Marlo moved with deliberate restraint to eke out some extra seconds that would give her time to think. Did Barrett know Adam was on his way? If he thought he had her to himself for the night, he might not see a need to hurry. His style would be to delay any ordeal he had planned, because he’d be confident anticipation would increase her fear. Her fear would increase his pleasure.

She hesitated.

“It’s a bit late to act bashful. Have you forgotten how much of you I’ve already seen?” He patted the seat beside him. “Sit,” he ordered. “We have so much unfinished business to get through, don’t we? I’m so pleased we have this opportunity to put it to bed.”

Every step she took tested her fortitude as she set her focus on getting to the armchair. She didn’t want to antagonize him, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to sit alongside him on the sofa. With each slow step, she expected him to stop her, to correct her defiance. She reached the chair and hesitated, giving him one more opportunity to call her out on it before welcoming a tiny flutter of success as she sat.

“Have it your way, darling, because soon we’ll be having it mine. How long has it been?”

She wouldn’t play his game. He knew perfectly well how long it had been.

“I asked you, how long has it been?” Menace tinged his tone.

“Nine years.” Marlo swallowed. Perhaps she should go along with him, keep him calm. Nine years ago, his size had frightened her, but in that time he’d added more bulk to his intimidating frame so that even from across the room she fought to find some air to breathe.

“That’s a long time to wait for what I’m owed, so I sure hope it will be worth it.”

Marlo shook her head. “You’re not owed anything. I’m not seventeen now. You can’t intimidate and coerce me anymore.”

His grin told her he’d noticed the small tremor in her hands and that his method of intimidation was working well. “I’m heartened to see you are still giving it up for the cops.”

“What do you mean?” With her inner turmoil near boiling point, she was amazed she could still find her voice. Despite the distance separating them, the smell of him thickened the atmosphere and caught at the back of her throat.

“I mean that New Zealand cop you’ve been servicing.”

“I haven’t been servicing anyone.”

“Oh, that’s not what we hear in town. Your talents are well known down there.” Barrett’s tongue flicked over his lips like a snake tasting the air. His moist mouth suggested he liked the tang.

Don’t let him bait you.

He changed tack. “You cost Carl his job.”

Carl Hanson, the crooked cop who set this whole thing in motion. “Carl cost Carl his job. That wasn’t my fault.” Good, something different to focus on. Keep him talking.

“You think so? You little badge bunnies are all alike, but in your case it seems to be inborn. Like mother, like daughter, aren’t you? Opening your legs to get what you want from the cops, then claiming to have been coerced. Didn’t work for your mother, and it’s not going to work again for you. You’ve got a history now. A record, so to speak. Does that piece of Kiwi cock know about your past?”

“Fuck you!”

“Thank you. That’s exactly what I have in mind.”

Losing control wasn’t in the battle plan. She needed to keep her wits and protect herself. Her legs twitched with the urge to pace. Prowling a room kept her focused, but she was concerned about the effect it could have on Barrett. He would think she was attempting to escape, and she didn’t need any escalation in this situation. Delay, delay, delay. A mantra until Adam arrived.

“Carl lost his job because of you. He lost his pension … even his wife left him.”

She took in his narrowed eyes and the way his top lip had lifted and curled. The guy could do intimidating with impact. “He didn’t lose anything because of me. He lost it because of the crap you guys were up to.”

“Well, you know, we blame you. If you’d run with the plan, it would have been all good.”

They had a plan? Jesus.

“We could have kept you out there in that cottage. Kept you all nice and cozy. All you had to do was be welcoming. Not go off your head and attract attention.”

Oh, now you’ve made me angry, asshole. “You sick bastards. I wasn’t your freaking toy. I was seventeen…a kid!”

Barrett grinned. “Oh, come off it, with a mother like yours? But hey, that story worked for the judge, so weren’t you the lucky one.”

“If you had an ounce of empathy, you’d understand that among the many things my mother was incapable of teaching me were relationship skills. In particular, how to know when someone’s taking advantage of you. The only thing she taught me was that being used equated to survival. I never had a clue.”

“Did they teach you that at counseling? Because I’ve had enough of the bullshit. It’s time you and I had some fun. It’s time I got what I missed out on last time we met.”

Marlo went still. “I don’t owe you anything.” Over the pounding of her heart she heard the bellowing cascade of panic rushing through her head.

“Oh, you’d better believe it, girl.”

She a small noise. Scared and staying right in control. Shift attempted to shift his focus. “It’s been so hot. My mouth’s dry, I need a drink.” She stood. “Can I get you something?”

He dipped his chin a little and looked at her from beneath the ridges of a puzzled frown, suspicious of her sudden attitude shift. Then he grinned. “Now, that’s a good hostess.”

This just might work. “Beer?”

“I’m on duty.”

“Oh, a little one won’t hurt you.”

He patted himself below his belt. “Any more than my big one won’t hurt you.”

Marlo swallowed twice to fight the bile that rose in her throat. In the kitchen she reached for the refrigerator door and paused, squeezing her hands together to try and wring out the trembling. Her mouth was dry and gritty.

She should run.

An escape plan mapped out in her mind. In three steps she could make it to the kitchen door. A left turn, and another three strides would take her through the entranceway. Two long running strides would get her to the front door. She could hit the door with her arms positioned to grab the lock and the door handle simultaneously and scarcely have to pause to get through.

And that was nuts, because Barrett would come after her and with his inner predator activated to chase mode, she’d be run down in a split second. That switch from mind games to physical pursuit meant that once he caught her it would be game on.

She would lose in the worst possible way. He had already warned her.

Delay was her best option. Adam was on his way.

She dismissed the battle plan and grabbed herself an energy drink, pulling out a beer for Barrett. Giving him alcohol probably wasn’t wise, but looking at the size of him, one beer wouldn’t have much of an effect. Plus, it gave her the advantage of the delay it would create. She took a few gulps from the opened energy drink, and left it on the bench before returning to the lounge. The mixture of caffeine and other stimulants on an empty stomach should keep her alert.

She handed him the beer and, as he took it with one hand, he gripped her wrist with the other. “Time to sit here with me.” He put pressure on her arm, forcing her down onto the sofa.

Marlo sat. She had made her choice. She had to stay with the plan to delay and outwit him.

“Right, let’s move this along, shall we? Because sadly I can’t stay with you all night. My shift ends in a few hours, and it wouldn’t look right if I hung around when someone turned up to relieve me, now would it?”

Marlo shrugged.

“Unless you’d prefer a threesome?”

Numbness crept in like a fog as her mind begged to dissociate and close down the scene. She gave herself another mental slap to block Barrett and remain alert. He could manipulate this if he knew what was going on in her head, and it didn’t matter how crude he seemed—if he got a sniff of weakness he would work it his way.

“I enjoyed the video, girlie. Not the dogs—I’m a pussy person myself.” He gave her knee a rough squeeze and chuckled at his pathetic joke. “But the one where you flash your tits. Was that little bit of play for your boyfriend? Was he on the other side of the camera?”

“Oh, grow up—”

“That’s the way, I like a bit of spirit. But you want to be careful what you wish for.”

“You know I wasn’t flashing. My bikini top slipped.”

“You’ve developed nicely. Good to see you take care of yourself. Is it my failing memory or are your tits a bit bigger?” He reached over and pulled out the neck of her T-shirt, and she slapped him away.

He caught her hand. “You ready to play?”

God, is he licking his lips? Marlo shuddered.

“I watched you and Carl enough times. I can describe every detail…what he did, what you did. I’ve never forgotten. I even know the bits you liked the most. How Carl could make you whimper.”

“I didn’t like any of it. I hate him.”

“Come on now. Don’t be modest. There’s nothing shameful in admitting you enjoy a bit of illicit cop sex. Plenty of girls would’ve been happy to take your place.”

Marlo shook her head, denying his words and trying to stop the effect they were having.

The sun is setting. It has thrown a triangular patch of light on the rug. Focus on that. Do not react.

“I was coerced.”

“So you keep saying.”

“Because it’s true. He said if I didn’t comply he’d haul me in for running away from the home and trespassing. That they’d put me in juvie, where everyone would have a turn at me. He brought me food and stuff. I had to survive.”

“How sweet. Carl was like that. Such a caring guy. A sharing guy, too. Except I never got my share, did I, Marlo? You kicked up merry hell and that dyke turned up with her shotgun. Shit, that was some protection you had going on there.”

Marlo riled. “Mae had no idea I was hiding up there.”

Barrett sucked on his beer. “Yeah, whatever you say. Hey, you went and lived with her, didn’t you? Did she turn you, Marlo? Do you play for both teams these days?”

Marlo shook her head again. He had let go of her wrist, and she inched her way along the sofa. She had no plan for when she reached the end but instinct urged her to put distance between them.

Barrett placed the drained beer bottle on the side table. “Well, it’s been lovely to sit here and reminisce, but this ain’t Thanksgiving, girlie, so I think it’s time to move things along.” He settled back on the sofa and placed his hands behind his shaved head and exaggerated a sigh. “Take your T-shirt off. Leave the bra—I’ll take that off myself when I’m ready.”

“What?”

“Lose the shirt, give me a show.”

“This is stupid. You need to think about it—”

“I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. Now, do it.”

“No, no way.”

“Actually, girlie, this is nonnegotiable. You see, I’ve been a good boy up until now, and I’ve kept my mouth shut. But if you don’t do as I ask, I’m going to have to tell that Kiwi cock of yours all about your reputation for screwing cops to get what you want. How happy do you think he’d be to find out that you’re just another badge bunny who gets her rocks off by dicking the uniform boys? You know the drill, girl, you said it yourself. It’s all about survival.”

She needed Adam because she knew she couldn’t hold this together for much longer. The fog in the margins of her head had thickened and was trying to roll back in. She needed to stop Barrett from becoming agitated. He only wanted her to remove her T-shirt. Keep things moving at a slow-enough pace and Adam would be sure to arrive. Wouldn’t he?

“I’m going to count to three.” Insipid pale eyes locked onto hers, and his head gave a single small nod of encouragement. She swallowed although her mouth was dry. Not taking her eyes from him she slowly stood, intimating she was going to comply.

The hand he rested on his thigh clenched and opened as if he was warming up. “That’s a girl. Let’s move this along.”

Marlo looked to her left, to the strip of sun on the rug that was shrinking with her courage. The guardian of her psyche said it was time to go numb. It had been a nine-year buildup to this moment. Now he was here, and she experienced a sick relief. The waiting, the anticipation, and fear of the unknown would soon be over. Sure, going numb was a good option. She could dissociate and whatever was about to take place could simply happen to someone else. That way, nobody got hurt and nobody got the prize.

Barrett’s face had flushed with the triumph of the win. There hadn’t even been any effort on his part to find her, to set up this scene. Fate had maliciously delivered her with the certainty of a franchise pizza order.

Suddenly a roar of noise exploded in her head. The din was startling, like a doorbell in the dead of night. At that moment everything around her seemed to pause. Sound waged war against stillness as her guardian relinquished control to the warrior that had just been born. Of one thing she was now certain…Barrett had missed his opportunity.

Maybe he sensed it, or maybe her expression had changed, because he followed her move and stood, too. “Be good,” he hissed, “because I don’t mind hurting you.”

He reached for her T-shirt, and she turned away from him. “Bedroom,” she stated in a voice she scarcely recognized, then walked towards the door. No panic, no running which would only serve to kick-start the chase. She walked and he followed, the bottom of her shirt screwed through his fist.

The noise in her head dissipated and she struggled for breath, concentrating on what she had to do in the next few seconds. Adrenaline was trying to make her run, but she held a steady focus on a plan. Sure, this would put all the hard work she had done with Justice in jeopardy. It might undo everything, or it could strengthen their bond.

Whatever the outcome, she needed Justice to react in the way she’d worked hard to condition out of him since he’d come into her care.

Six steps from the bedroom and Barrett stopped. He jerked on the T-shirt so that the collar tightened across her throat and she lost her balance. He pulled her close and put his mouth up to her ear. “Wait ‘til you see what I’ve got planned for you.”

She heard a rattle and looked down to see him brandishing a pair of handcuffs. It took all her will plus reserves not to pull away.

He released her, and with the agility of a martial arts master, hauled her T-shirt front-to-back over her head, leaving her arms in the sleeves so that he could pin them behind her back. His breath was coming in heavy pants. “Oh, Marlo, I can hardly wait.” He spoke his nasty lyrics in an odd sing-song voice, emphasizing each syllable.

She jerked and tried to snatch her arms away but he simply twisted his fist in the soft cotton he held, so that the sleeves tightened and trapped her arms.

He ducked his head, his mouth wet, his voice rasping in her ear. “No tricks or I’ll make you very sorry.”

“Of course not,” Marlo whispered. When they reached the door she looked up to him then nodded towards the door handle. She was amazed at how much stress her body and mind were coping with but she knew the adrenaline wasn’t going to last. She had to make this final bit matter.

As she pushed the door open, she signaled to the dogs with a look, to stay in their beds. Fala remained in an age-weary doze, but Justice was on high alert. He could smell the stranger and sense Marlo’s agitation. His lips tightened slightly, the corners of his mouth pulled back, his eyes enlarged, pupils dilated and fixed in a stare. No raised hackles; he was too confident to have to resort to displays of size to prove his dominance.

In short, Justice was primed.