CHAPTER SIXTEEN

AVERY

I RUB MY INDEX FINGER over my lips while I watch her close her eyes on my monitor. She’s up to something. I can feel it. Read it in her body language. She’s been good the past four days. Too good. She’s relaxed, and I’m on alert.

Don’t make me hurt you, Bunny!

I sit back in my seat, watching as her body softens into the bed and her lips part a little, letting me know she’s out. I turn off the computer and run a hand through my hair. What is she up to? What does she have planned? And what can I do to prepare myself for it?

I pick up my cell and dial Kayn’s number. He answers on the first ring. “My study,” I say and then hang up.

I’m refilling my glass of scotch when he enters. “Sir?”

“Sit,” I order, and he does as I say. “She’s planning something.”

“How do you know?”

“I just do. I’ve known her all my life. I can tell.”

“Excuse me if I’m overstepping, but I’ve been working for you for eight years now and not once have I ever heard you mention her.” I arch a brow, and he continues. “Women have come and gone, but you’ve never kept them here overnight. This woman has been here a week now. The first few days, she did nothing but fight us. Now she’s been silent for four days. Which brings me to my point. If she had another plan to escape, wouldn’t she have already done it?”

I shake my head at that question. “Her head is clear. Her mind sharp. She’s biding her time.”

He leans back in the chair and rubs his chin. “So what do you want me to do?”

I want to punish. I need to punish her. This is why she’s here. My slave. “Provoke her.”

He frowns. “To run?”

I nod. Leaning forward, I place my elbows on my desk. “Let your guard down. Make her think she has the upper hand.”

He shows no surprise at my demand. I know she’s plotting, but if I give her an opportunity, she will throw her plans to the wind and take the out that Kayn allows her. “How do you want me to handle her afterward? Same as before?”

“No. Just let her be. I’ve already told her what will happen to her. The anticipation of me coming home and putting her in the cellar will be enough to drive her mad. Plus, I want her sober while she’s down there. Not drugged.”

He stands. “When do you want me to do this?”

I tap my foot on the floor, thinking about the timeline I have to work with. “Give it a couple of days.”

He exits my study after that, and I debate on what to do, but my cell ringing interrupts my thoughts.

It’s a blocked number.

“Hello?”

“Just what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Comes the voice I know all too well.

“I have the situation under control.”

“Control, my ass!” he snaps. “You shot Preston and kidnapped his sister?” I open my mouth, but he continues. “I told you not to touch her.”

“And I couldn’t follow that order.”

“Avery,” he growls.

“I have been offered an invitation to Conway’s next week,” I say. He’s silent on the other end of the phone. “I have a plan, sir. I need you to trust me.”

He lets out a long sigh. “Get it done. Then finish them both,” he snaps and then hangs up.

I look down at my phone to see the call has ended. The clock reads 6:15 a.m., so I gotta leave for work soon.

Turning my computer back on, I smile as I get another idea. She’s been good. Too good. It’s time to fuck with her mind. I think she deserves a reward.

Making my way up to her room, I waltz in without permission to find her lying on the bed facing away from me. I walk around the bed until I’m in front of her and watch her sleep. I used to do this all the time back when we were in love. Back when I believed two people were meant for one another and there could be a better life than the one we were raised in.

I push some brown hair from her face, and my fingers trail over her soft skin. I’ve always thought of her as a doll. Perfect and fragile. Now here I am fucking her like a whore and beating her like a slave.

It doesn’t matter what I do to her, she gets wet. The person who kept messaging her said they had found her at a cottage with a man who had hit her. Is that what she has come to like? A slap to the face?

She knew I wasn’t bluffing when I told her the consequences, yet she still tried. Why? Did she want to be punished?

I fucking hate this woman with every part of me, but I hate the old her. The one who left me behind and never looked back. This Bunny makes me love her like this. A weeping mess. A soaked slut who needs my cock. What has happened to her over the past eleven years that has changed her so much?

I wish I knew. She’d never tell me, and honestly, I won’t ever ask.

It doesn’t matter!

Nothing will change what has led us to this point.

I pull the covers back and see she is naked, and my cock hardens instantly.

I reach up and remove my shirt. Then I undo my jeans and remove them along with my boxers. I go to her closet and open the locked safe. I keep everything I had planned to use on her in here, knowing she would spend most of her time in her room.

I grab what I need, close the safe, and walk back over to the bed. Gently, I crawl onto it. She lies on her stomach and I grab her hands, bringing them behind her back and cuff them.

She stirs, but her eyes remain closed. I place my hands on her inner thighs and shove them apart. Then my hand slides up to her pussy. I run a finger over her lips, and she lifts her ass up in the air. I smile. “That’s it, Bunny.”

“Avery.” She moans, her eyes still closed.

I push a finger into her, and she spreads her thighs farther apart for me, her hands pulling on her cuffs.

“What …?” She trails off when she starts to come around.

“Wake up, baby,” I say, sliding my finger in and out. She starts to get wetter for me.

She whimpers and begins to squirm under my touch. “Please.”

I remove my finger and push in two this time. She gasps, her hips rocking back and forth on my hand. Fucking my fingers as if they are my cock.

I get up on my knees and sit between her legs. I need to feel her wrapped around my dick just as much as she needs me to fuck her. I remove my fingers, and before she can protest, I replace them with my cock.

She moans, arching her back as I stretch her tight pussy. Fuck! She feels better every time. As if no one has ever been there before. My hands grip her hips, and I start to move. I pull back and thrust forward. Our bodies slap together. She’s so wet it runs down my balls and onto the sheets. She cries out with every thrust, and I slap her ass as if she’s disobeyed me. A rush of rage runs through me that she hasn’t defied me these past four days. That she hasn’t tried to escape.

This is why I brought her here. To punish her! To show her that even after all these years, I still fucking own her. You will, Bunny. You’ll try to escape, and I’ll get what I want. I always do.

I lean over her back and snake my hand around her throat from behind. She closes her eyes and her lips part. “I heard you’ve been good.” I slow my pace.

“Yes, sir.”

Fuck, there’s that word again. “Why is that, Bunny? Giving up on me already?”

She pants. “I understand my place, sir.”

She’s a motherfucking liar! But I can play along. “And where is that?”

“Under your command.”

“Goddamn right, Bunny!” I growl, tightening my hand around her throat.

Her pretty lips part but nothing comes out or in. I pull my hips back and then thrust forward.

Her body fights under mine, and I smile against her neck. “I control every part of you, baby,” I growl, slamming into her again. “Your touch.” I pull out. “Your sight.” I slam forward. “Your hearing.” Pull out again. “Your breath.” Then slam forward. “Every fucking little thing. Remember that when I’m not around, Bunny.”

I release her throat, and she sucks in a ragged breath, tears filling her eyes due to my hand around her throat moments ago.

I slow my pace, and she whimpers in protest. She prefers it hard.

“Has anyone else fucked you like this?”

“Stop.” She chokes out.

I have to know. “You used to like it when I made love to you. When did you start liking being fucked like a whore?” I demand.

She buries her face into the sheets. I reach up and grab a fist full of hair and hold her head down to the side. “You won’t hide from me, Bunny.” Tears stream down her face, wetting the sheets just like her pussy is. “Where did my innocent girl go?”

“Fuck you,” she growls, fighting the cuffs.

I smile. That’s what I want. Her anger. “I prefer a slut over an innocent girl any day.” Her body continues to thrash, fighting me, but her pussy gets wetter. “I can feel how much you like this. The way I talk to you like a cheap fuck. The way I pin you down and fuck you …”

She closes her eyes. “Please stop …”

“Why, Bunny? Don’t be ashamed of who you are.”

“You don’t know me,” she growls.

“But I do. You’re a woman who spreads her legs for any man. Tell me, baby. Do you beg them to come like you do me?”

“Fucking stop!” she snaps.

I chuckle, and she fists her hands while her legs try to close. But I’m sitting between them, so I only shove them farther apart. She cries out in pain, and I pound into her deeper. Harder. She’s gasping for air, and her pussy tightens around my cock.

“Has this always been your fantasy? To be tied and fucked? To be used? Overpowered? Because I’ll gladly fulfill it for you, Bunny. All you gotta do is beg me for it.”

She comes as a cry is ripped from her parted lips. I feel it running down my cock and balls, but I don’t let up. I keep going, pounding into her while her body shakes uncontrollably. She lies there—her body pinned, hands cuffed—completely at my mercy. Just as I’ve dreamed of having her for the past eleven years.

I thrust forward one last time and find my own release.

PRESLEIGH

Finally!

He let me come. And I don’t even have the energy to decide if it was really because I had been good or if he wanted to mess with my mind. And at this moment, I don’t fucking care.

He removes himself from between my legs, and I pull them together and lower my ass to the bed.

I’m so sore. Every part of my body aches. Why had it felt like it’d been weeks since I’d been fucked and not four days? And why did every degrading thing he said to me make me wetter?

I hate that I like it.

I jump when I feel his hand on my lower back. He doesn’t say anything as he grabs my arms and then my wrists are freed from the cuffs.

I roll over and sit up slowly as I watch him walk into the closet with the cuffs dangling from his hand.

He exits the closet, still naked and looking like a God. I haven’t had the chance to see him fully naked. I try to avoid any contact with him when he fucks me. Plus, he’s usually behind me. Other times, he has either had his shirt on or just unzipped his pants.

He looks better than I remember. He’s no longer that tall, skinny kid. Now he’s all muscles and man. His broad shoulders are pulled back. His smooth chest defined as much as his stomach, and that V that makes women stupid. He makes me an idiot.

“Bathroom,” he orders before he turns and enters it.

I get a pain in my chest at the situation I find myself in. I’m going to die. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. He sealed my fate when he took me, so begging him won’t make a difference. In order to tell him my future, I have to reveal my past, and I refuse to do it. There are some things a woman needs to take to her grave, and I have a couple of those. So I stick to my plan. And when I’m free, I’ll run like hell. This time, I’ll be smarter about hiding. Not even my brother will know where I go once I’m free.

I walk into the bathroom and see he has already started the shower. He walks up to me and takes my left hand. He turns it over and starts undoing the tape on my wrist. The cut isn’t that big, and it didn’t even require stitches. I was told some kind of medical glue was used. The cut is about three inches from my hand. It wouldn’t have been so bad if I had just got the damn thing and got out of there. Instead, when I stood, I slipped in the blood and fell, hitting my head.

Fucking figures.

“How does it feel?” he asks.

I stiffen and glare up at him, grinding my teeth. “Like you fucking care how I feel.”

He steps into me, his hard body pressing against mine, and I hate that my knees shake.

“You’re here because I care.”

I snort. “Don’t fill me full of bullshit, Avery. I’m twenty-eight, not twelve.”

I’m baiting him, trying to get him mad at me. This pretending to care is new. As if he is saving me from someone who would treat me worse than he does. I prefer the part where he has me cuffed and coming rather than the intimate looks and caring words.

I’m so fucked up!

He lets go of my chin, and his hand cups my face. His thumb gently rubs my skin like a lover’s caress. I refuse to flinch.

I wait for him to say something, but instead, he drops his hand and then grabs my arm and pulls me into the shower. We stay silent, and he washes me, not giving me any other choice. After the shower, we get out and dry off. He excuses himself with an order to meet him in the dining room for breakfast in twenty.

It’s awkward. I eat silently while he types away on his phone most of the time. I have a hard time even keeping my eyes open because I’m so tired. That orgasm did me in. And it felt like I was only asleep for ten minutes when he woke me up. So worn out. And I’m craving a fucking drink. Or a hit.

He sets his phone down, and I see him look at my plate out of the corner of my eye. I haven’t eaten much of my breakfast. I’m having a hard time keeping my eyes open.

“Bunny …?”

“May I be excused?” I ask, interrupting him and hating that I have to fucking ask for permission like a child.

I place my fork on the table and stare at him expectantly. He goes to open his mouth but isn’t given the chance to speak.

“Sir?” Kayn enters the formal dining room.

I spin my head in the opposite direction to look at him. He crosses his arms over his massive chest and pulls back his shoulders. His dark eyes stare at Avery, and he acts as if I don’t even exist. I like it that way.

“What is it, Kayn?” Avery asks, scooting his chair back and standing.

“I just spoke with Tristan, and he is on his way over. He has some intel on …” His eyes find mine before they go back to Avery. “The source.”

“You are excused, Bunny,” Avery says without hesitation.

I push my chair back, stand, and walk out, not even bothering to say a word. Once I reach the long hallway, I look behind me to see if either one of them are following me or if they are still talking in the dining room. When I see I’m in the clear, I run into his office, grab a bottle of scotch, and then run up the stairs two at a time, ready to have a drink and pass the fuck out for the day.

_______________

I’ve waited two days. Once again, Avery hasn’t visited me. He’s stayed away, and I’ve kept to myself in my room.

And I’m starting to go crazy. I need fresh air. I need an adult conversation. I really need to talk to Alex. Does she miss me? Has she realized I’m gone? I wish I could say this is the first time I’ve disappeared and that she would be worried about me, but it’s not. I’ve fallen off the face of the earth many times, and she’s always come to save me. She’s that kind of best friend. But I always had my cell. There was that one time it died, and I forgot my charger at home along with my purse and suitcase. Long story short, I ended up stealing a charger from a gas station and had to call her to come pick me up when the bastard left me stranded in Las Vegas. Then there was another time I went on a vacation with a man up to his cabin in Colorado. I had no service and had to run over a mile to a neighbor’s house to call her.

Obviously, I was never sober when I did these things. I don’t think I’ve done anything rational in the past eleven years. Guess that just proves why I am where I am today. I’m being punished. I never once tried to help or save any of those women taken by our fathers, and I’m paying for it now. But it’s not a complete stranger; instead, it’s someone I used to love. The only person who I thought would have my back no matter what betrayed me.

 

Seventeen years old

 

I wake up on the hotel floor. My eyes are red and puffy from tears, my back sore, and knees pulled up to my chest. My body hurts. It hasn’t stopped.

He left me!

Then his voicemail … destroyed me.

It hurts—everything. My body. My heart. My pride.

As I blink the tears away, my purse comes into view on the floor. The guy threw it into this room along with me. It’s on its side, unzipped, and the contents have fallen out. There’s a pill bottle. My meds. More importantly, painkillers. I want them. I wanna be numb. Getting up on my hands and knees, I crawl over to them, pop it open, and swallow two of them. Then I make my way over to the minibar and open the mini bottle of vodka. Tipping my head back, I swallow the entire bottle, making sure I have every drop, then I suck in a long breath before throwing it across the room. It hits the door and shatters into a million little pieces just like my fucking soul.

I reach for my phone and dial his number. Maybe Avery will listen to me. He knows me.

I place the phone to my ear, and just when I think it’s about to ring, a woman’s voice comes on. “The number you are trying to reach is no longer in service ...”

I hang up and tighten my hands on it. No! No! This can’t be … he wouldn’t … why? Why would he not let me explain?

“I fucking hate you!” I scream as if he’s here and can hear me. “Fucking hate you!” I’m shouting at the top of my lungs. My throat burns, and my heart pounds in my chest. Getting up on my knees, I allow my head to fall back and the tears to run down the side of my face.

A knock comes on my door. “Miss, you okay?”

“No!” I cry out, falling forward. I’m not okay.

They pound on it some more. “Open up, miss.”

“Go away,” I mumble, out of energy. My shoulders starting to sag. My head hangs forward. My vision starts to get cloudy. And I rock back and forth on my knees, hugging myself. “I hate you,” I whisper harshly while my eyes get heavy. The pills are doing their job. Or maybe it’s the alcohol. Either way, I welcome what is to come.

I still hear the voices outside of my door, but I can’t make them out anymore. I fall to the floor face down, and I blink slowly, welcoming the silence. The darkness. The relief of the pain I know will never go away unless I drown it out. Smother it. I’ll do whatever I need to do, whatever I need to drink or swallow to make sure I stay numb.

 

_______________

The following morning, I have breakfast alone. I sit at the table, finishing off my eggs, and look around the silent formal dining room. I have an uneasy feeling. The house has been quiet. Silent even. I think Avery and the guys might not even be here. Avery had put Darrell on babysitting duty, but yesterday he quit standing outside my room. I heard his phone ring. He answered and gave a few, “Yes, sirs,” then I heard him walk away and down the stairs. I haven’t seen anyone actually. I’ve had this eerie feeling. It’s not like someone is watching me because the truth is, they are. Wherever Avery is and whatever he is doing, he has those damn cameras trained on me. And I can’t help but always stare at them, wondering what he’s thinking. Or what he’s waiting for. How long will I be here?

Maybe I’m bait. He could be keeping me holed up here in order to get Preston to come after me. But what would he do to my brother if he showed up? And let’s face it, Preston only cares about himself. So if my life is in his hands, I’m as good as dead anyway.

So many questions that I can’t even ask. Avery wouldn’t even acknowledge them, let alone answer me.

“Did you have enough, Miss Clarke?”

I jump when Marvin enters the dining room. “Yes.”

“Did you get enough?” he asks, and I nod.

Grabbing my plate, he turns and walks away, once again leaving me alone. I stand from my chair and walk over to the floor-to-ceiling windows. I look out over the tall trees, wondering where in the hell I am. After Avery walked away from me, I never tried to find him. And I never opened any social media page. I stayed under the radar for a reason and it was to avoid the situation I’m in now. For all I know, we’re not even in the US. Dark gray clouds cover the sky, making me wish I was still in bed.

“I’ve got to get out of here,” I whisper to myself.

Turning around, I walk out of the dining room and down the long hall that I know leads to his study. He seems to keep a nice collection of scotch in there. And I could use another drink.

I sit behind his desk and stare at his computer but don’t touch it. There’s no point. He has all his shit on lockdown. I do try all his drawers in his desk, though, but again, they’re all locked.

Looking around, I sigh when I see nothing that can get me drunk. He’s either hidden it or drank it all.

I walk out of his office and back up to my room. I lie down on the bed and look up at the ceiling, trying to decide what I can do to get the fuck out of here. Closing my eyes, I let out a breath. I could seriously go back to sleep. My body teetered on sleeping and getting up for the day. But like every other day, I’m reminded there’s nothing to get up for. I may be sentenced to a fancy bedroom in a mansion, but I might as well be in a prison cell. I no longer know what day it is or even care.

My door opens, and I let out a sigh. No one ever knocks before entering my room. I have no privacy.

“Get up.”

I grind my teeth at the command of one of Avery’s men. I remain where I’m at.

The covers are ripped away from my body, and I cry out when a hand digs into my hair and I’m hauled out of bed. “I said get up!” I’m shoved against the wall and come face to face with the idiot Darrell. “When I tell you to do something, you do it.” He spits in my face before he lets go of me and walks into my bathroom. I hear him turn on the shower and then he enters my closet.

He walks out moments later with a bag over his shoulder. “Get cleaned up.” He looks me up and down with a scowl on his face. “We leave in an hour.”

My heart rate picks up. “Leave? Where are we going?”

He walks out without answering me. Maybe Avery has realized I’m a burden, and he’s taking me home.

_______________

An hour later, I make my way down the winding staircase to the foyer. Darrell stands there with his shoulders back and arms crossed in front of him. He has an earpiece in his right ear and is dressed in a black button-down and black slacks. He looks like he works for the FBI.

He doesn’t acknowledge me in any way, and I don’t mind.

“Yes … I’m about to leave …”

I hear Avery’s voice coming down the hall from behind me, and I refuse to turn around to look at him. Still ashamed of getting turned on no matter what he does to me.

“We should arrive around seven tonight …” he continues to talk as he approaches us, then hangs up his cell and places it in the pocket. He wears a crimson button-down and black slacks. “Darrell, call Fritz and let him know we’re on our way,” he orders, and Darrell gives him a nod before he pulls out his cell while opening the front door.

“Where are we going?” I can’t help but ask, and I hope he doesn’t hear the excitement in my voice. This could be my chance to get away.

Darrell walks out the front door, and Avery turns to look down at me. His blue eyes give nothing away, but a muscle clenches in his jaw. He’s mad at me. It could be a number of things, but the thing is, I don’t care.

“Don’t think about running. I put a new tracker in you.” No surprise there. And I haven’t had a good escape plan worth trying since my second failed attempt. But that doesn’t mean I’ve given up hope either. “And good luck finding this one.” He takes my hand but doesn’t answer, dragging me out of the house and into his Escalade that awaits us in the drive.

My hands itch to slap him, just to get a reaction out of him. He took me, fucked me, and now, he ignores me.

I thought I preferred the silence, but it’s eating me alive. He types away on his phone as though I don’t even exist. Why take me away from my life, even if it wasn’t all that productive, only to treat me like I’m not even here? He’s playing head games with me. And they’re working.

I’d rather be a slave to his words than a prisoner in my own mind. And even I know how fucked up that is.

Thirty agonizing minutes later, we pull into a private airport, and I feel panic start to rise. I’m terrified of flying. The fear of falling to my death has sweat forming on the back of my neck.

My hands start to shake. “Avery, I can’t …”

A sting in my neck cuts me off. I spin to my left to see him sitting there, staring at me. He places the cap on a needle before putting it in his pocket. “I know, Bunny.” He reaches out and pushes my hair behind my ear as my eyes start to grow heavy. The last thing I see is his eyes as mine close.