyes, but she did no more than blink them away.

  Dinner started as the waitress brought out the first course. It was soup.

  Dropping his spoon into the soup, he tasted it. He didn’t have a clue what it was. Drawing another spoonful, he pressed it to her lips, and Harper glared at him as she took from the spoon. She licked her lips.

  “She’s like a good little dog,” one of the women said. “So perfect. I tell you, Draven, if you’re ever interested in bringing her for training, I’d like to give her a try.” This came from Tillie. She was a known dominatrix and owned a string of BDSM clubs that catered to all tastes.

  “You may get a chance at her later.”

  “Oh, good, I do like a good show.” Tillie clapped her hands in glee.

  Everyone present here had seen their fair share of darkness. Nothing would surprise them.

  “Does she even know what she did wrong? That all the bad girls always get punished?” another asked.

  “She knows what she did wrong. She also knows she’s going to be punished for it.” He saw the anger in her eyes as he finished off the soup.

  Draven had only fed her a few spoonsful.

  “Would you like to see her in all of her glory?”

  The table cheered, and he got her to stand up and to remove the dress that he’d so carefully picked out for her.

  Her hands shook as she followed his words.

  “Harper, go and serve all the men some wine,” he said.

  She turned her back to them and went to the wine bottle. The waitress that was standing in the corner held it out for her.

  Harper took it, and came to the table, attending them one by one. She started with Axel, who was shaking his head at Draven. It looked like he disapproved of what was happening.

  Doing this, there was no way they would ever be able to have her as queen, to have her at their table. Axel’s concerns about his own welfare were completely unfounded. Draven had no feelings for Harper. He just wanted to make her pay.

  What Axel failed to realize was he had no intention of keeping Harper. He was going to let his plans play out, and she was going to be broken. The proud woman they saw right now, that would all fall away.

  One by one, she filled wineglasses, and as men and women touched her, Draven sat back and watched.

  He wasn’t immune to what was happening. Sipping at his drink, he waited for her to get to his table, and as she stepped close, pouring him some wine, he slid a hand between her thighs.

  She was completely dry. Nothing about this was turning her on.

  He watched her, and as he probed her pussy, she winced. Pulling his fingers away, he spat into them, and worked them between her folds once more and she gripped the edge of the table.

  He made sure they all saw what he was doing.

  “Axel, go and prepare her,” he said.

  “Draven.”

  “Now.”

  His friend didn’t argue. He got to his feet and moved toward Harper. It was time to begin her punishment.

  ****

  There was no weapon, nothing.

  Harper had no choice but to deal with everyone who touched her as if they had a right to. Her body was her own, but Draven had made sure they could touch.

  Axel grabbed her arm and dragged her outside in the cold.

  “What is going on?” she asked, crying out.

  “You really think it was going to get as bad as last night? You don’t think that Draven has other plans for you?” Axel asked.

  “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Buck and Jett died because of you.”

  “I didn’t do anything. I tried to make it so you’d all be safe. So you’d all be alive.”

  “Stop fucking lying.”

  She pulled on him, forcing him to turn toward her. The cold of the night bit into her flesh.

&n
bsp; “I didn’t run away. I loved you all, and you know I loved Draven so much. I went to the bathroom and never had any intention of running away.”

  “The same old story. Cut the bullshit.”

  “This is not bullshit, Axel. This is the truth. Plain and fucking clear to see. I was taken from the bathroom back to Draven’s old house. Alan had arranged it. He arranged the shooter, Axel. I watched what he did.” She pulled on him as Axel tried to move her away. “Please, I wouldn’t lie to you. I would never lie to you. Please, listen to me. I watched him give the order. I watched the shooter fire into the crowd. I didn’t know he’d hit Buck. I called on Alan’s bluff. He told me he’d kill Draven. He’d kill all of you.”

  “Alan would never kill Draven. He was his only living heir.”

  “I called that bluff, and he gave the order.” Harper was sobbing now, recalling those moments she’d seen on the screen. “I watched as he shot into the crowd. I watched you fall, and I had no choice. I begged him to call off the shooter. He told me I had to go. I had to leave. He sent one of his men with me. You can ask him.”

  “Who went with you?”

  “Laser. He was the one that went with me. Please, Axel, I am telling you the truth. Laser was there.”

  “Harper, Laser is dead. Alan killed him for betraying him. He’s the enemy.”

  “What?”

  “Laser never worked with Alan. He was a double agent, helping the enemy to gain information and to steal his drugs and women. He’d been involved in several of his shipments that didn’t make it. He wasn’t working for Alan but for one of the enemies that Draven and I later killed. Draven demanded that Alan search for you, to find you, and he did, several times. There were men that went looking for you. Some either turned up dead, or turned sides. We saw the evidence of what you did, the proof of you being the enemy, but we could never get to you in time.”

  “And that wasn’t the least suspicious to you?” She screamed out, desperate for him, for someone, to see the truth.

  “He told us that if we ever found you, you’d feed us a story. You’d been tainted by Laser, and he’d been seen visiting your mother the day before she died. You were playing us the entire time.”

  Harper cried out. “I’m not feeding you a story. That’s all fucking bullshit.”

  She paused when she realized they were heading toward the whipping post.

  “Axel, what is going on?”

  “I have no desire to do this. I want you to know that. For me, I’d just fucking kill you, but I’ve got a feeling this is not all what it seems, and I’ve got to think of Draven.”

  “Then let me go. Please, let me go. I’ve not done anything wrong. I swear it. Please.”

  She fought Axel, but he was too strong. He easily overpowered her and secured her to the whipping post. It was so dark, so cold.

  She sobbed as he held her tightly against it, wrapped up, with no way to move. There were cuffs for her hands, keeping her in place. He wrapped a rope around her body, holding her up, leaving no way for her to get away.

  Even as she tugged at the bindings, she couldn’t get free. She was completely at the mercy of Draven and Axel.

  “I wasn’t telling a story. I swear it. I wasn’t doing anything but trying to make you all live. I didn’t want any of you to die.” She held onto the post, even though it was so cold. The chill seeped into her bones.

  “You’re going to kill me tonight?”

  “No.” Axel stood, looking at her. She didn’t know what he was staring at. She’d never been so terrified in her life. “If I try to find this out, if I somehow find anything that your story is true, I’ll let Draven see the evidence.”

  “You’d look for me?”

  “Something never made sense all those years ago. Even now thinking about to it, it doesn’t all add up. It’s too neat, especially with how much Alan hated you.”

  “It’s because it’s all lies. I swear it, Axel. I really swear it. Please, I didn’t run because I wanted to. I was taken.”

  “Harper, I’m not promising anything here.”

  “You’re offering to look, and that is more than you gave me a day ago. I swear to you, I’m not lying. I’m innocent. I wasn’t … I had no intention of ever leaving.”

  “If I don’t find anything, I will kill you. I won’t let Draven break you. That is the deal we make right now, right this second, Harper. If I find something, you walk free. If I don’t, if all the evidence I find is of your deceit, I get to kill you before Draven does.”

  Tears fell down her cheeks, and she nodded.

  “Yes, yes, please, I’ve got nothing to hide. I swear it. I’m innocent. I had nothing to do with Buck or Jett’s deaths. It wasn’t my fault.”

  “They’re coming,” Axel said. “Harper, try and … I don’t know. Don’t die or kill yourself.”

  With that Axel stepped away.

  He was her one lifeline. Had she made a deal with the devil?

  One by one, she saw torches as they approached.

  “You know, Axel’s father used to love this post,” Draven said.

  He moved up beside her, but he didn’t even look at her.

  The men and women of the party had to be standing behind her.

  Tears filled her eyes as she knew what was about to happen, what he was going to let happen to her.

  It killed her to know he didn’t believe her.

  Maybe it would be easier to take her own life?

  No. She wouldn’t think like that. There’s no way she’d ever allow them to win. She was the boss here, not them. Draven was wrong, and one day, she’d be here and he’d have to apologize to her.

  He touched the post. “Do we even know how many women got whipped here?”

  “Plenty,” Axel said.

  “Draven,” she said. There was no need to ask what was about to happen. He was clearly going to whip her. “You don’t have to do this.”

  “My father believed all women were a weakness. To make sure they were good, they had to experience … punishment.” Draven stood in front of her, and she glared at him. He stroked a finger down her cheek. “You. You have been a very naughty bitch. It’s time you realized your place in this world, and it’s not anywhere but fucking beneath me, beneath us all. You are here to be used, and to learn to keep your fucking mouth shut.”

  “Draven?”

  “Shut the fuck up, Axel.”

  Tears filled her eyes as Draven stared at her. What was he hoping to prove? Why do this?

  “They died because of you. For ten years you’ve been living your life without a care in the world, and now it’s time for you to get what is coming to you. Tillie, please, begin. I know you love to teach as you punish,” Draven said.

  She looked toward Axel, who was now staring at the ground.

  “So, you don’t want to break her skin too soon. That wouldn’t do well at all.”

  Harper screamed as she felt the first lash of the whip on her skin. She held onto the post, and she couldn’t believe this was happening to her. A month ago, she was working at a florist with a boyfriend who cared and she didn’t deserve.

  Tears leaked down her chest, and she cried out as the next lash cut through her skin. The pain and the cold combined together to make it impossible for her to numb the pain.

  Over and over, Tillie showed them how to whip her, and with each lash, the sting burned brighter.

  Draven just stood there, watching her. The smirk on his face let her know he was happy this was happening to her.

  He wanted this. He wanted this woman to hurt her.

  Draven was doing this to prove to her he didn’t care. He didn’t love her. She was nothing to him. He was nothing more than a monster.

  Someone asked a question, and Tillie changed the angle. There was a difference in the sting. It wasn’t as sharp, but Tillie didn’t stop, and the pain was still there.

  Harper burst into tears, but didn’t beg the woman to stop. In the back of her mind, she knew she deserved this, an
d worse. The men and women she lured for Alan, did they go through this? Were any of them experiencing this right now as she was?

  There was no way she’d give anyone the satisfaction of knowing the pain she was in.

  Tillie whipped her flesh, repeating different strokes and different force, each one creating their own kind of pain, until finally, Draven stepped forward.

  Harper was no longer holding herself up anymore, the restraints on the post doing the job. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see, not wanting anything anymore.

  This was archaic. It was fucking wrong. One day, she would tear this fucking post out and burn it up, after, she hoped, having Draven in this position.

  In fact, she wondered how many of those disgusting assholes had been on a post before in their life? Did they even give a shit what they were inflicting?

  She hated them all. This was not going to go unpunished. She’d have her revenge on them, on all of them. Tillie, that fucking bitch would one day know what it felt like, and the others for watching, they would feel it too.

  Draven’s sting was harder than Tillie’s. That first lash she felt cut her skin. Even after the cold and the pain of before, his hurt the most. She didn’t know if it was because of how hard he was hitting her, or if it was because he’d been the one to strike her.

  “This is for Buck!”

  Harper screamed at the impact. Resting her head against the post, she tried to not think, to do anything, but it wasn’t helping.

  The pain consumed her, and she sobbed for him to stop, to not hurt her anymore.

  When it came for Jett, Harper didn’t remember anything as she passed out into glorious bliss.

  ****

  Draven held the whip. “Leave!”

  The men and women left the spot where Harper was now passed out.

  His guards knew what he wanted. They were all to leave, to be gone by the time he got back with Harper.

  She was out cold, and as he approached, he saw her back was red, covered in the welts. He’d broken the skin.

  He hadn’t intended to cut her flesh, but just one look at her and thinking about Buck and Jett, he’d lost control and fucking hurt her.