He carried me to the farmhouse across his shoulder. I’d struggled, but when he forced my knee the wrong way once, it was enough to stop me kicking. He had a skill for causing me just the right amount of pain to restrict my attempts. I resigned myself to the fact he wouldn’t let me get away from him again tonight.

Placing my hands on his back, I lifted my head and took in my surroundings. The house we approached was large, but not grand. It had a simple, rustic feel to it. Maintained but not exactly loved. If it was his house, it matched him perfectly.

He carried me through the front door which opened into a narrow hallway. The walls were sparse. No decoration or pictures hung that I could see. We passed the old oak staircase and to the back of the house. Into a large country kitchen, complete with a ceramic basin sink and bare wooden floors. The windows were as undressed as the floorboards. Old sash frames housed the glass and I couldn’t see anything but a simple latch to keep it secure. The back door still held the key in the lock.

It’d be far too easy to escape from here; he’d obviously made other arrangements for me.

My fears were confirmed when a lock clicked, and a heavy door creaked before he carried me into the dank pit of the house. It had to be a basement. I hated basements. We descended the solid stone stairs, and I heard another lock, this one much heavier. It reminded me of the steel door at our warehouse. A cold shudder crept across my skin.

Old sandstone walls dripped with damp, and the single bare lightbulb did nothing but dance shadows over the cracks. When we turned the corner, I saw a cell to my left. An actual fucking cell, with bars and chains. There was a small sink and a toilet, but that was it.

Dread pitted in my stomach and sweat beaded on my lip. What the fuck is this guy doing with cells in his basement? This had to be more than just a one-off abduction. More than whatever they’d planned for me and my father.

We stopped at the third cell. He opened the bars and turned to walk in. There were two more cells on the opposite side. One housed a small, blonde girl kneeling in the centre of the floor. She looked up at me through her hair; meek, scared and innocent.

My heart sank. They were dealing in women. I knew they’d be up to nasty shit, but I didn’t think they were this depraved. My body tensed as rage bubbled from deep within. Whatever he’d put her through, I vowed I’d pay him back tenfold.

He dropped me on my feet, pushed me to the wall and held my shoulders hard against it.

I stared up into his fierce eyes, wanting nothing more than to rip them out. “Who the fuck is she?”

His eyes narrowed as he glared back. A coldness emanated out from his stoney expression. “Another guest.”

I steeled my hatred towards him. “You mean another product?”

He cocked a half-smile that didn’t crease his face. “I’d have thought you’d be more concerned with your own predicament.”

“I can look after myself.”

“Not any more.”

He grabbed the chain from above my head and pinned me to the wall with his chest. Winded from the force, I was barely able to breathe between the crush and heat of him. Fresh sweat from his earlier exertion mixed with the scent of sandalwood and gave him a manly smell.

Cold metal pinched against my skin as he fixed the stiff collar around my neck. The lock clicked and my freedom was gone.

Even after everything I’d been through that evening, that little click spread more dread through my bones than anything else. It removed the hope of a quick escape. It trapped me in this situation. Made me his possession.

I’d never been so vulnerable.

As if he sensed it, he stood back. Then folded his arms and watched as I reached up to fumble with the padlock. The cocky demeanour returned now he had me secure. A smug smile crept across his face, and that same annoying glint of amusement he had this afternoon creased his eyes.

It irritated me before, but now, it was a whole new level of frustration.

I scowled. “Are you going to sell me?”

He nodded. “Eventually.”

There wasn’t an ounce of remorse in his voice. To him, trading women was like owning a pet shop. We were livestock. “How could you even think of selling another human being?”

He huffed. “Easy. Where there’s demand, there’s supply.” He dropped his chin and winked. “You should know that. I’m simply providing a service.”

I couldn’t believe he was so blasé about something so evil. “You fucking low-life, piece of shit.”

His eyebrows raised as he chuckled. “That’s rich, coming from you. Aren’t you one of the biggest drug traffickers in the country?” He swayed his hand with a knowing narrow of his eye. “Amongst other things.”

“It’s different.”

The smirk grew as he studied me. He knew he was touching a nerve. “Yeah, it’s worse. I destroy two, maybe three lives at a time to turn a tidy profit. You destroy thousands.”

“They destroy their own lives.”

He laughed and stepped forward, taking his time to get in my face.

“You think an addict has a choice? Do you think they choose to be trapped in a vicious cycle of desperation? Where their only release is through the slavery you sell them? Please. You’re even more reprehensible than I am.” He leant in and held my chin up, hovering his glare into my own. “Step off your high horse, princess. Remember that next time you get the chance to look at that pretty face of yours in the mirror.”

My fists clenched as the rage built, and I spat in his face. It was the only thing I could do to show him what I thought of him. Really, it was because he was right.

Anger laced his grimace as he straightened and wiped it away with the back of his hand. “You’re going to wish you hadn’t done that.” He stretched his neck to each side, and the frustration dropped from his expression. Replaced with an air of calm satisfaction that made my stomach drop.

“I’ve been waiting to teach you this lesson all day.”

That was what he wanted. A reaction to give him an excuse to hurt me. As he unfastened his leather belt, panic resurfaced. It gripped my chest tight and sent a cold sweat beading over my skin. My hands trembled as I clenched my fists together. There was no escape. No fight would stop him from doing whatever he wanted. Why didn’t I keep my emotions in check?

His eyes burned with amusement. Whatever he was going to do, he’d enjoy it. “This may not be creative, but it is effective.”

Pulling the buckle from the loops, he gathered the thick leather in his hands. I realised he was taking it off. He was going to hit me with it. I was relieved it wasn’t anything else. Although, that might come later.

Dropping the tail end, he outstretched his arm. Then flicked the leather back and whipped it hard over the side of my thigh. The searing pain exploded through my left leg like a burning blade had cut through my flesh. Yelping in agony, my knee gave way. Only the metal collar choking my throat stopped me from falling. I grabbed at the restriction on my neck and pulled to my feet as I tried to move away from him. The chain only allowed me to move a step.

The leather came down in the same place and set my skin alight. I screamed and raised my knee, grabbing my thigh with both hands, trying to shield from another strike. Tears stung my eyes as I forced back a sob.

“Move your hands, Olivia.”

I shook my head and held my leg closer.

“I won’t tell you again.”

He took a step to align with me and dealt another slash. It landed on my hands and curled back over my arse. I didn’t think it was possible, but it was even more painful. The sharp heat ripped through my hands and raced up my forearms. I cried out and pulled my hands into my chest, cowering into the wall. My pulse was thick in my veins and my whole body throbbed.

“This is for spitting in my face.”

The swish of leather cut through the air and a heavy strike cracked across my arse. The pain made me gasp. Overwhelmed with the agonising bite. My head clouded and I couldn’t think about anything but the pain.

“This is for running from the boot.”

Another loud crack and the pain flashed up through my chest, gripping my lungs so I couldn’t breathe. I grabbed the chain above, afraid I’d fall if I didn’t. My head was light and spinning.

“And this is for ruining my shirt this afternoon.”

The heavy smack hit my arse. It merged with the exquisite pain already devastating my body. I became adrift in a sea of fire, lost to everything but the feeling. It physically consumed me, but freed my consciousness to explore a perverse pleasure in it. A surging lightness that wasn’t unlike the feeling I had after taking my blinding hot showers. Only much, much stronger.

“You will learn to respect me, Olivia. Whether you like it, or not.”

He delivered another strike; the hardest one yet. It was as if I experienced the pain from above my body. I watched it rise across my back in a white hot flash, but floated above it’s crippling agony. Instead, a calmness quietened my mind.

The belt buckle clattered to the floor and his footsteps approached. He spun me around and pushed me against the wall. I moved without resistance. My body a rag doll under his control.

He held my cheeks and forced me to look up into his eyes. I focused my attention and gazed back at this monster of a man that made me feel trapped and alive at the same time. I hated him. What he’d done was inexcusable, but I couldn’t deny at that moment, I wanted him to touch me.

He studied my face, and confusion furrowed his brow. “No more fight? I didn’t expect you to give up quite so easily.”

Unable to speak, I stared back. My mind inactive to rational thought.

“Answer me.”

I closed my eyes and nodded. He slapped me across the face and the shock hitched my breath. My nerve endings were ablaze over my sensitive skin.

“No.” My voice was so weak it surprised me.

His face softened, and he smiled. “Looks like the endorphins got to you, princess.”

He brushed his thumbs over my cheekbones and I lifted to his touch. I despised myself for doing so, but I couldn’t help how much I needed it.

He pressed his chest into mine. The warmth made me secure even though he was the one who endangered my life. The smell of him was intoxicating. It was a combination I shouldn’t like, but did. Everything about him was wrong. This whole situation was wrong, but it felt right. I couldn’t explain it.

His lips grazed my forehead. Like silk caressing my skin as he traced my hairline then trailed down my nose.

My lips reached to meet his. He held me back, hovering millimetres from my face watching my advances with interest. His searching eyes were alight as they roved over my face.

Then he shook his head and pushed away. “Fuck.”

He picked up the belt from the floor, and stormed out as he slid the bars shut. The loud, grating sound of metal echoed through my entire body. Making me shake as I stood bewildered and bereft from his absence. He left me alone and vulnerable. Lost without the imposing weight of his commanding presence.

He released the tension on the chain from the pulley on the other side, took one last look at me then left the basement. The heavy metal bolt clattered shut as I slumped to the floor and cried.